I, THE DRAGON OVERLORD

by Kideo11

Louie became a mythical dragon that was capable of traveling between Earth and the Otherworld at will. From this point on, the number of races in the Otherworld became more plentiful. His territory was orderly and clean, with incredible cuisine, countless novelties, and civilization and philosophy ahead of the whole world. On Earth, his existence caused the rebirth of magic and

1. Chapter 001 - 100

Chapter 1

"Buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz…."

A mosquito-like insect was flying around within the lush foliage. Suddenly, an earth-colored lizard emerged from the dirt, opened its mouth, and shot out its tongue in a flash. It brought the insect back to its mouth, and then quickly burrowed back into the dirt, using its camouflage to hide and wait for its next meal.

The lizard clamped its mouth shut and swallowed. It felt the deliciousness transmitted by its taste buds and the feeling of fullness in its stomach before sighing in a very human way.

The lizard was named Louie. He was once a social animal who had graduated from Shangjing University in less than two years. He suddenly woke up one day to find out that he had become a lizard.

With regards to being turned into a lizard, Louie did not feel much regret. Being an orphan, no one would care much if he went missing or died. Even his corpse would probably remain undisturbed in his apartment until the stench became too much to endure for the people living there.

Thus, he was quite accepting of his current situation. Even if he stayed as a human being, he would only become an ordinary cog in society until he decayed and rusted in old age – finally becoming dust that no one would remember.

'Human beings are truly adaptable. I can even accept eating insects.'

Louie, who had eaten his fill, continued to bury his body under the dirt. He slightly squinted his eyes to rest for a bit. Not making any unnecessary movements was something he had learned after becoming a lizard. Other than being able to decrease his body's energy consumption, it also prevents predators from finding him as he uses his camouflage to protect himself.

In the beginning, when Louie found that he had become a lizard, he could accept everything about the situation. The only thing he could not accept was the need to eat insects to fill up his stomach. His human consciousness made him feel that eating insects was a very disgusting behavior, but as time went by and his hunger grew, the desire for insects only grew along with it. Finally, he could not endure anymore and caught his first insect meal.

It was then that Louie discovered that perhaps because his body was now a lizard, his tastes had become different from those of a human. As he tasted the insect, he unexpectedly felt that it was delicious. It was then that he had truly accepted that he was a lizard and began his life as a lizard.

Inheriting all the abilities of a lizard and having the mind of a human, he lived in the rainforest with good food. His life for the past month was considered easy.

Louie knew neither where this rainforest was, nor whether or not it was even still on Earth. Because he was now a lizard, he could not sense the external temperature, but he could see that the entire place was a tropical rainforest and guess that he was somewhere around the equator.

"Sigh, if only I could be a lion or a tiger, I would have been able to become the hegemon of the grassland and the mountains. Even if I wasn't a lion or a tiger, becoming a panda wouldn't be bad either. That way I would only need to act cute to be able to live a life of happiness."

Louie was lying on the mud as his thoughts flew elsewhere and began to think of nonsense.

He was now a lizard and a very small one at that. Even when he was drinking water earlier, he was able to instinctively recognize his own species from his reflection.

He was a Jesus lizard – also called Christ lizard. It was a lizard with a name far grander than its ability and was just a bit higher than insects in the food chain. The reason why it was called the Jesus lizard was that it could run on water with its legs.

In the Bible, Christ was able to walk on water, so the lizard with this ability was named after him. The reason why Louie knew about this lizard was that he had been watching Animal Planet after he had just resigned from his job and was taking a break at home. The program was about various female animals with delicate features. It just so happened that it also introduced this wonderful animal to him.

The reason he was able to recognize his own species was due to the urge to run that he felt when he looked at the water source.

Even so, Louie felt that it was useless. Other than using the ability to escape predators, what other meaning was there to it? Would other creatures just kneel before him and call him 'God'?

'This body is too small, and there are a lot of predators. Staying here will be difficult. What should I do next?'

Louie would be frowning if he still had eyebrows.

After becoming a lizard for more than a month, the feeling of novelty had long passed. Now he was facing the tropical rainforest filled with dangers that could threaten his life at any time. Louie could only feel that it was more like a doorway to hell, and a demon might jump out anytime to finish him off. He needed to be careful otherwise he could lose his life.

After becoming a lizard, he had one more thing to fear—-

That was, how long could a Jesus lizard live?

Animal Planet had not discussed this topic, but based on the size of his body, Louie did not feel that he would live long. If he was a normal lizard, he would not have a sense of self and question about his lifespan, but the tragedy was that his mind was that of a real human.

With modern medical technology, human life expectancy was 60 to 70 years, and Louie who was in his 20s should have at least 40 to 50 more years to live, but now that he had become a lizard, he did not think that he could really live 40 to 50 more years. It was especially so in this tropical rainforest where it was difficult to live to the end of his life.

The horror of death loomed over Louie's heart, making him anxious inside, but now that he was a lizard, he really didn't know what to do about it.

Suddenly, his instincts as a lizard alerted him to danger, and his slender vertical pupils quickly turned to appraise the potential hazard.

A lizard's eyesight was not that good, but its perception of moving creatures was exceptionally keen. With his blurred vision, Louie perceived where the danger came from.

On a tree branch not far from him, there was actually a snake coiled there. It flicked its tongue and gazed coldly at Louie.

'Oh no, it's a snake!'

Louie's pupils shrank for a moment. A lizard of his size was exactly a snake's delicacy. Even a human foot would be able to crush him to death. Defeating a snake would be impossible.

Escaping was the only way Louie could think of to get out of this predicament.

…

As a lizard with a human mind and soul, other than having the instincts of a lizard, Louie had the intelligence of a human being. He had searched for a habitat close to a water source for fear of encountering danger. This way, he could escape at the first opportunity.

He did not bother asking why he could be found by snakes. There was no such thing as foolproof protection in nature. Even chameleons could be found. With just his own earth-colored skin, it was absolutely impossible for him to hide from the eyes of predators forever. Not to mention, Louie remembered that snakes do not seem to rely on their eyes to find prey.

While Louie was letting his imagination run wild, his instincts caused him to flee in an instant and move at the fastest speed towards a water source. The snake was flabbergasted as if it did not expect its dinner to run so fast. It quickly chased after its prey as it moved through the underbrush, unwilling to easily let its dinner escape.

Louie ran through the grass on all fours. At this time, his heart flashed with faint sorrow and fear.

This was the first time he had to escape from his natural enemy after becoming a lizard. After the novelty of becoming a lizard passed, he finally felt the terror of being one, and that was the terror of having his life and death decided by fate. As a lizard, just a super small Jesus lizard, there were countless predators inside this tropical forest. Wanting to live in such a place was extremely difficult.

Though he ran as fast as he could through the grass, he could feel that the snake had not given up on chasing after him. Louie's heart was filled with extreme fear. If he was a human, his heart might have already jumped out of his mouth. Whether it was being a lizard or being a snake, Louie would never want to die like this.

Insects were flying around everywhere. If it was the usual Louie, he might have thought of having a delicious meal, but he did not dare think like this. If he was any slower, he might just become that bastard's meal.

Under this kind of fear, Louie's lizard body ran at its peak speed. Not long after jumping over the underbrush, he saw the flowing water ahead of him. He was so ecstatic that he sped up again.

When he reached the water source, his instincts as a Jesus lizard came into play. From running on all fours, he pushed himself up, and then stomped quickly with an inelegant posture. In the blink of an eye, he had run across very far on the water.

On the other hand, when the snake reached the shore, it could only flick its tongue as it watched Louie tread on water and disappear far away in the blink of an eye.

At this time, Louie's heart relaxed a little. He knew that the snake should not continue its chase, but he did not dare stop. He continued to use all his power to run on water. Although he knew how to swim as a Jesus lizard, his small size in such waters was more dangerous. It was very likely that he would become some fish's dinner, so he could not stop his legs. He needed to get to land before he ran out of stamina.

Suddenly, Louie's eyes lit up when he saw a small island in the center of the flowing river. Naturally, it was only a small island from his perspective. For large animals, it was only a large rock.

But for Louie, this 'small island' was just the right place for him to take a break. He quickly ran to the 'small island'. Like a lizard, he could not continuously use 'the walk on water skill'. Its stamina consumption was too huge. With this island as a resting spot, he could wait and recover his stamina before running back to land.

When he reached the 'small island', he still did not dare stop for too long on top of this open bare rock, as it would be easy for birds to spot him. If he was accidentally eaten by a bird, he would not even be able to cry about it.

As a creature at the bottom of the food chain, Louie's life was very miserable. There were too many predators. Other than being able to bully those insects, he could only run away in the face of some aggressive animals.

He got on all fours and searched the 'small island', hoping to find some crevices and other places where it was relatively safe for creatures of his size.

However, after searching around, he did not find a place of refuge on this 'small island', but he was able to find a crack between the rocks.

The crack was dark and deep to the point that the bottom could not be seen at a glance. It was as if its darkness was connected to hell. However, this analogy was only for small animals like Louie. For larger animals, it might just be a crack in the rock.

Louie stood in front of the seemingly deep crack and hesitated for a moment. He carefully compared the safety of going in or staying outside, but he soon made his mind and slipped into the crack.

By the size of the crack, even if there were other creatures inside, they would probably be about the same size as him. At that time, he would still be able to fight. If he had stayed out, he would be found by birds. Even if he was able to walk on water, the enemy could fly!

"Huh?"

After drilling into the crack, Louie slightly moved a certain distance. The crack was extremely narrow, probably a few centimeters wide and ten centimeters high. Louie could only barely get in, but he suddenly saw light at the deepest part of the crack.

"What is that thing?"

The light could not be generated by itself, and the instantaneous bright light was so blinding that it did not look like it occurred naturally. Louie hesitated for a moment before his intense curiosity urged him to continue crawling forward.

Just like that, he crawled a few meters before his head suddenly knocked on something that caused a metallic sound.

"Is this the end?"

He knocked on the barrier in front of him with his claws. By the sound of it, it should be some kind of metal.

"Was this the object that just let out that bright light? Could it be some kind of rare and exotic mineral?"

Louie thought so, but he was inwardly disappointed.

He was now just a lizard. Let alone rare minerals, even if he had a hundred tons of gold in front of him, he would not be able to find any use for it.

Just when he felt that things were dull and was prepared to crawl back to the entrance to take a rest, the metallic object once again lit up.

Now that he was so close, Louie could feel how dazzling the light was. His vertical pupils shrunk as if the light had directly stabbed his eyes and made him blind. In addition to the blinding light, he could even vaguely feel that he was completely surrounded by the light.

At this point, a voice that he could not understand echoed in his brain.

"Unknown creature found. Requesting for a scan…"

"Scan successful. Unknown creature's souls and flesh possess a certain uniqueness, suspected to be a product of Terran Civilization…"

"According to the Terran Civilization's , highly intelligent creatures with a special mission will be allowed to 'survive' as part of the first criterion. Genetic matching is now requested…"

"Requesting genetic matching…"

"End of genetic matching. Unknown creature with a 12.6% genetic fit. According to the first criterion, request to start the 'God Creation Project'…"

"Request successful, starting species transformation…"

"Species transformation target, San Soliel world's magic creature — Dragon!"

Louie lost consciousness immediately after hearing these words. Before he passed out, the only word that came out of his mouth was 'crap'.

Chapter 2

Pain, pain, pain, pain, pain. Unbearable pain. Pain that would make you wish you were dead.

As an ordinary human being, Louie had never experienced this kind of pain in all his life. It was as if his body and soul were being torn apart.

As a protective mechanism, humans would lose consciousness once their pain passed a certain threshold. Perhaps because lizards have no similar mechanism, or perhaps because the pain had blasted straight through any such frameworks, Louie remained conscious The searing pain only heightened his awareness.

Slowly, in this intense pain, Louie noticed that his awareness had sublimated and had begun to leave his body. In this paradoxical state – suffering through insufferable pain while staying awake – Louie felt like he was ascending to heaven, or becoming an immortal as inexplicable changes were happening to his soul.

His consciousness and soul had transcended the limits of living creatures and was watching the world from a 360-degree perspective. Even if he was in a small lizard's body, he was able to observe everything.

As a soul, even the darkness of this strange crack was unable to block his 'vision'. And so he was surprised when he saw that the 'metal' he had bumped into earlier on was not a metallic mineral at all, but some clearly artificial construct. A spaceship of sorts.

The "spaceship" had a perfectly smooth surface and an indescribable color. Its metal shell harmonized its flawless exterior, leaving not a single gap. Louie knew that this was definitely not a human artifact. According to his understanding of human technology, it was absolutely impossible to make this near-perfect metal shell.

This spaceship-like object was not very big. It was about 6-7 meters in length, but this length was enormous to a small lizard like him.

Suddenly, the strange spaceship's outer shell flickered with a faint gloss. A crack opened in the center, causing the perfect construct to split in two. From its center, a glowing five-colored crystal slowly flew out.

The moment he saw the crystal, even Louie, now a mere disembodied soul, felt an urge to kneel and submit – as though it was not some suspicious crystal, but the essence of a god. The apotheosis of all living things and an existence that towered over all other life.

Louie could not describe the shape of the brilliant crystal. It flitted, in an indescribable manner, from one shape to another. One time appearing rhomboid, then squarish, then triangular and ovaloid. The mysterious object seemed to straddle the line between existence and non-existence.

And when he saw the crystal, Louie felt the pain alleviate.

Immediately after, Louie saw that the mysterious crystal seemed to be controlled by some kind of energy. It flew close to the void beside his tiny lizard body. As the crystal touched his body, the lizard body that carried Louie's consciousness seemed to melt into a fleshy ball that covered the crystal.

The fear of death gripped him like a vise. His body was the carrier of his consciousness and soul. Seeing his own flesh perish like this, Louie began to suspect that he was already dead and that only his consciousness and soul had not disappeared.

However, his mind was too clear. It was so clear that he could not believe that he was already dead.

The crystal covered with flesh and blood seemed to have completed its task, and it returned to the middle of the ship. This time the crystal did not descend. Instead, a test-tube-like object rose from the ship's interior. Through the coloring of the crystal, Louie clearly saw bright red blood inside.

As the test tube shattered into small pieces, the blood began to fuse with the lizard flesh and blood that covered the crystal. Soon, it quickly fused into a squirming clump of meat. It appeared like it was expanding and dividing with the crystal at its core.

At this time, the ship once again flashed with bright light. Under Louie's astonishment, the ship directly changed from solid to liquid, from liquid to gas, and finally transformed into pure energy that was injected into the mass of flesh and blood.

This time, after the injection of energy, the clump of meat began to grow like crazy. The components of any complex organism: nerves, blood vessels, muscles, bones, and even innards began to grow at a speed that the naked eye could observe. The grotesque scene seemed to herald the birth of some twisted monster from the movies.

But slowly, as more biological organs were formed, the fleshy ball also changed into a new form.

Its body was that of a mountain lion. On its back were two huge bat-like wings, and the end of each limb was adorned with claws. A rough yet beautiful neck bore the weight of a dignified but terrifying dragon head. A long tail naked downward with sharp barbs at the top and a sharp end. Scales of brilliant gold grew over the creature's august yet blood-curdling form.

Although Louie had never seen such a creature before, its appearance alone made him understand that it was not a creature that could exist on Earth, but a creature that appeared in Western mythology and legends… a dragon!

Only this dragon looked as though it was still in its infancy since it was only about 4 meters long. Nevertheless, it had a smooth and perfect appearance. By the time it grows up, it might reach 40 meters long, or even more than a hundred meters long. How majestic and spectacular would that be?

This newly born dragon was breathing softly, and Louie felt his consciousness being drawn to it. He felt his soul was quickly approaching and merging with the dragon.

At the same time, Louie felt a burst of fatigue and sleepiness. The once maddening pain instantly disappeared. A powerful force began to flood into his sea of consciousness, but the feeling of fatigue was so strong that his willpower could not resist it. He slowly fell into a deep slumber and began to dream.

He dreamt that he had become a divine ancient dragon that straddled the land. Countless creatures that could only be seen in myths were kneeling in front of him. Even the gods in heaven prostrated on the ground. The angels were subservient, and the demons were in deep terror. He wore a crown on his dragon head, enjoying the worship from all the races!

Chapter 3

Louie woke up.

He felt as though he had just awakened from a dream. In his dream, he turned into a lizard and lived in the rainforest for a month before being discovered by a predator. He narrowly escaped but then discovered an alien spaceship which, after speaking some words, turned him into a legendary dragon.

"That dream was really long; so long that I thought it was real."

Louie let out a self-deprecating sigh, but then he froze at his own words.

It was definitely not a human voice and definitely not a lizard's cry, but a real, majestic, yet slightly childish voice.

His eyes snapped open to reveal jewel-like inverted pupils which emitted an enchanting color. He gazed at that same rainforest from his 'dream', but this time his perspective had changed dramatically.

This was definitely not a lizard's perspective. As a lizard, Louie's eyesight was very poor, and trees appeared like unclimbable peaks to him. . However, from his current perspective, although the trees were still very tall, he did not feel that they were impossible to scale.

Next to Louie was a pool of clear water. He shifted his body and crawled closer. There was no delay in his movement. It was as if this was the body he was born in.

Through the reflection of the pool, Louie finally saw his current appearance.

Just like the last scene in his 'dream', he now had a fierce-looking dragon head, sharp claws, bat-like wings, a powerful tail, and a body covered in fine scales that shone like a mountain of gold under the sun.

"I… really turned into a dragon?"

Louie murmured with disbelief.

Everything he had dreamt of was actually real. Even if he could accept being reborn as a lizard, encountering an alien spaceship and everything else still felt too mystical.

This was a dragon. In various myths and legends, regardless of whether dragons were good or evil, there was one common point among their species: their power. They were creatures located at the top of the food chain.

And now, he had gone from a small lizard that was at the bottom of the food chain, to a legendary dragon!

"But looking at my current development, I should still be considered as a baby dragon."

Louie spat out and quickly accepted his new identity. Let alone becoming a dragon, he could even accept becoming a lizard. Before he was worried about his life expectancy, but now, he did not have to worry about this anymore. No matter which story it was from, dragons were known to live for thousands of years. Compared to being a human, becoming a dragon was a great profit.

"However, dragons have now appeared. Is this place really Earth or not?"

Louie was worried again all of a sudden. Previously, he still suspected that he was on Earth, but now, he was no longer sure. How could gigantic dragons appear on Earth? Unless the government was hiding something unknown, no normal person would be able to know this secret.

"Life activity from the host was detected. Intelligent life reactivated Please don't worry host, you are still on Earth. There are no foundations for magical creatures to appear on Earth. Other than you, this planet does not have any other creature with magical power.

Suddenly, a hollow and cold yet faintly human voice appeared in Louie's brain. This startled Louie, but he quickly calmed down. The voice felt very familiar to him. It was the voice he heard when he was transformed into a dragon.

"Who are you?"

Although this voice directly appeared in his brain, Louie was still a little uneasy, but he found himself fairly calm. He did not know if it was because a dragon's body was different from a human's. Although dragons could feel fear, the threshold of fear was very high. It was hard to feel afraid.

"I am the highest intelligent life form created by the Terran Civilization," the voice said with flourish.

"Are you the one who turned me into a dragon?"

"That's right."

"Are you inside my head now?"

Perhaps feeling the alarm in Louie's voice, the voice said, "… Please don't be nervous. In order to gain the possibility of 'survival', I have been symbiotically bound to the host's soul."

Although the voice did not explain in detail, Louie could understand its meaning. It roughly meant that he was now one with it. If he died, then it would also die, and from some of its words, this thing that called itself 'the Terran Civilization's highest intelligent life form', had a desire to live. As long as it had the desire to live, it would not harm him, which assured Louie.

"What is your name?"

"As a creature created by civilization, I have no name. My code name is 'XXXXX'…"

Louie could only hear strange sounds in his head, causing his brain to ache. He could not understand the code name at all. It might have been some kind of alien language.

"Okay, okay. I can't pronounce those words. I'll just call you 'Intelligent Brain'."

Louie interrupted its words.

Intelligent life was silent as if searching for the meaning of the words 'intelligent brain'. After a long time, it said, "… Although I am different from the 'intelligent brain' that the host is thinking of, the host can also call me so."

"Then Intelligent Brain, according to you, I am still on Earth? Moreover, there are no such creatures like dragons?"

"Yes."

Hearing Intelligent Brain's answer, Louie once again contemplated.

This was good news. Although Earth was dangerous, compared to those slightly understandable scientific weapons, magic was completely unknown. If he was given a choice right now, he would rather face off against science than magic.

"Then what's with me becoming a dragon?"

Since everything began with this 'Terran Civilization intelligent life form', Louie certainly wanted to understand everything as much as possible.

The host's current form is the product of the Terran Civilization's top-secret God Creation Project. Terran Civilization possessed scientific technology far more advanced than Earth's. They also possessed the ability to cross cosmic planes. By coincidence, the Terran Civilization discovered an inconceivable world— The world of San Soliel. It was a non-technological world dominated by magic."

"… Tens of thousands of years ago the Terran Civilization launched an invasion of San Soleil. Compared to the highly developed Terran Civilization, San Soliel was extremely backward. Although it had a complex structural composition, it was nearly completely occupied by the Terran Civilization in a short period of time."

"However, the Terran Civilization did not expect the laws of the world to be so different. There was even a group of individuals called 'Gods' that even they could not understand. Their existence was so incomprehensible that it made the Terran Civilization lose at a critical moment."

"The host's body is composed of the Five-colored Dragon God that the Terran Civilization annihilated. The Terran Civilization hoped to research the Five-colored Dragon God's godhood and flesh to understand the mystery of the gods, but they did not anticipate the incredible nature of the God species. In the process of retreating, they were ambushed by the dead Dragon God and eventually crashed onto this planet 10,000 years ago."

The intelligent brain explained the general situation in a mechanical voice to Louie. This allowed him to understand why he had become a dragon and not a blind person. This also revealed the Intelligent Brain's past.

"That crystal was the so-called godhood, right? In other words, my body's framework is that of the Dragon God?"

Louie became excited at that thought.

Chapter 4

A four-meter-long python was coiled up in a tree and basking under the sun in boredom.

In this primitive forest, it was already one of the top predators. Its thick and long body carried a terrifying coiling power. Even lions or tigers entangled by it would be strangled to death instantly. Thus, it did not have any natural enemies in this ecosystem.

Suddenly, the trees in the forest shook and the large python awoke. It raised its head and looked in the direction of the sound with its sinister eyes.

Even as one of the apex predators, it remained alert. In this primitive ecosystem where even the weak could prey on the strong, any creature that relaxed its vigilance would end up becoming another's meal.

Under the python's watchful gaze, the leaves in front of it swayed. A giant beast about 3 to 4 meters long threaded on dead leaves and twigs. It had golden scales that shone under the sunlight, and even the python, with its limited intelligence, knew not to provoke this beast. Every feature of this giant beast seemed optimized and honed for killing; it appeared to be a natural killing machine.

The python had never seen such a monster in its life of hunting. It wondered why the other party's scales shone. In the wild, this kind of flashy appearance would only attract undue attention. Although it did not have any wisdom, the python followed its instincts and turned tail, thinking that this was a beast not to be provoked.

Suddenly, the beast that shone with golden radiance seemed to notice it. Its snake-like inverted pupils glared at the python with a unique majesty that could not be compared to a snake.

The beast's gaze alone struck fear into the heart of the python. It was as if it just encountered the most terrifying predator in its entire life.

The python wanted to flee but noticed that it could not move. It wanted to intimidate it the same way it intimidated its prey, but it noticed that other than trembling, it could not do anything else.

When prey spots its predator, the right answer is to scream and flee. But when the predator is just that ridiculously strong, even those options are taken from it.

The life of the python ended when it saw the terrifying golden monster brandishing its claws.

…

"Is this the so-called Dragon's Might? It's really useful."

The skin of the python was very thick, but Louie noticed that his claws could tear the snake apart like paper. He used his sharp claws to pull open the snake, exposing its bright red internal organs.

After becoming a dragon, Louie had thoughts of playing around. In the beginning, he was very careful, but after finding out that no other creature was his match, his actions gradually became bolder.

Even a baby dragon was still a dragon. How could these ordinary creatures without magical ability win against him?

While he was killing for fun, Louie also began learning to use Dragon's Might. Although it had not yet reached a point where his appearance alone would paralyze other creatures, it worked when other creatures looked him in the eye. Even the strong python immediately withered and lost its fighting power, allowing him to kill it easily.

As for the weaker creatures, he only needed to use his gaze to scare them to death. This let him enjoy the feeling of the much-touted expression: 'killing with a gaze'.

"However, this is not a good way of doing things. Do I have to spend hundreds of years of effort to grow stronger before I reach adulthood?"

After playing enough, Louie began to think about his future.

He was not a pure dragon. His soul was still a human's. Although he had retained most of the dragon's instincts, his body contained the inexplicable substance called godhood. Even his body's template was from the Dragon God, which sounded like a heavenly existence. Louie, however, lacked one thing, and that was the dragon's inherited knowledge.

According to the intelligent brain, dragons were creatures that would obtain their foundational knowledge through the dragon race's inheritance, but Louie was neither a true dragon nor was he born from an egg. Thus, he simply did not have any inherited knowledge so to speak.

"The genetic source of the host's body is the Five-colored Dragon God. As a Dragon God, you are different from normal dragons. And because of the 'God Making Project', the host's body has undergone genetic adjustments. Although the body's structure tends towards perfection, you will need a longer amount of time to mature compared to normal dragons."

Just as Louie was lying on the ground and taking a nap, Intelligent Brain's words made him jump.

"What do you mean by this? Are you telling me that hundreds of years are still not enough for me to mature?"

"Exactly."

The intelligent brain's monotone voice made Louie furious, "… What the hell am I supposed to do with this. Do you want me to just go find a corner and hide for thousands of years!?"

Louie did not think that this was a good choice. Earth was very dangerous. Although he was close to being unparalleled in front of other creatures, as a baby dragon, facing humans was different. Especially considering that humans had high-tech weapons he did not feel confident facing against.

Although his scales were already quite hard, there was no guarantee that they could block bullets. Even if he could block bullets from guns, could he block anti-material rifles or even guided missiles?

Without even needing to think, Louie knew that he definitely could not block them. Perhaps he might be able to face human methods after reaching adulthood or grasping the power of magic, but for now, he would not be able to defend himself from humans. Hiding for thousands of years would also be too difficult. There were satellites in space. After thousands of years, who knew what level of technology humans would have reached.

On the other hand, if he was caught, then the result was obvious. The end would definitely result in him being submerged in formalin and becoming a research sample.

"Host does not need to worry. The God Making Project has already considered this difficulty and has prepared the necessary energy source for growth. As long as you have the energy source, the host can instantly mature. In a short time, you can turn into your final form."

The intelligent brain's monotonous voice gradually pacified Louie's anger, "… Then, you should have the energy source, right?"

"Deepest apologies. When we were ambushed by the Five-colored Dragon God tens of thousands of years ago and the spaceship had crash-landed on this planet, the energy source was split up into pieces. These should have landed in different corners of this planet. I was only able to maintain a portion of the energy, which has since been used to mold the host's current body. Only a small portion remains."

"Then that means there is still a portion of energy? Then quickly give it to me. Let's talk again after I grow up a bit!"

Hearing the intelligent brain's words, Louie's eyes lit up. Although it was not that great of a discovery, and he could not directly grow into a mature dragon, for better or worse, the small amount of energy that the intelligent brain had would allow him to grow a bit. This could also increase his chances of survival. As for the locations of the lost energy sources, he could only consider them at length.

Dragons are a kind of magical creature. Their growth requires some kind of special energy which did not exist on this planet. If the host wishes to advance his growth, he must go to the world of San Soleil."

Louie, who was just happy a moment ago, became gloomy again.

"Enough! I'm tired of this. Are you going to play me to death! What is your use anyway!?"

Louie directly cursed. This thing called the highest intelligent life form was no good. It was simply too wasteful!

Going to another world? How could he have such an ability!? Didn't that mean he could not grow his entire life?

Right now, Louie was regretting that he had become a dragon. It would have been better for the intelligent brain to turn him into a panda. In any case, he could just keep eating and wait for his death.

"Host need not worry. I still have the ability to open a worm-hole tunnel. I have already saved the coordinates of San Soliel and can send the host there at any time."

"Next time, you should just finish saying everything. Don't stop in the middle of it."

Louie felt that the intelligent brain wanted him to feel sad one moment and happy the next. He forcefully calmed himself down, feeling that being angry with this intelligent life form was not worth it.

"What happens after I go to that world? Can I still return to Earth?"

Louie asked the most important question. How great would it be if he could move between the two worlds? If he could not return after going to another world, then he would need a way to find energy sources before leaving.

"The worm-hole is bidirectional. Host can return anytime."

At long last, the intelligent brain said something good.

"Huuuu…", Louie let out a sigh.

No matter what was said, he was a little more familiar with Earth. If he went to another world, everything would be unknown.

However, Louie also knew that he could not hesitate. He deeply inhaled and made his preparations, "… Then Intelligent Brain, do I need to do anything to open the tunnel?"

"Host does not need to do anything."

"Then, Intelligent Brain, you can begin opening the tunnel. Let us advance to San Soliel!"

Louie was not a person to screw up at crucial times. He spoke with seriousness in his eyes.

Chapter 5

The Pentagon Building located in Washington, District of Columbia, is the headquarters of the United States of America's highest military command authority, the Department of Defense.

The Pentagon remained in a state of perpetual activity. This edifice collected all the world's information while hiding the world's ultimate security secret.

"Knock knock—–"

"Come in!"

"Secretary Johnson, this is the report from the Fermi National Laboratory. Please read it!"

After receiving approval, a civil servant opened the doors and walked in. He respectfully executed a salute and placed the documents on the table before excusing himself.

The current United States Secretary of Defense, Johnson was a retired 4-star general of the Marine Corps. He had accepted the president's invitation and now assumed the post of Secretary of Defense.

When the civil servant left, the Secretary of Defense picked up the documents and saw the label denoting classified information on the document before quickly opening it.

"Fermi National Laboratory? Aren't they researching physics? Why would they send the Defense Department this kind of document?"

Filled with suspicion, the Secretary of Defense looked at the information. After scanning the contents, he threw the documents away, "… Come on, are you guys kidding me? There's actually a 'high-energy' reaction in the Amazon? And you really expect me to believe that it might be a wormhole? Why not just say that there are aliens on the moon plotting an invasion!"

The Secretary of Defense shook his head. He did not believe in the so-called wormhole one bit. Especially when the document stated that it had only appeared for an instant. This made it even more unbelievable.

From his point of view, this might be a move the research lab played because it lacked funding. Thus they used this pretense to slyly ask for more. That said, even if they needed funds, they should have thought of a more reasonable explanation. Saying that they found a worm-hole reaction on Earth would be the same as saying that the world would end tomorrow.

The Secretary of Defense was prepared to ignore this matter and take his leave when he suddenly thought about something and turned on the computer. He logged in with his privileges and searched for a report that he had just received.

"This is the report sent by Princeton University's physics research laboratory. They actually noticed something suspected to be a worm-hole reaction?"

Gradually, the Secretary of Defense's expression turned serious.

If it was just one laboratory that said it, he would feel that it was just to swindle some funds. But if two laboratories said it – especially when both were the top-notch laboratories in the United States of America – then as the Secretary of Defense, he could not brush them aside.

"Because the reaction only happened for an instant, the survey scope was not detailed. They could only pinpoint that it was somewhere in the Amazon jungle."

The Secretary of Defense stood up and walked to the map hung on the wall behind him. He used the pencil in his hands to draw a big circle on the Amazon jungle.

After a long time, he finally returned to his own office and pushed on a button on the phone on the desk.

"We should have a troop in South America's Amazon jungle, right? Send them close to west longitude XXX, south latitude XXX. I will send the details of the mission a little bit later."

After relaying his orders, the Secretary of Defense pressed the topmost button on the phone, "… Schedule me some time, I want to meet with His Excellency the President."

After putting down the phone, the Secretary of Defense let out a long sigh as his heart was filled with worry.

"God bless the United States of America! I hope there will be some good news…"

The Secretary of Defense stood up and wore his coat as he prepared to set out for the White House. Sensitive information like this needed to be communicated to the President in person.

"I hope His Excellency the President won't tweet out this information in excitement…"

Thinking about the current President's character, the Secretary of Defense felt his brain hurt. Why did he even accept the President's invitation to become the Secretary of Defense? Every day he had to wipe the president's ass due to his big mouth. It was truly tiring.

….

World of San Soliel

The Forest of the Moon was located south of the main continent. This place was an endless forest where the race spoken in Earth's legends – the elves – could be found.

The Forest of the Moon was the largest gathering place for the elven race. It was also the only place recognized as an elven kingdom. Other than elves, there were also large amounts of magic beasts and normal animals that lived there. There were treants, dryads, and other creatures that lived close to nature.

The elves had always been known for their elegant and delicate faces that surpassed the ordinary person. In the eyes of humans and many other races, elves were beautiful creatures that could charm anyone.

Unlike humans, elves had long lifespans, but their population was low. In the black market, elven slaves were essentially priceless. Every single human nobleman dreamt of possessing one.

Many human nobles took care to hide their dark perversions. Elves, whether male or female, had beautiful appearances, and thus they had become objects of desire for some nobles. With their long lifespans, some of them were even turned into family heirlooms. After one generation finished using them, the next generation would use them, and so on. There was no problem in repeatedly passing them on to posterity.

However, even if wealthy personages and nobles sought after them, elven slaves were too rare. This was because they lived in the elven kingdom inside the Forest of the Moon.

The Silver Moon Kingdom was the only recognized country for the elves, and it was located in the middle of the Forest of the Moon. The elves were not like humans who would construct walls to barricade themselves. For elves, the forest was the best method of protection. It was also the place where they could most easily display their abilities in battle. Only the garrisoned soldiers and the few elven urbanites lived in the elven capital. The majority of the elves lived in a tribal manner, scattered throughout the forest.

Although the elven kingdom was not as strong as the human empires, they were not weak either. This was because they were more united internally. If an elf was kidnapped and enslaved, all elves would retaliate collectively. Thus, nobles who held great power would never let the news that they had elven slaves spread.

In the deepest part of the Forest of the Moon, there was a tree that towered to the skies. This was the elves' sacred tree, the Ancient Tree of Life. According to legend, it was personally planted by the god that the elves worshiped. The god went by names of the God of Nature, the Silver Moon Goddess, and many other titles.

The legend said that the longevity of the elves was tied to this tree. If it died, then the elves would lose their long lifespans.

Under a branch of this ancient tree was a gorgeous and magnificent palace located at the center of a lake. The palace seemed to be a work of art, displaying the elven race's heritage and elegance. It was a testament to the naturalistic beauty of elven arts as opposed to the vulgarities of the humans'.

At the center of the palace, a lady stood with her head held high.

If the elves were the most beautiful race on the continent, then this elf was the most beautiful woman among them. She was the founder of the Silver Moon Kingdom. She stood above all elves and possessed the titles of 'Moon of Moons', 'Light of the Light', 'the Forest Fairy', and many other titles. She was the queen of the elves.

Chapter 6

The palace of the Silver Moon Kingdom, with its walls crafted by entwining countless tree branches, was exquisite and beautiful. It sat in the middle of Silver Moon Lake, appearing as though it was held up by the sacred tree of the elven race. All throughout the year, it was embellished with colorful fruits instead of the precious metals used by human societies.

Poetic sagas of ancient elves were engraved on the wooden walls. That the beautiful carvings were made on wood instead of stone was a unique feature of elven artistic expression.

Occasionally, some gold and silver rocks could be seen in the emerald-green field, hinting at perhaps an ounce of worldly desires within the elves. As well as an understanding of the importance of wealth.

At the center of the exquisite palace, the elven queen stood elegantly on a high platform. The glittering sunlight passed through the gaps of the palace trees and shone on the throne behind the queen, as though countless doves of peace were holding olive branches, rising and flying up.

The queen wore a gorgeous floor-length dress. Her clothes were sewn from tree leaves, flowers, wooden thread and other vegetable materials. Despite lacking a trace of gold or silver, her robes gave off a timeless and profound atmosphere.

She had silver hair like the bright moon in the sky and was wearing a crown of braided flowers. Her tall figure was covered by her dress, but it still could not completely hide her lofty soft breasts and her willow-like waist. Although she stood there without moving, she still carried a hazy enticement. People could not help but want to peek at the delicate body hidden under her clothes, but Her Majesty carried a sense of solitude that made it hard for others to have blasphemous thoughts against her. They could only look at her from afar.

Carandia, in the elven language, means 'moon's whispers'. This was the Silver Moon Queen's name and it resounded throughout the continent. Countless males desired only to peek at her face, but few ever had the fortune to do so.

The elf queen's face was perpetually covered by a layer of dense fog that seemed real yet illusory. Perhaps even people at the legendary rank would be unable to peer through it and witness her absolute beauty. This only added a layer of mystery to the rumors.

"Sisna, what's the situation at the front lines?"

From the queen's lips came a dulcet, melodious voice. Her exquisite intonation broke the silence with the crispness of a falling jade pearl. At her queen's question, the elf kneeling in front of her almost forgot everything else.

Sisna was the head of the queen's royal guards. At the same time, she was also the general of the rangers. She was brave and good at fighting, having led the elves to countless victories in her millennia of life. Her prestige was absolute.

Even so, this subordinate did not dare speak carelessly in front of the queen. To her, Her Majesty was like the Abyss' succubus queen, whose every single movement carried deadly enticement.

However, a demon's temptation had demonic magic, while the queen was a refreshing beauty, whose fingertips were enough to make men and women go crazy.

Sisna accidentally saw the snowy feet and lotus-like calf under the queen's robes. She redressed herself and respectfully replied, "… Your Majesty, the Theocracy's decadal attack has commenced once more. They have already walked out of the 'Central City' leading a large army to surround the Forest of the Moon. Our troops are currently having a bitter fight there, and the situation is worsening. There are already casualties among our people."

"I understand."

The queen seemed to enter deep thought. After a long time, she spoke unhurriedly in her pleasant voice once more. It was as if the entire situation was already a common occurrence for her.

The Theocracy was a unique country for humans. Although its territory was not large, it was the headquarters of the church and so possessed many strong fighters. The church's doctrine of 'human supremacy' meant it perpetually treated non-human races as enemies.

Of the countless races in this world, humans were the most prosperous, occupying the most fertile lands. Save for their power struggles and the existence of powerful adversaries such as the beastmen of the northeast, the elves, and dragons, they would already have dominated the continent

Among human countries, the Theocracy was the most unique. Their sole enemies were the non-humans and they turned a blind eye to all forms of intra-human strife due to their doctrines. To some extent, the Theocracy was absolutely fair and just in human society.

With its prestige however it could rally all other human kingdoms to provide forces for crusades against the other races. Under the Theocracy's banner, humanity would march out to conquer the non-humans every few years.

For thousands of years, the Theocracy had repeated this practice to various degrees of success. Some weaker races had indeed been exterminated by humans, but exterminating powerful races like the elves was practically impossible. However, even if the Theocracy knew they could not exterminate the elves, they would still start a war every ten years in accordance with their faith. Whether it was the humans or elves, both sides were already used to this kind of racial war.

"Let's go, Sisna… come with me to the sacred altar. With the help of the elders, we shall summon a powerful creature from a different world to deal with the human's attack."

Without much consideration, the queen said so.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

The head of the royal guards stood up and followed the queen's lead towards the sacred altar.

As the founder of the Silver Moon Kingdom, the queen was actually the strongest of the elves – a demigod mage. Now that gods could no longer descend, demigods were the most powerful beings on the continent.

As a mage, the queen was proficient in contract and summoning magic. In the past wars against humans, the queen would personally summon legendary rank creatures from different worlds to fight against the humans. Because the elven population was low, the death of each elf was especially heartbreaking. Thus, the queen's summoning magic was the best means to reduce casualties.

Since she had fought with humans for hundreds of years already, Sisna followed the queen on the familiar path to the sacred altar where a large magic formation had already been completed. Several old elves stood around the formation and bowed towards the queen. They did not say anything afterward and only paid attention to pouring their magic into the formation.

This was how the human-elf war progressed for the past thousand years. Most of the people were already quite used to the process. In the elves' opinion, the war this time would remain the same as in the past with nothing new happening.

Carandia gestured to the many old elves surrounding the altar. Then, she raised her staff made from the trunk of the Ancient Tree of Life in her hand and chanted in elven language.

As the incantation was chanted, the elven magic runes carved on the altar burst with bright green and silvery-white light. Leaves and flower petals made from the elements bloomed out of nowhere and floated down on the magic formation.

Suddenly, Carandia's body grew weak. She stumbled on her feet and almost fell to the ground.

"Your Majesty?!"

Sisna was shocked. She hurriedly went forward to help with a flash of nervousness on her face. No such thing had happened before in the past millennium.

Carandia stopped Sisna, signaling her not to approach, but her clear and pleasant voice also revealed a trace of panic, "…. I just lost control of my divine power. Some unknown powerful existence is trying to drain my divine power to obtain my coordinates and descend on this world."

As the elf queen's words fell, Sisna and the old elves all tensed up and gazed at the open space in front of them.

In summoning magic, the more magic power consumed, the stronger the creature would be summoned. An existence that could forcefully use the queen's divine power to descend must be an exceptionally terrifying thing.

A doorway lit up in the void. It was different from the elven runes that the elves used when using magic. The door made of light had no decorations and only emitted a faint blue light.

Sisna and the other elves had never seen such a door before. It did not seem to be a product of magic.

The elf queen, whose beautiful face was hidden under the illusory fog, had a huge change in complexion when she saw the door, and even developed a trace of fear.

Then, in the presence of many elves, a great being descended!

Sisna quickly came to the queen's side. Even though she knew that there was a huge gap between her strength and the queen's, she still had to fulfill her duty as the head of the royal guards.

And after seeing the unknown creature appear in front of her eyes, Sisna's eyes widened with disbelief.

"Roar!"

The roar of a fierce dragon resounded in the middle of the elves' sacred land.

Chapter 7

Louie unconsciously let out a dragon roar and then carefully opened his eyes.

He couldn't help but be cautious. Aside from learning that this was a world of magic from the intelligent brain, he knew absolutely nothing about it. He was now only a 'small and weak' baby dragon, so there was nothing wrong with being careful.

However, when Louie opened his eyes, he was completely stunned by the scene before him. It differed greatly from his imagination.

The first thing that caught his attention was the huge tree towering towards the sky. The incredible hardwood towered above the clouds and scraped the heavens themselves.

At this moment Louie stood on a branch of this tree. More specifically, he was on a huge platform formed by the intersection of many branches. From his viewpoint were lush trees and greenery as far as the eye could see, as though he was in a misty wonderland.

He took a deep breath and tasted the incomparably sweet air. Unknown but pleasant energy washed over his body, almost eliciting a moan from him. He knew that this was the magic energy that the intelligent brain told him he needed to grow. It was also the special energy of this world.

At the same time, this mysterious energy seemed to have unlocked some knowledge within him. The instincts engraved into his body were beginning to awaken. Louie instantly knew many things such as the language of the many races in this world and the dragon language that should have been innate to him. In the blink of an eye, he had mastered everything.

'This is… an elf?!'

Louie warily surveyed his surroundings. After finding that he was actually surrounded by a group of people looking at him, he became even more cautious. But after noticing the long sharp ears attached to these people's heads, Louis instinctively recognized their race.

A dragon's instincts were truly useful.

'Are these elves inebriated or something? Why are they swaying like drunks?'

Louie was puzzled. A female elf stood in front of him. She was wearing exquisite armor and a gorgeous green long gown. She held a sharp sword in her hand, while a longbow was strapped to her back. Except for her who stared at him with caution, all the other elves had fallen down on the ground in a drunk-like stupor.

Louie took a look at the sword and bow of the elf in front of him. There were complex patterns inscribed on them that let out a mysterious aura. The weapons also glowed with emerald green light. A single look was enough to tell that the two weapons were not ordinary objects.

The elf in front of him had flower-like delicate dimples. Although her body was covered by armor, her curves could still be seen. After seeing this female elf, Louie's eyes flashed with amazement. Although the other party had a tense and cold expression – even letting out killing intent – her face and figure could not be compared to the women of Earth. It was as if a fairy had descended from the heavens.

'The stories did not lie after all. The elves are a beautiful race.'

Fortunately, Louie was now a dragon. As a dragon, his inverted pupils did not show any sense of surprise. In China's perception, she could only see a baby dragon that glanced at her.

The elves that had collapsed on the ground appeared to be older. Although they were still charming, Louie only looked once before losing interest. His greatest attention lay with the elf that the armed elf was protecting behind her. Although her body also seemed to be weakened, she could still remain standing.

Just by the crown on her head and the long, elegant gown on her body, it was obvious that this female elf had a noble status. Louie could even feel a mysterious connection of sorts between them, but it was unclear.

Louie sized up the female elf some more. Her face seemed to be veiled by a mysterious fog, so people could not see her face. When he looked at the faintly discernible bare white feet under her long gown and her jade fingers that were clutching a wooden staff, his spirit entered a sudden trance.

The crystalized godhood in his soul tremble for a while before his spirit cleared up. He realized that he was almost charmed by the mere skin of the elf in front of him, even as a dragon. He secretly smacked his lips…

'Damn, this elf is poisonous!'

He exclaimed inwards at her drug-like attraction. He clearly knew that he had almost been charmed, but as a male, his instincts still made him want to look at her and sink under her incredible beauty and temper.

Carandia's beautiful eyes hidden under the fog flashed with amazement. The 'baby' dragon in front of her was not an ordinary creature. It must be known that other than being the elf queen, she had another more mysterious identity. If the other party was a normal baby dragon, then it would definitely be charmed by her.

Thinking this, she became more cautious. With her strength as a demigod, she looked at the immature dragon like it was a flower hidden in the mist – as if it contained countless secrets. He was likely an unknown powerhouse from another realm. Although Carandia would not be afraid just because of this, she was the one who summoned him at this critical juncture, so it would be best to treat him with care.

She quickly stopped the head of her royal guards and told her not to show hostility. Dragons were an extremely proud race. In their eyes, all else was like ants. The hostility from the head of her royal guards might cause a misunderstanding. Dragons, who fought crazily to protect their own dignity, were enemies that no one would ever want to face.

'What if this is an ancient dragon with a strange obsession or even one of those primordial dragons that have long since gone extinct? Moreover, there was that doorway that appeared when it was summoned….'

Carandia was deeply worried about it. The doorway made her recall the long-passed history of the world. Moreover, some of the strongest and oldest beings developed fetishes that seemed incomprehensible to others. Dragons, with their ability to shapeshift, were no exception. The dragon in front of her might like to act young, thus it wasn't strange that it appeared like a baby dragon.

With this in mind, Carandia gracefully performed an ancient elven salute. Her beautiful, delicate voice, with the timbre of spring, flowed from her mouth, "… I am Carandia, the founder of the Silver Moon Kingdom, the queen of the elven race, and the spokesperson of the Silver Moon Goddess on this world. I hope you can tell me your name so that I can admire your glory."

Carandia's tone was quite respectful. She knew that dragons had almost identical personalities and were generally twisted existences. Unless a person could overpower one to the extent that they felt fear, these violent dragons might just fight to the death with just a single word of disrespect.

The other elves present looked at their queen with surprise. The language she had spoken was not elven, but a language that even the most knowledgeable elves might not necessarily have understood.

This was also Carandia's test. What she was using was the Primordial Dragon Language. It was also known as the first language of the dragons, the Dragon God Language. The current dragon language was a simplified version of this ancient tongue.

Other than the few ancient dragons, the current dragons simply did not know it.

Louie didn't feel that there was anything wrong with the words spoken by the elf who called herself the queen. The other party's language even made him feel a sense of intimacy as if it was his native language.

Louie opened his mouth. The other party's respectful attitude made him feel elated, causing his entire body to feel joy. He did not know if dragons instinctively liked this kind of compliment or if it was just himself. Just when Louie was ready to say his name, he stalled for a moment.

His name did not carry enough majesty, and the name Louie sounds a little too simple. How was a dragon's name supposed to start? Would his identity be exposed if he said it?

Louie worried for a moment before he thought of those famous works that he had read before and said stiffly, "…my name is Louie Marigoth Alexander Nozidom Icella Nesario Caracol! Remember my name, elf. This is your honor!"

As his words fell, Louie looked at the silent elf in front of him and felt apprehensive. This name should be long enough for a dragon, right?

At this moment, Carandia was shocked, but luckily her shocked expression was blocked by that layer of mysterious fog. The 'hatchling' in front of her not only understood the Primordial Dragon Language but even replied with it.

However, she had never heard of this name, which hinted of endless glory, before in all her life. She concluded that the dragon in front of her was a primordial dragon from a different world!

'I never thought that in this world, those primordial dragons that lived for tens of thousands of years still existed…'

Carandia sighed. The world was so big that even the Gods couldn't fully peek into it.

Chapter 8

Under this mutual misunderstanding, both sides were silent. Louie wondered if the name he had invented was satisfactory, and he felt a hint of apprehension within. On the other hand, Carandia wondered why she had summoned a primordial dragon from a distant realm. But above all, the most incredible thing was the contract that had been established between the two of them.

'Intelligent Brain, what's going on? Has something bad happened to you?'

Louie was not an idiot. He calmly looked at the patterns inscribed on the platform beneath him. Even if they were indecipherable, he could guess as to their purpose – namely, the body of a magic formation. Louie could not believe that a dragon who relied on technology to cross worlds would accidentally end up on top of a magic formation.

[My deepest apologies, host! Crossing different worlds requires accurate coordinates and a stable path. These require tremendous amounts of energy, and my reserves were insufficient. As we were crossing dimensions, I was able to detect a divine power reaction from the world of San Soliel. I used it as a coordinate to construct a tunnel, and luckily we arrived at this world without any mistakes.]

The monotonous words of the intelligent brain made Louie spit out blood.

'You frick. In order to save energy, you didn't even think about coming here when you saw the coordinate reaction?'

[Yes, Host! This was the best choice at that time.]

'Best choice my ass!'

Louie wanted to curse. How could the intelligent brain even be called the most intelligent creature? It was clearly the most retarded creature, right?!

Louie had already planned everything out for himself. After arriving at San Soleil, he would first find a ravine to hide and borrow its magical energy to evolve. Afterward, he would return to Earth. He did not care about the long run; his first priority was to secure his own safety.

And this so-called intelligent creature was actually the greatest idiot among all retarded creatures. It jumped to strange coordinates without a second thought, ignoring any potential dangers of the location.

Although he knew he was in some elven country and saw its eye-catching inhabitants, this was completely different from his plans.

'From today on, I'll call you retard.'

[….]

The intelligent brain fell silent and did not retort.

'What's with this contract?'

Louie could perceive a connection between himself and the woman who called herself the elf queen in front of him. As it was a contract on equal terms, the godhood in his soul did not react. At that time, Louie instinctively felt that this contract was important to him and did not think much about signing it.

Now that he thought about it, it should have come from his instincts as a magical creature. He was happy to find the coordinates of this world and felt an innate thirst for this location.

[Contracts are a special characteristic of this world. Even the Terran Civilization could not understand it. Two parties who have signed a contract must fulfill their respective obligations or pay a great price. Even the gods of this world cannot easily negate their bindings.]

Although it was called a retard by Louie, the intelligent brain was still a bit useful. Even if this retard only knew bits and pieces of this magical world, it was still better than the current Louie.

'I still have to meet its obligations? How troublesome.'

Louie was very annoyed. If he hadn't understood the contents of the contract, he would not have signed it.

The pact with the elf queen in front of him was actually very simple. The elf queen in front of him paid her divine power to provide Louie with coordinates on this continent. Louie in return had to win this war for her.

What was especially interesting was that initially, his name on the contract was simply 'Louie'. But after the stream of gibberish he had introduced himself with, his name on the contract changed to match it. It seemed that the world itself had recognized the awkward mish-mash of names he had strung together as his official name.

Carandia was indeed the queen's name. The contract would not lie to anyone. However, her surname had been artificially erased, leaving only a blurred image. Louie did not know why she did not dare show him.

Of course, these were not things he could consider at the moment. Although spoke with the intelligent brain for what felt like half a day, and many thoughts swirled in his mind, his deliberation only lasted for an instant in real-time. In the eyes of the wide-eyed queen and others, his silence was only a few seconds.

"Your Majesty Carandia, I have already understood the contents of the contract. The glory of the dragon race cannot be stained. Since you have paid the price, I will keep the agreement and bring you victory!"

Fortunately, Louie had read countless novels before becoming a dragon, and he knew how to feign calmness. Moreover, his voice, which should still have been childish, sounded infinitely more majestic. The other elves turned white at his words, and even the fierce warrior guarding the queen trembled slightly with a shaking sword.

It was as if the language Louie used to cast an oppressive force over them.

At this time, Louie also felt a bit of strain on his body after the words came out. Even the godhood in his soul trembled. He rummaged through the memories that he had just awakened and discovered that the so-called Dragon God Language was simply the language of the Gods. Each syllable contained countless meanings and held great power. If he did not have godhood, he wouldn't have been able to speak even a single word.

Carandia's delicate body also shook slightly, but she was much better off than the other elves. After receiving Louie's reply, she bowed her head, and her melodious voice once again blossomed from her throat.

"Thank you for your generosity and help, Lord Caracolon…"

This time, the elf queen did not use the 'Dragon God's Language' anymore and returned to using the elven language. Apparently, she had struggled quite a bit using the language of the Gods.

Louie was not used to the name that Carandia called him with as it was not the real name that he used for many years.

'Reward, you created this mess, so you should also think of a way to solve it. With my current power, can I win?'

Louie did not know anything about wars in this alternate world. He was not an adult dragon, but just a baby one. How was he supposed to win a war?!

[Please don't worry. After I obtained the coordinates via the contract, I devised a foolproof plan… There is still some divine power in the godhood in your soul. As long as you use it, you can become a 'God' of this world for a short amount of time. In this backward civilization, winning a war with your power is just a matter of time!]

At the intelligent brain's words, Louie's tension dropped.

'Good. It seems that I was wrong about you, little wit!'

[…]

The intelligent brain was silent.

Louie had happily changed its name again.

Chapter 9

'And then? How do I mobilize the divine power within the godhood, little wit?'

As a person who hadn't even killed a chicken before, Louie was originally more of the cowardly sort than a hotblooded warrior, but perhaps it was his new dragon instincts that changed him. He had awakened a vague thirst for blood-fueled conflict and massacres. And so he waited for the intelligent brain's response with some eagerness.

[Host needs only to visualize the godhood in his soul. Imagine mobilizing the godhood inside, and you should be able to use the power of the gods… probably…]

'Probably?'

Louie took note of the intelligent brain's hesitation.

[My deepest apologies, Host. Due to the unique nature of the principles governing San Soleil, the Terran Civilization could not fully understand the entities known as Gods. The God Creation Project was only a theoretical possibility, but was never empirically confirmed.]

'F***, you retard! Just be clear about it. I'm simply an experimental rat.'

Louie was furious. He opened his mouth slightly and spewed out a breath of flames. At this Sisna once more stood at alert in front of her queen, fearful of the dragon she could not understand, but which her queen venerated.

Louie's pupils once again scanned his surroundings. He now had no choice but to push himself to do something that was beyond his ability. The contract had already been signed. The elven queen in front of him had already granted him the coordinates to descend into this world. Thus, he also had to fulfill his end of the bargain by winning her war for her.

Louie sighed inwardly and closed his eyes in contemplation. He began to try imagining the godhood crystal that he had seen earlier.

Within his mind appeared a string of mathematical models – representations of the shapeless crystal godhood within him. After hesitating slightly, Louie directly injected his consciousness into it.

BOOOM~~~~

Louie's brain shook as a loud bang resounded. His soul was almost shaken and split apart, but the godhood within him forcibly bound it together.

His consciousness seemed to travel through the ages, and he glimpsed at the ancient image of an indescribably great and mighty dragon. It soared among the stars with five heads, each shining with a different color, and followed by countless primordial dragons. The dragons flew through the stars, striking fear and submission into the hearts of countless creatures in innumerable realms. Wherever they passed, all creatures would bow to them.

It created the great species of dragons, born and located at the top of the food chain. From the races that walked the earth to the angels in heaven and even the demons that skulked in the abyss – all beings respected the glory of dragons.

Louie knew that this terrifying dragon, whose body was as huge as a continent, was the former master of this godhood, the Five-colored Dragon God!

The spectacular creature suddenly looked back mid-flight before staring at Louie square in the eyes. In that instant, the image collapsed. The Dragon God turned into pure divine power that filled Louie's soul, allowing soul rank to rise infinitely. It also passed on to him the basic knowledge of the Gods.

Afterward, Louie was stunned and slightly clueless. He had, however, gained a basic understanding of Gods.

Divine power was the basis of divine glory. It was a type of energy with infinite possibilities. The 'gods' would pay with their divine power to change the rules of the world and create miracles.

But for a God, their real core was their divine authority and their godhood. Louie was not the Five-colored Dragon God that had already fallen. Even if he inherited the godhood, he could not understand and inherit the other party's divine authority. Thus, he only possessed divine power and godhood, but no divine authority to match.

If there was no divine authority, then divine power was at most just a special precious magic power. Other than squandering it as a powerful energy source, it was impossible to fully actualize its potential. To try doing so was simply blasphemy against the gods.

It was impossible to obtain divine authority in an instant. They represented the domains of power each god possessed. Not to mention those who were born as Ancient Gods, even the present Gods had spent innumerable years of effort and understanding to gain one. Slow progress was a given.

So for Louie, his biggest problem right then was how to make good use of this divine power.

What is God?

When Louie suddenly thought about this question, a voice like a yellow bell suddenly rang in his soul—-

God is hope! God is faith!

At that moment, Louie suddenly understood. Although it was impossible to directly obtain a divine authority, he knew how he should be using this miraculous divine power!

When Louie first became a dragon, he dreamt of becoming one of the dragons seen from works of art and even longed for their power. Gods were the great existences that could make their dreams become reality!

"aaaaaaaAAAAAAAAA—–"

At the Ancient Tree of Life, the sacred land of the elven kingdom, a dragon's roar parted the clouds and tore through the sky.

Under the shocked gazes of Carandia, Sisna, and the few legendary rank elven mages, Louie's tiny 3-4 meters long fledgling of a body began to grow.

In the blink of an eye, his body's lengthened to more than 300 meters. A golden dragon the size of a small hill appeared in front of the crowd. He hovered around the ancient tree with wings that spread and covered the sky, His draconic head, sharp claws, and beautiful dragon body shone with golden brilliance like the sun. Just a single glance was enough to let people know that this was a legendary creature – one that should long have disappeared from the world.

Right now, the few remaining dragons on the continent simply could not compete with the physique of the noble entity before the elves.

Dragon's might spread over every creature and cast a wave of pressure over the heavens and earth. Even Sisna, who had already reached legendary rank, paled in front of the terrible sensation. Her body lay on the verge of collapse. And if not for the elven queen deflecting some of the pressure, Sisna and the legendary rank elven mages would collapse once again onto the floor.

"This… this is actually a demigod dragon?!"

Sisna murmured with a bewildered expression.

"No, this is not an ordinary demigod dragon, but a primordial dragon at the demigod rank!"

Carandia also gripped her staff tightly, and her fingers turned pale.

After borrowing the divine power from the godhood and becoming this big, Louie's five senses immediately changed. He did not need any elves to show him the way and could already perceive the location of the war.

An emerald glow enveloped thousands of meters with him as the center. In this space where dreams turned into reality, he was the dream weaver. The master of the dream!

At this moment, Louie felt himself raised far above all other creatures. Even if the real Gods were present, he would dare to lock horns with them in a fight. Without a word, he flew directly towards the battlefield.

Chapter 10

"Line—–Up—"

The legion commander of the Holy Iris Knights, Abir roared out loud with a voice carrying his 'qi'. The thunderous sound rang throughout the entire battlefield.

"Wooooooooooo—–"

Along with the muffled bugle horn's long sound, the 30,000-strong army clamored and rapidly entered their formations. In just a short amount of time, they had arranged themselves into multiple squares.

The front lines were filled with fully armored soldiers bearing huge shields. Behind them was the rest of the army – lightly, but properly equipped with standard leather armor, swords, and wooden shields.

The clerics stood tense and ready to heal any incoming wounded soldiers.

Asides from them, there were also 30-40 mages gathered from different places. Other than one seven-ring mage, the rest were not high ranked. Despite that, however, they were all precious as each mage represented a significant investment of material and financial resources. In fact, among the 30,000 people in the legion, the 30 or so mages were the most important strategic unit.

When low-ranking mages gathered together and released simple but effective magic like fireballs, each shot would be able to cause more than a hundred casualties. After firing it several times in a row, the casualties could rise to 10,000-20,000 people.

Under normal circumstances, it was impossible to gather this many mages in a battle with a 30,000-man legion, but the Theocracy had deep pockets. Many mages signed up to participate in the invasion against non-humans primarily for the generous monetary rewards. Moreover, they coveted the chance to catch one or two beautiful elves that they could sell for a killing.

Usually, it was difficult to catch elves as slaves. The fear of retaliation meant it was a very risky endeavor, but war was different. Enslavement was the norm, and this operation was in fact led by the Theocracy so there was nothing to fear.

It was with such self-centered motivations that the mages decided to partake in the battle. But it was far from the only motivation of the common soldier.

Abir looked at the army he commanded. First, he nodded his head in satisfaction, before slowly shaking it. This legion was not the elite Holy Iris Knights, but a gathering of soldiers from various human kingdoms cobbled together.

They could not be considered as elite, but they were adequate.

At close to seventy years old Abir would ordinarily be regarded as an elderly man, but being a legendary rank warrior he was still in the prime of his life. With his lifespan, he was still tens of years away from becoming an old man.

He wore full-body chainmail with a white robe over it. The cloak of the robe was embroidered with a blood-red shield and a silver longsword. This was the emblem of the God of War, Marzalis, which he believed in.

Abir was not at all surprised by the war. Not only was it a fundamental part of the church's doctrine but it has been going on for hundreds of years.

Although it was officially called a 'war', it was just a skirmish with 30,000 people. Although the number of elves was scarce, they were strong individually. Moreover, the war took place in the forest which was the elves' home territory. It was easy for an elven warrior to fight against 10 humans. If it was a full-scale war, 30,000 soldiers charging in would at most just be a splash in the ocean.

Truly eliminating the Silver Moon Kingdom was impossible. There were a lot of powerful people in the elven race. The invasion of the Theocracy was at most using warm water to cook a frog; slowly whittling away the elves' power.

Given their low birth rates and slow maturation, a few thousand casualties on the elven side was a tragedy but for humans it was a drop in the bucket.

"The queen will try to reduce the casualties of her race as much as possible. According to centuries of experience, the Forest Fairy will summon a legendary rank creature from other realms to help block the army. If I can get rid of the summoned creature, the war is as good as won."

Abir muttered. The past wars with the elves had always been like this. Even in his opinion, this was not a true war, but just a formality.

In comparison to this uninteresting sham of a battle, he wanted to join the war against the beastmen. The beastmen were one of the greatest enemies of humans, and war with them involved a true collision of blood and flesh.

However, the orders of the Theocracy could not be disobeyed. He took a deep breath and said to the messenger beside him, "… Pass my order. Attack!"

"Wooooooooo…"

The signal to attack was blown, and flag signals fluttered. Those elite soldiers in full body armor took synchronized steps forward. They raised their left foot, and the soles of their feet landed at the same time, shaking the earth itself. The human army stepped forward in an orderly manner, gradually picking up the pace. By the time they had hit running speed their footsteps had blended into a chaotic rumble.

"In the name of the God of War, in the name of the Theocracy, for the sake of humanity, KILL!"

"KILL!"

With Abir at the center, a glow visible to the naked eye rapidly expanded. Every soldier enveloped by it turned brave and bloodthirsty.

This was the 'Aura of War' that powerful believers of the God of War could display. It could greatly boost the morale of warriors.

"KILLLLL!"

The voices of thousands of people shouting 'kill' shook heaven and earth. It was a spectacular stampede.

"Have the mage corps ready to suppress the enemy with magic at any time. Make sure they don't save their magic power!"

Abir ordered the officer beside him. The officer saluted and rushed off to the gathering place of the mages. He passed the message to the head of the mages.

"Please tell Commander Abir to not worry. We mages are already prepared!"

"Then I'm counting on you, Mr. Marches!"

The officer respectfully and politely bowed deeply to the mage in front of him. Although the seven-ring mage in front of him was not a big deal to a legendary rank warrior like Commander Abir, the archmage had countless ways to kill a fifth rank warrior like him.

There was no shame in being humble to these mages.

When the officer walked away, Marches' expression quickly turned vile. He gazed back at the low-ranked mages who looked towards him in reverence. He cursed in a whisper, "…What bullshit about not saving magic? You idiots don't know how precious a mage's magic power is. I'll just let these brats waste theirs."

Marches were calculating. For a seven-ring mage like him, no matter which country he went to, he would be treated as a distinguished guest. The reason why he joined this war was that he was poor.

As a wandering mage with no backer, being able to reach seven rings was already the limit. At his current age, wanting to reach legendary rank in his lifetime to extend his lifespan was almost impossible.

However, men always had dreams. As a seven-ring mage, Marches also had a dream. He came here to see if he could catch an elf with a high position and sell them to some prominent nobles or other mages in exchange for some rare materials. Then he would brew magic potions to extend his lifespan.

Just when Marches was giddy with his calculations, the magic in his body suddenly boiled up and his heart became tense.

The chaotic stampede of 30,000 soldiers had quieted to a near-perfect silence. The air itself took on a glue-like viscosity and a great fear began to loom over his soul.

"Dragon… It's a dragon!"

No one knew who it was, but the strange silence was destroyed by a shout of terror.

Marches raised his head to look in the direction of the sound. In the far end of the forest, a golden figure covered the sky like the rising sun.

"Oh, No! God of Magic, am I dreaming?! A primordial dragon?!"

Marches shouted incredulously.

At the same time, the human soldiers, who were just then full of morale, panicked. Even before the war had fully begun, the chaos caused many casualties as people were trampled.

A magnificent voice filled the sky and earth even before the dragon arrived…

"When I dream, the world trembles! When I awaken, reality is born!"

The mighty dragon issued arrogant words.

Chapter 11

As a mage, especially one who had reached the level of arch-mage, Marches certainly possessed knowledge on the various ranks of dragons.

This was a race favored by the gods and born to look down on everything else.

In comparison to dragons, most species were short-lived. Dragon lifespans ran into the thousands of years, and they did not need grueling training to improve their powers. Simply aging would be enough, and by adulthood, their strengths would likely be scraping at the legendary rank. Furthermore their titanic frames and lethal anatomy meant that even true-blue legendary rank powerhouses would hesitate to take one on. They would have to pay a hefty price even if they fought and won.

Like the elves the dragon population was low and so each dragon in the race was treated with great importance. If anyone really dared to kill a dragon, they would very shortly be torn to shreds by hordes of their victim's brethren. So-called "dragon-slayers' ' were largely fictional characters in San Soleil; personalities who could only exist in the tales and songs of bards and minstrels. Unless the dragon had gone overboard with its actions, no legendary rank powerhouse would dare fight a dragon

But dragons possessed a fatal weakness as well: their fecundity. No one had ever actually counted, but the members of the dragon race on the main continent could not have exceeded a few thousand in number. Save for their lengthy lifespans and overwhelming strength, they would be bound for extinction.

Dragons were also lazy. Asides from eating, they didn't bother with training themselves, and indeed few even knew how to do so. Only a few dragon geniuses would possess that kind of knowledge.

If it were only a mature dragon, or even one of the elderly ones, Marches would not have nearly pissed his pants. Abir, after all, was still one of the strongest legendary rank warriors that the Theocracy could send out. And even if he couldn't slay it, he could stand against it for a time at least.

"This isn't any ordinary dragon, but a primordial one! One that should have gone extinct ages ago. Why?! Why is it here?! Shouldn't they all have fallen with the Dragon God?!"

Marches grimaced. None looked down on him for his terror as the other mages' reactions were even more pronounced. After seeing the golden dragon, some of them collapsed, paralyzed on the ground. And a few even lost control of their bladder.

These mages all joined the war to gain military merit, and this was their first expedition. Facing such a horrifying enemy, their immediate reactions paled in comparison to the soldiers. Though the latter were struck by deep fear, they retained some composure and remained on their feet.

The dragon, with its gigantic form of over 300 meters and wings that seemed to cover the skies; with its head that awakened a primal fear in all spectators, and a shadow that blotted out any optimism the army initially had, could not fail to strike any person cold with terror.

Normal adult dragons tended to top out at 60 meters in length. And they were terrifying enough, but not so bad as to evoke a sense of despair. Some rare ancient dragons could reach up to 100 meters, and they were of course even worse to deal with. But they were nothing in comparison to the behemoth of a reptile in front of them. Its size alone nearly made it a flying island!

"Is… is that really a dragon?"

A low-ranked mage trembled and murmured.

"That is a primordial dragon. If I'm correct, it has already lived for at least 30,000 years…."

Marches said word by word. After hearing his reply, the young mages were stunned once more.

How long was 30,000 years? Even the history of human civilization did not reach that far. As for the other races, anyone that had lived for 30,000 years would either already have become a God, or have been forgotten by the river of history. Despite that, today they were somehow able to see such a creature.

"When I dream, the world trembles! When I awaken, reality is born!"

Along with its wrathful declaration, a light green glow spilled over the heaven and earth with the dragon at its center. It enveloped the legion of 30,000 people as well as the large forest. Every creature felt as if they had come to another world as the feeling of spring filled their hearts. It was as if they were in a world protected by nature.

This place was — the Emerald Dreamland!

A lush forest began to spring up over the plains with impossible speed. In the blink of an eye, the forest began to expand. Although the new woodland's size could not compare with the entire Forest of the Moon, that did not diminish the miracle the dragon had brought about!

Marches heard cries in the distance. They came from the elves and druids. They had been lurking in the forest and waiting for the humans to attack before counterattacking. Their shouts, however, were laden with different emotions from the humans'. If the humans were shouting out of fear, then the elves did so from joy. For the elves and druids that loved nature, the new woodland created by the dragon in front of them appeared like an instance of divine grace

"Divine… divine domain?!"

Marches went from sheer terror to numbness as he gazed at the dragon's handiwork. Although he had never seen this domain before, he had read from records that this was one of the applications of a God's divine power. If a person could condense this domain into their own divine authority, then a new God would be born.

"This is not an ordinary primordial dragon… It's a demigod!"

Marches' voice already carried a sobbing tone. He began to regret coming to this battlefield. Even if the God of Magic had descended and compelled him, he would absolutely not dare to take another step forward.

Primordial dragons were already powerful enough. They were relatives of the Dragon God. Even the legions of heaven were helpless in front of these terrifying creatures, and if a primordial dragon had become a demigod, then only the Gods might be able to subdue it.

In this era where the glory of Gods had dimmed and their miracles faded, this demigod-rank primordial dragon was an invincible being!

The scaly behemoth opened its mouth and breathed out emerald-colored flames from the skies.

The breath washed over the human legion, instantly racking up casualties in the thousands . Rather than burn its victims, however, those touched by them seemed to flicker out of and into being. Their very presences gradually became illusory before they faded out of existence.

When I close my eyes, the world becomes a dream!

"This is…. the power of the Gods…."

Marches lips were dry as he murmured.

Chapter 12

Louie was very delighted.

Insignificant. Insignificant. All too insignificant!

After mobilizing the power of the Five-colored Dragon God's godhood and transforming into a legendary dragon, The world before him changed from what it used to be.

In his eyes, the world seemed to have transformed into strips of rules. Whether it was the sky or the earth, the rivers or the forest, they were no longer pure matter but had become concepts. Although Louie understood only half of it, he knew that this was the law of the Gods!

He did not know whether it was his instincts as a dragon or the divine power that instilled the pride he felt within him, but he felt unrivaled. As he was now, everything in the world would need to kneel before him.

Despite knowing that this was only temporary, and only made possible by borrowing the power of the godhood within him, the feeling of exultation was extremely real.

Before him stood 30,000 humans neatly arranged in a formation. The human Louie would have shivered at the mere sight of the harsh battlefield, but as he was now, Louie could only view the soldiers as jumping ants.

In front of his 300-meter body, each soldier was just slightly larger than an insect would be to a human. A single step from him could cause innumerable casualties.

To the humans, their new adversary seemed more like a mountain than a living creature. They could not help but wonder if the cold pieces of iron in their hands would do them any good against it.

Common sense told them that it was absolutely impossible.

Dragon's might radiate from Louie, striking the hearts of the soldiers who somehow remained standing. His eyes filled with divine power as he scanned them. He noticed that these soldiers were cloaked in a mysterious energy that enhanced their bodies. The mysterious power emitted the true aura of war, which seemed to be magic related to the Gods.

'Interesting. Truly interesting. I suddenly feel that this world is interesting. Hahahaha!'

Louie laughed inwardly from extreme excitement. He raised his dragon claws and fiercely slapped down. The dozens of humans that could not dodge his attack were slapped into meat patties. The few bearing heavy armors found, quite quickly, that their protection meant nothing to the absolute power of their foe.

Louie's body alone was enough to crush the humans before him, and so he refrained from using any special abilities.

After Louie raised his claws the earth was littered with scattered limbs and crushed organs. The thick, cloying scent of blood filled the air.

"Hahahahaha!"

Louie laughed excitedly. As a human, this kind of scenery was sure to cause him to throw up. Now, however, he felt nothing but a deep pleasure.

In the end, brutality was simply engraved into a dragon's bones.

"Help…"

"Don't kill me. Don't kill me!"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh—-"

"…"

The human soldiers in front of Louie got up from the ground and ran back, wailing. The river of blood and flesh and the invincible dragon in front of them broke their hearts and minds. They desired nothing more than to flee the tragic battlefield.

Unfortunately, no matter how fast they ran, it was at a snail's pace to the dragon.

Without paying much attention to the fleeing soldiers, Louie advanced. Each step thundered like a million horses and left deep imprints in the bloody earth. He did not even care about the unlucky ones who were trampled to death.

"Roar—"

In his excitement, Louie raised his dragon head and let out a deadly roar. A horrible sound wave spread, shaking the atmosphere, and instantly blowing away thousands of people. His thick tail rose and slammed on the ground, shaking the entire plain and toppling countless humans.

In just one encounter, the battle formation of 30,000 people was crushed by him, and thousands of people died tragically.

"Humm—"

Louie heard the sharp sound of objects whistling through the air. With a casual look to the side, he noticed humans in the distance launching boulders at him with catapults. Each boulder was ten meters wide and would normally pressure the staunchest commanders, but Louie's eyes only held disdain for what seemed like toys to him. The reliable siege equipment used by humans instantly became their own undoing as a simple blow from Louie changed the direction of a flying boulder, sending it crashing into a crowd of humans.

With anguished wails, dozens more people had their arms and legs smashed off in a shower of blood and flesh.

Then, with his extremely sharp eyesight, Louie found a 'toothpick' flying towards himself. He carefully looked and understood that it was an arrow. It was entwined with a light silver color which implied it had a special ability.

"Ding—"

The arrow accurately hit in between a gap on his dragon scales. With his huge size, it was very difficult to dodge the attack, but he didn't really try either. Other than leaving a faint scratch, the arrow was simply ineffective.

Louie looked towards the origin of the arrow's flight. It was precisely from the direction of the catapult. A human dressed as a ranger was dumbfounded by the ineffectiveness of his shot.

Louie did not care what the other side thought. Seeing that there were not only people who dared throw rocks at him but also those who dared use 'toothpicks' to shoot him, anger bubbled forth from his throat, and he directly spat out another mouthful of emerald dragon breath.

The fan-shaped dragon breath was even more terrifying than a flamethrower. In an instant, everything in front of him turned illusory. Everything that the breath touched was turned into a mirage.

The Emerald Dreamland expanded. Ancient trees began to grow on the plains. At first, these trees were phantasmic, but in the blink of an eye, they had cemented themselves in the real world. Their thick and solid branches grabbed the crying humans and strangled them to death. Countless humans hung on the trees and some had their bodies directly twisted off.

The blood and entrails spilled by the humans became nutrients that fed the forest's growth.

"I am Louie Caracolon. Foolish humans, tremble in front of a dragon. You are just ants fated to die!"

The humans howled, screamed, begged, and cried in pain. The dragon eyes on them still remained cruel and without any sympathy.

Chapter 13

The 300-meter-long dragon let out a roar that shook heaven and earth. In the new forest, humans wailed and screamed as their bones were crushed and their flesh was wounded. The brutal scene seemed reminiscent of something out of the abyssal hell.

This was a massacre. A complete and utter massacre. In front of a primordial dragon, humans could only run about like headless insects. Their resistance was futile, and their attempts at defense were comical to the predator. Their fates were sealed from the beginning.

When culling the soldiers, Louie vaguely felt heat and a little tingling feeling, but due to his innate magic resistance and the disparity in power between him and his assailants, he barely noticed that they had cast fireballs and lightning magic on him. Rather than pain, all he felt was slight itchiness, and the mages were promptly wiped out from existence.

Because they were too weak, Louie did not have much of an impression of the human mages.

"Evil dragon, the followers of the God of War will not just submit!"

Just when the only sounds of the battlefield were his roars and the humans' screams, an angry voice suddenly erupted from the chaos.

In the corner of Louie's eyes, he saw a meteoric light charge towards him, like a firefly flaunting its power in front of humans.

Louie swatted at it the way a person would swat at a fly.

Abir burned with brilliant light. The warrior's aura was all gathered in his body, making it seem like he was engulfed in flames. The will of his God seemed to have been summoned within him.

In that moment, the tiny human finally attracted Louie's attention. The other party's will in that moment seemed to have sublimated and emitted a strong power of existence.

That was the true meaning of war, the burning flame of battle. It was the aura that Louie had seen from those soldiers before they had run away.

Abir saw the dragon talon moving towards him. The titanic reptilian claw loomed over him like a mountain.

The mountain peak pressed down, but Abir did not even flinch at the challenge.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh—"

Abir roared in anger. An iris symbol appeared behind him, and it seemed to condense the will of an elite legion of humans. It then merged with the longsword in his hand amidst the roar of thousands of people.

Closer, closer, and closer. When it was finally right before him, Abir could profoundly feel the divine despair that the dragon radiated.

He was a powerful legendary rank warrior. But inside the divine domain, his strength melted like snow under the hot sun. If he had not reached the domain of legend and transcended the limits of humans through 'immortal trancension', he might have already faded away under the dragon's emerald divine light, turning from real to unreal.

Even so, Abir's battle aura was rapidly dissipating, but he did not care. He howled, and the longsword in his hand stabbed at the dragon's claws.

The weapon in his hand was the legendary weapon 'Sword of the Holy Iris', and now with the infusion of the will of the legion and the faith of the humans, the legendary weapon had almost reached the level of a divine weapon. It was enough to wound even a god!

"Whoosh—–"

Seeing the holy sword cleave Louie's scales and pierce into his claws, Abir was overjoyed.

But before he could continue to exert himself, the dragon seemed to sense the pain, and the rest of its palm connected with his body.

"Booom—"

Abir's body was directly slapped away. After knocking down countless ancient trees and flying thousands of meters, he finally smashed onto the earth leaving a huge crater.

Louie carefully lifted his claw in front of his own eyes. He saw that a toothpick had pierced through his scales and into his flesh. Drops of blood flowed from the wound.

The 'toothpick' emitted a burst of divine aura. Louie felt pain when the toothpick had pierced through his skin. He felt as if he was a human that had accidentally pricked himself with a needle. Although the small wound was only a slightly painful inconvenience, he noticed that the longsword emitting divine light could in fact hurt him.

Being pricked by a needle was not a problem, but if there were thousands of needles then he'd be in trouble.

Louie gingerly gripped the handle of the longsword with his other claw and yanked it out.

Looking at the slender and ornamental-looking weapon, he could instantly tell despite his origins that this was a treasure and not a common object.

Louie thought for a moment before storing the longsword into a slit in his dragon scales.

Then, Louie looked at the huge pit in front of him. From its center crawled out the human who had managed to wound him.

This surprised Louie beyond belief. Just now, the force he used was enough to slap a human into a slab of meat, turning their bones and flesh into an indistinguishable mess, but the person in front of him only looked a little wounded and remained in one piece.

'Amazing!'

Louie secretly muttered. From his perspective, this human's speed was nothing special, but to other humans, it would be impossible to track him with the naked eye. With such speed, he held a sacred sword capable of hurting a demigod dragon. In addition to that, almost no damage had been dealt to him after being slapped by a force of more than 10,000 tons. If this person had been sent to Earth, he would simply be a living Superman!

Normal gunfire would absolutely not hurt him. If the Earth's humans wanted to confront him, they would have to at least utilize weapons of mass destruction to do so. But with the speed shown by this human, Louie suspected that they would need to use radars to capture his figure.

At this moment, Louie finally felt that he was in a foreign world and not in the Middle Ages. After witnessing this human's mighty performance, he felt fortunate that he was now a demigod dragon. If he had the appearance of a baby dragon, his head would have been cut down by the sword just now.

In this world, the strongest people were not as weak as he thought. This result was only brought about by Louie's current overpowering strength.

Chapter 14

"All troops, retreat to Central City!"

Abir roared, releasing a terrifying sound wave that rustled the ancient trees and reached the ears of every soldier.

In fact, Abir's words were redundant. After seeing the primordial dragon, the human soldiers had already begun to retreat, but their speed could not match the dragon's flight. They only fought back in desperation.

And now, Abir, a high-ranking legendary ranked warrior, was blocking the dragon. The human army finally had time to flee. The groups of soldiers cried out as they ran out of the distorted forest, running along the plains towards the distant Central City, wishing they had grown four legs.

The army of 30,000 soldiers had fought with the dragon, resulting in disastrous losses. Moreover, Louie used his divine power to call out the Emerald Dreamland. In a short amount of time, more than 20,000 soldiers had died. Finally, only a thousand people were barely able to run back.

This was an absolute defeat. Even considering that they encountered a primordial dragon, for Abir, the head of the Holy Iris Knights, this was an absolute disgrace in his military career.

"Want to run?"

Seeing the ant-like humans running in the distance, Louie laughed and opened his mouth, preparing to unleash another dragon's breath.

"Evil dragon! Your opponent is me!"

Just when Louie was about to spray out his breath, Abir roared and leaped up. Although he had lost his weapon, he was still a legendary rank warrior. Even if he had no weapon, every single part of his body was just as deadly.

"Bang—-"

Abir first landed on the scales near Louie's mouth.

Louie was startled. He never imagined that this human was this strong. For him, the feeling was perhaps comparable to an adult being punched by a baby, but considering that he was a primordial dragon, he could only imagine just how strong the blow was. Abir could probably split mountains with it.

However, Abir only enraged Louie with his strike. His huge dragon eyes glared at the human who darted like a fly in front of him. He roared, "…Lowly human, you actually dared to touch this mighty dragon!"

Louie spewed out the dragon's breath that he held in his throat with all his might. The emerald light seemed like waves that tried to drown Abir's body.

"Ahhhhhhhhh—-"

Abir shouted as he mustered up all the battle aura in his body. He resisted the full power of the dragon's breath at close range.

"Lord God of War!

Abir's husky voice roared. A powerful battle intent once again erupted from his body. Under Louie's breath, his armor gradually turned illusory. It shattered like glass. His under-armor also gradually began to corrode, and his skin became slightly translucent, but even so, he resisted the deadly blow.

"[King of War]!"

The human in front of him seemed to unleash some kind of skill. His speed was now almost three times faster, surpassing the speed of sound. He leaped up high and descended like a war god. He raised his hands and clenched his fingers into a fist as he smashed down on Louie's eye.

Seeing the human dare attack his eyes, Louie became even angrier. He shifted to the side with unexpected grace for a creature of his size and used his teeth to block Abir's fist.

"Bang—-"

The full force of this legendary rank warrior's blow almost shattered one of Louie's teeth. And while some might have seen this as a complete failure of an attack, and a laughable attempt at damage, Louie only felt extremely insulted by it.

"You have completely angered me, human! Accept your punishment!"

The enraged Louie once again slapped the human in front of him to the ground with one claw.

"Boom—–"

The earth shook as cracks appeared on the ground.

Louie raised his claws and slapped down again.

"Boom—–"

The ground collapsed directly as a huge crater appeared.

Afterward, Louie did not stop and struck with his claws more than ten times in a row, until the ground beneath his feet became a large crater that was tens of meters deep and a hundred meters wide. Only then did he stop his actions.

He slowly lifted his claws and looked into the pit. A crater that was tens of meters deep would be scary for humans, but it was nothing in front of Louie's size.

Abir was kneeling on one knee. One of his legs had been broken, and his raised arms were shattered, but he still strongly used both hands to block Louie's angry slaps. Every single slap contained tens of thousands of tons of force, but he relied on his body to block all of them.

Although Abir was now on the verge of death, his eyes still shone brightly and burned with determination.

"Well done, human! Even as a mighty dragon, I must commend your bravery!"

"Honored human, you may state your name so that this mighty dragon can remember it!"

Louie's inverted pupils looked at the human in front of him, and he raised his head as he spoke with majesty.

"Faithful follower of the God of War Marzalis, head of the Holy Iris Order of the Theocracy – Abir!"

Abir's vocal cords were already like leaky bellows, yet he still spoke his name word by word in the common language.

"Very well, Abir! I will give you a chance to live. Sign a contract to be my slave, and I will grant you glory!"

Louie looked at the warrior who'd rather die than submit with compassion. Although the warrior's body was about to break down, Louie was someone who inherited the godhood of the Five-colored Dragon God so he had five kinds of divine power. Emerald Dreamland was one of them, and among the other four, there happened to be life-giving divine magic.

"Humans will never be slaves!"

Abir once again let out a firm roar. As a devout believer, he followed his doctrine.

"That's truly a shame…"

Louis sighed. Although he had compassion for this human warrior, he showed no mercy when killing.

He directly used dragon magic…

"[Plant Spawning]"

The forest transformed by the Emerald Dreamland sprayed out countless motes of starlight. These motes landed on Abir's body before beginning to parasitize his flesh and blood.

This legendary warrior gritted his teeth to keep himself from screaming out in pain. As he knelt in the center of the pit, his body grew out shoots, turning him into a human-shaped tree. His body transformed from blood and flesh into a plant as he completely lost his life.

Louie took one last look at the warrior. He flew into the air once again with his wings spread out and moved in the direction of the routed army. In his line of sight, he saw a fortress-like city in the distance. He wanted to take advantage of his current transformation to attack a city like the dragons he knew from stories.

'I wonder if there is a princess inside the castle…'

Louie let his imagination run wild.

Chapter 15

Aside from the elven army stationed within the Silver Moon Kingdom, most elven warriors fought in small groups and employed guerrilla tactics. This made them particularly suited for attacks in the forest as against the plains, where they'd likely lose to humans or beastmen.

However, each elf was quite powerful on their own, and they possessed a keen eye for taking advantage of the terrain. Though their low fertility rates made it hard for them to invade other territories, they were more than enough for them to defend their own home grounds.

In the forest outskirts of the Forest of the Moon, the elves had prepared for conflict with the humans. They banded together in groups of ten to a hundred and waited for the human legion to arrive before cutting through the battlefield with their superior individual abilities and cooperation.

But this time, the perennial war between humans and elves took a different turn.

The elves had far better eyesight than the humans, and so they could notice the battle taking place in the distance. They saw the terrifying dragon descend on the battlefield before commencing its massacre of the human army, and even the powerful legendary rank warrior of the Theocracy's Holy Iris Order Commander died fruitlessly. Even if the dragon was there to help them, the elves could not help but feel a deep terror in their hearts and chill in their bones. Some even bemoaned the tragic fates of the humans.

This was the instinctive fear of the weak in the face of the strong. However much they tried to climb up the ranks and raise their abilities, they could do nothing but fear those powerful forces who could treat them like ants.

"That dragon looks like it's going to 'Central City'. What should we do?"

On top of a tall tree, two elven scouts were hiding among the dense branches and leaves. As rangers, they had even better eyesight and were able to observe the entire battlefield.

The elves were known for their elegance and beauty. Even ordinary female elves were beauties in the eyes of other human-like races with similar aesthetics.

"The other scouting squads have already reported the intelligence to the upper echelon. We just have to wait for the news… Lady Silver Moon, that giant dragon is too terrifying. I have seen dragons before, but this is my first time seeing one that big. Just looking at it is enough to paralyze anyone. I don't want to fight against such a creature."

One of the female elves patted her chest. Her voice still trembled at the sight before her.

"That is a demigod dragon. If we fought against him, it would inconvenience him the same way you'd be bothered if something were stuck in your teeth. This is the first time I have heard of one of its kind. Could it be an ancient dragon that lived for many years and has only just awakened?"

The other elf also showed a terrified look, and her neck subconsciously shrunk back.

At this moment, a metal badge on her chest shook. The elf collected her expression as she solemnly faced the badge. It emitted a green glow and transmitted the message directly to her mind.

"Orders from General Sisna. We are to ride to 'Central City' on hippogriffs!"

Although neither of the two elves wanted to see the terrifying dragon, military orders could not be disobeyed. The two looked at each other and nodded. They pinched their fingers and whistled.

The distant trees swayed slightly. Two giant eagle-like creatures stretched their gorgeous wings and flew over after hearing the sound. The two elves quickly stood up, and at the same time, more than a thousand similar eagles rose from the forest. They quickly turned into black shadows as they advanced following the dragon.

…

Although Louie was huge, he wasn't the least bit slow. It did not take long before the city was completely displayed in his sights.

From a high altitude, he could tell that it was built within a valley in a mountain range. Even Louie, with his demigod vision, and at an altitude of thousands of meters could not see the limits of the mountainous landscape before him. The mountain range seemed to split the continent in two

Towering mountains and precipitous ridges were littered over the terrain, and traversing it would be dangerous for anyone, to talk less of it being conducive for human survival. Despite that, however, someone had built a city smack in the middle. Louie did not know much about wartime strategy, but he could understand that the city was a key location in contested land. Whosoever held it could attack and retreat with ease.

Compared to the metropolises on earth, the city before him was rather small. Louie could make out its edges from the altitude he flew at, and its technology only seemed to exist at the medieval level. Nevertheless, Louie knew that its strength definitely exceeded the cities of medieval Earth due to the existence of magic and other extraordinary powers.

"No wonder it's called Central City. Even if it's not at the center of the continent, it's definitely a transportation hub."

Louie gazed at the city from the sky. He could see dense black dots quickly moving. Presumably, the city's inhabitants had noticed him and started a commotion.

Even if his body was thousands of meters in the air, his massive frame could still convey an idea of his size.

"Well, there's not much time left. Let's see if I can get rid of this city."

Thinking like this, Louie did not hesitate in the slightest as he swooped down.

Louie's initial intention was to do low-key transmigration. He honestly wanted to find a deep mountain forest to nest and hide in until he became strong enough. Only then would he come out of the mountains. That was the right thing to do as a transmigrator.

But because of the contract and because of the deceptive intelligent brain, Louie could not make his ideas come true. In order to complete the contract to defeat the human army, he would have to act in a high-profile manner from the beginning.

Louie's mind raced. After finding out that his strategy of building high walls, accumulating grains, and slowly becoming king could not be implemented, he immediately decided on a new approach to combat.

Since his ultimate goal was his own safety, then he would be completely high-profile and more confident. He would show the world his matchless power, slaughter the human army, slap the powerful legendary rank warrior to death like a dog, and cause the fall of an important city. This would truly demonstrate his demigod might.

For this reason, Louie pretended that he was really a long-lived dragon with its pride, warped sense of honor, and incomprehensible persistence.

Still, the fact that he had to constantly speak in an arrogant tone made him feel uncomfortable. Nevertheless, he had to deal with it.

Louie was only a baby dragon at the moment. This power as a demigod was only borrowed from the divine power left inside the godhood. This was not his true ability and could only be used as a trump card.

Under this situation, the best way for Louie to show his strength was to display unbeatable power, so that others would fear him and hesitate before daring to retaliate. This way, even if he appeared as a baby dragon, others would only think that this was his bad taste and not his true appearance.

What Louie wanted to do was to spread fear and awe that would provide him a relatively safe space to live!

Who would dare provoke a demigod dragon? Who would ever imagine that the terrifying Demigod dragon was just a baby?

Chapter 16

After using the Dragon God's godhood to become a demigod dragon, Louie learned the basic knowledge about this world. Gods were inconceivable existences. Even if the Dragon God's death happened tens if not hundreds of millennia ago, no secret could be kept from him. His understanding of his new surroundings thus deepened.

This world was not like Earth with celestial bodies and the stars in its cosmos. San Soliel's world was flat and layered. It was divided into the main continent, the upper realm, and the lower realm. There existed realms in between these, but their makeups were much more complicated and unique.

There were two major combat occupations in this world: mages and warriors. And regardless of which path an individual went down, there were nine ranks that mortals could ascend to.

Regardless of the race, when an individual exceeded the ninth rank, they would begin to break away from their mortal shells in a process called 'Immortal Transcendence'. At this level no matter the life form, power, or life expectancy they would all be called 'Legendary'. As the name suggested, those who had broken free from the shackles of mortality were the current legends.

Above Legends were Demigods and Gods. Godly existences were indescribable to mortals and represented truly transcendental lives with theoretically infinite lifespans.

However, ascending from legendary to demigod was near-impossible and required more than talent. Luck played a critical role as well. As the queen of the Silver Moon Kingdom was a demigod, she could summon legendary creatures to fight for her using her divine powers as bait.

Abir, who Louie had slapped dead, was a half a step into the demigod rank. But the gap between where he was and true demigod was a huge rift that had obstructed many over their lifetimes. In the multiverse of San Soliel, few had managed to reach that level, and everyone carried immense renown.

A single legendary rank warrior would be treated as a superhuman on Earth. Just imagine how strong a demigod rank warrior would be.

Louie descended from his high altitude, the city clearing up as he approached it. It was built on the mountain, and at the peak stood an ornate and luxurious palace that looked like a cathedral. Further down, he could see the residential and commercial areas.

The two areas looked quite disorganized from his height. Considering the technological prowess of this world, however, Louie could understand why they were poor at city planning.

Louie's descent elicited numerous screams from the fleeing populace, and his strong eyesight picked up on some unexpected features of the city, making out that it was a kind of trading hub.

"Boooom—–"

A sonic boom spread apart the clouds as he sliced across the sky. The sound wave undulated, sweeping across the nearby mountains. Before he could hit the city, however, he met resistance. A magical barrier had obstructed his descent. When his titanic body collided with it, the barrier and the city beneath it shook violently. Countless residents collapsed in the streets with terrified screams as they gazed at the dragon on top of them.

Louie shook his head, slightly dazed. Upon second thought he should have realized earlier on that such an important stronghold would be protected. Moreover, this barrier seemed quite good at blocking physical objects. His descent should have been powerful enough to destroy mountain peaks.

Louie focused divine power in his eyes and looked again. He could indeed see a large barrier protecting the city. However, it had begun to dim, signifying that his prior collision was not entirely useless

The terrified expressions of the soldiers on top of the walls entered his view. The common residents ran and shouted on the streets, afraid that if they were a step slower, they would be killed by the dragon. Some people gathered together, shivering as they stared at the mythical creature that only appeared in stories. There were even some people dressed as mercenaries while holding weapons, but looking at them trembling all over, they seemed like weaklings.

Louie concluded that this city had few powerful individuals.

Realizing that he had little time left in his form and that he did not know how to replenish the divine power in the godhood he possessed, Louie chose to save some power for emergencies later. He decided to round things up quickly.

Louie's body once again floated up. A pair of wings covered the sky and his shadow enveloped the earth. The Emerald Dreamland once again unfolded, and an enormous magic formation appeared in the sky, setting it aflame.

Louie knew neither how to use magic, nor how it worked. And aside from the names and effects of the different kinds of magic that he understood from the knowledge of the Gods, he didn't know how to cast them.

However, the Gods were always incredible. Even if he could not cast magic, he could still use his Godly powers to simulate them.

The Emerald Dreamland, the divine domain of dreams, possessed the ability to turn reality into illusion and vice versa.

And Louie at this moment was turning his fantasies into a reality, releasing what he understood to be a legendary spell—

"[Scorching Waterfall]!"

Like fireworks, countless motes of fire rained down on the city like drops of water in a waterfall. It enveloped the area in a beautiful but destructive glow.

Chapter 17

Inside the palace located at the highest point of Central City, an old priest was kneeling in front of the stone statue of God and praying fervently.

"Boooom—"

The earth trembled and the chapel shook. From time to time, tiny pieces of debris fell from above, spilling onto the priest's robes.

The elderly priest did not react to the shaking at all. He just lowered his head, even more, prayed more quickly, and with greater fervency.

"Knock knock—-"

The door of the chapel was suddenly opened from the outside, and a young priest stumbled in, speaking in an alarmed tone, "… Archbishop, it's a dragon, it's a dragon! A huge dragon is flying in the sky outside the city!"

"Yes, I know."

The archbishop did not look back. He continued to kneel in front of the statue and spoke with a calm voice.

Seeing that the archbishop had little reaction, the young priest became even more anxious, "… Your Eminence, that is not an ordinary dragon. It… Its body is more than three hundred meters long. It's completely different from the dragons on the main continent."

"I know…"

The archbishop continued speaking in a calm voice, "…That is a primordial dragon, moreover, a demigod primordial dragon. I know that… Remember, you must be silent in the presence of God. This place is the chapel. It is God's kingdom on this land. Do not behave disrespectfully."

The young priest heard the archbishop's words. The panic on his face evaporated, and he looked at the archbishop with reverence and respect.

Outside the city, the demigod primordial dragon was attacking the city and had almost destroyed it, but the archbishop continued calmly praying to God. He fully lived up to his name as a devout believer.

"Abir has been martyred for the Theocracy…"

The archbishop's calm statement cast horror onto the young priest once more, "… Lord Abir, he…..?"

But quickly he recalled that he was still in the chapel. He gradually suppressed his voice, but his face betrayed his terror.

That person was the Holy Iris Order commander Lord Abir. He was a high-ranked legendary warrior stationed in Central City, and with his strength alone he could capture the neighboring city. Such a powerful person fell in so short a time?

The priest wondered if he was in a nightmare

"There is no need to panic. His Holiness the Pope will hold a mass for Abir, and he will go to heaven to be with God."

The archbishop continued slowly and methodically.

'No, I'm not panicking about Lord Abir's fall, I'm panicking about my own safety right now.'

The young priest spat in his heart, but he didn't really dare say these words.

"Your Eminence, what do we do now?"

As the archbishop of the Central City, he was the highest officer with all the administrative power, and only he could give orders in this situation.

After a moment of silence, the archbishop said indifferently, "…Convey the following: tell the soldiers not to attempt resisting the dragon. A demigod primordial dragon is not something that they can face, and they would only be sending themselves to their deaths. Tell the soldiers who can still move to go to the granary and burn all the food and other strategic materials in Central City."

"Your Eminence, in that case, won't the Central City be… His Holiness the Pope will…."

The priest said in horror. The archbishop's order was to abandon the city. Central City was a very important location. If they abandoned it, His Holiness would be furious once they returned to the Theocracy.

"I will take care of everything. You don't have to worry… Moreover, we are facing a demigod dragon. I think His Holiness would understand… In these past few millennia, no one knows how many times Central City has changed hands. Humans, elves, beastmen, and many other races have ruled it, but never once has a dragon ruled over it. You should know that with a dragon's temper and habits, they would not be interested in the city and territory."

"…Even the Dragon Kingdom in the north, which has a pact with the dragons, could not make them do so. In that kingdom, dragons are only there as protectors, and the governors of the country are still humans. When this demigod dragon destroys Central City, the elves will likely take over it, so we cannot leave any important strategic supplies. As much as possible, we need to destroy every weapon and food supply. This way, the Theocracy can organize a large army to take back Central City again. At that time, the demigod dragon will have departed."

Listening to the plans the archbishop had formulated, the young felt pure admiration for him. He remarked internally that this was why the archbishop was most trusted by the Pope.

"Since you heard my orders, quickly go. If the dragon destroys the city and leaves the granary and armory alone, the elves will probably take them away. With those supplies, we would have to pay a huge price to retake the city."

The archbishop spoke with a stern voice.

"Yes, I will convey your orders… then archbishop, what do you plan to do?"

"Under this cathedral in Central City, there is a storage room with many treasures and precious magic tools. It would be impossible for us to take away all these things. With the dragon's greed for treasure, it is impossible to hide the fluctuations of wealth from him. He will definitely watch this place. You guys should run first."

The archbishop sighed.

The priest, on the other hand, had a sad face. He thought that the archbishop was planning to die as a martyr to block the dragon so that he could buy time for them, the ordinary people, to escape.

Sensing that the priest had misunderstood something, the archbishop glared at him and said, "…. What are you daydreaming about? I'm leaving through the secret passage. Wait until you are away from the divine domain before using the holy magic scrolls to teleport away. You guys don't need to care about me. Run as far away as you can run."

Although the archbishop was an old priest and knew how to use high-level holy magic, his main duty was to save lives and help the wounded. He simply did not know combat. If even Abir, who was one of the strongest people in the Theocracy, had fallen, then what use did he, a healing bishop, have in staying there? Naturally, he would run as far as possible!

The archbishop thought about his own high status within the Theocracy. He had not yet enjoyed enough blessings, so how was he willing to just die here?

Hearing the archbishop's words, the priest's face turned black. It seemed that the reason they had been sent outside was to attract the dragon's attention so that he could escape. The priest had incorrectly believed that the archbishop had the spirit of sacrifice.

But because his status was not high enough, he did not dare respond and bade farewell as he passed on the archbishop's orders.

Waiting until the young priest left and the church was empty, the archbishop jumped up and ran with agile movements that did not match his age. He quickly ran towards the back of the chapel where the secret passage was located.

…

At that moment, [Scorching Waterfall] had already completely penetrated the city barrier. Countless drops of fire fell like glorious lights onto the city. Explosions, burning flames, wailing and screaming of the countless races, trampled streets, and the fleeing crowds formed a doomsday-like hellscape.

The dragon descended from the sky. Like in the stories of old, it had annihilated the city in an instant.

Chapter 18

The city was desolate after the disaster.

The flames raged without end, and the kilometer-wide magic formation hovered in the sky, raining fire and terror. With the city's barrier broken there was nothing left to resist the dragon's might.

Save forbidden magic that only the Gods could cast, legendary rank magic was the highest rank others could perform. Its might was so potent that it could maim the Gods and annihilate legendary rank foes in seconds.

This magic was part of why mages were highly regarded. Though only a few of such mages existed, each one was capable of mastering legendary spells.

However, ordinarily, a legendary rank mage could only master a single type of legendary magic. Furthermore, this magic required immense preliminary preparation, rituals, and sacrifices, making it extremely difficult to cast.

Louie's legendary magic was not actually magic per se, but a divine art. By tapping into the infinite possibilities held within divine power, and using them to power the Emerald Dreamland, Louie could manifest his imagination as reality.

Consequently, the entire city was destroyed. Its walls and suburbs were aflame, and even now some inhabitants still fled, weeping as they did so. None wanted to be reduced to ashes in an instant.

Some tried, to no avail, to douse the flames. Unfortunately, the magical fires were impervious to water.

After using the [Scorching Waterfall], there was almost nothing left for Louie to do. All he had to do was wait and the city would fall completely.

[Host, there is a special metal in that church that can be used as a permanent positioning device.]

The intelligent brain, which had not spoken since the beginning of the massacre, suddenly interjected, startling Louie.

"Inside the church….?"

Louie's eyes turned to the mountain peak, the highest point in the city. A magnificent structure stood erect there. Its architecture seemed to be a confluence of castle, palace, and cathedral inspiration. The complex had numerous buildings arranged in a circle.

Louie promptly spread his wings and flew towards it. Although the palace looked magnificent, it was a little small compared to his body.

After a moment of contemplation, Louie's body began to shrink, reducing to 20 meters in length. At this size, he could directly enter through the main entrance

With a light swing of his tail, the doors were knocked over. Louie then swaggered in.

The church-palace was extremely luxurious. The interior of its dome was inlaid with beautiful frescoes, and delicate colored designs garnished the glass windows. Each wall told powerful tales of legend with their paintings, masterpieces of great artists. Huge overhead chandeliers loomed over an incredibly soft carpet of purple and gold, filling the place with an air of sacredness and solemnity.

The clergy had evacuated along with the rest of the citizens, leaving the building empty. In their haste, they hadn't bothered to carry away the palace items, and so its opulence remained undiminished.

Louie wasn't aware of dragons' reputation for loving treasures. And so he didn't know that they hadn't bothered to take any along with them out of fear of his pursuit.

Thus, this priceless palace with its countless art pieces and boundless wealth remained perfectly intact for Louie.

"Good thing I didn't blow this beautiful place up. That would have been a huge loss."

The happy Louie swept away the seats that blocked his path. He was now in the largest chapel inside the palace. It is also where the intelligent brain said he could find the materials for the permanent positioning device.

'Intelligent Brain, which item do you need?'

Louie scanned through the objects on display, looking for the intelligent brain's target.

[That statue.]

Its response shifted Louie's attention to the statue at the very center of the chapel in front of him.

It was a 20-meter-tall sculpture of a Goddess. Its artisan had taken great care to carve out its limbs, clothes, hair, and body with excruciating detail. However, its facial features were made deliberately hazy and indistinct. Louie could tell that whoever had sculpted it was a person of great talent, as it conveyed a feeling of awe and boundless benevolence.

This Goddess should be one of the myriads of deities the Theocracy worshiped. That the kingdom was polytheistic surprised Louie slightly.

On Earth, the largest religions were monotheistic. Polytheism, on the other hand, was uncommon save for in certain places.

"What's so special about this statute?"

Louie looked at it from different angles, even using his divine power to see if he could learn anything, but it remained a well-crafted but unremarkable statue.

[There is nothing special about the statue itself, but the material used to make it is very suitable for constructing a permanent positioning device for the wormhole.]

"What should I do now?"

Louie did not ask for further details. In his case, whether it was this world's magic or the intelligent brain's advanced technology, he couldn't understand them. Without the godhood, his prospects would undeniably be bleak.

[The host only needs to touch the statue and leave the rest to me.]

After hearing this, Louie walked over and lightly touched the statue with his claws. He watched in amazement as it melted into a metallic liquid, and soon powerful energy flowed from his body and wrapped the former sculpture. The liquid solidified into a metal doorway that let out a blue glow, same as the one he arrived in San Soleil through.

[Installation of permanent positioning device complete. It is imperative that the host protects this device, however, as it is needed to travel between Earth and San Soliel.]

"Oh, just protecting this door well… Sure, I'll go find a desolate place to hide it later.

Louie made a decision with little thinking.

[Apologies, Host. This permanent positioning device cannot be moved. It records its exact position at present, and any shift will cause a massive deviation when crossing over.

Louie was stunned. He suddenly felt anxious, "… What did you say? Are you telling me that the door will always be here? I have to be here all the time to protect it?!"

[Exactly. To be more precise, this device can not be shifted out of the kilometer surrounding this point. If so, there will be a coordinate deviation. And when traveling between worlds, slight deviations can lead to unpredictable consequences.]

"You retarded #$%^&*. Why didn't you say it earlier? If you did, I would have moved the statue away! How could I just let you place the permanent positioning device here?!"

Louie's expression changed greatly. He did not even think as he rushed out of the palace and spread his wings, becoming a gigantic dragon once again.

"I am Louie XXXXXX Caracolon. All resisting parties should lay down their weapons and surrender. Henceforth, this city is mine. Those who submit may survive. But those who resist or attempt to flee shall become ash! From this day on, I am your lord, and this city shall be called Dragon City!"

Louie flew to the sky, announcing his intent. With his divine power, his voice permeated every square inch of the city, and his magic quelled the flames.

At first, he was prepared to destroy the city and leave. This was equivalent to slaughtering everyone and running away. But he did not expect that he would need to change his approach due to the permanent positioning device. He changed his intentions and became the lord of the city!

Chapter 19

Dragon City, which had been forcibly renamed by Louie, became quiet. The civilians who had yet to escape had deathly expressions, and after hearing Louie's announcement, they clutched their valuables in fear and consternation.

In this eerie silence, the children's cries were clear. Parents quickly covered the children's mouths, shivering for fear of attracting attention.

Some of the mercenaries in the city were also at a loss. They did not know if they should leave or continue to stay.

These battle-hardened mercenaries were bold people. If they heard such words in other places, they would definitely ignore them and prioritize their own safety first, but when the speaker was a demigod dragon, even they had to be careful.

On the contrary, the quickest reaction came from the soldiers guarding the city. They were not elites, and the soldiers led by the Holy Iris Knight Commander were killed cleanly by Louie earlier.

These soldiers had received instructions from the archbishop to evacuate the city. There was not much resistance in their minds, so they dared not escape after hearing Louie's words.

Dragon City's prior name of 'Central City' was not chosen at random. It was the most important route for many races. To the south was the land of the elves, east was the United Nations of beastmen and humans. To the west were the Empire and the Theocracy. No matter which direction one went, the nearest cities were all equidistant from Dragon City. The roads were also filled with danger, and weaklings would be at great risk of dying in the nearby mountains and forests.

In the past, Dragon City was occupied by the Theocracy and a group of elite soldiers. In addition to the magical barrier and naturally defensible terrain, it was difficult to take the city.

Any force planning a major expedition against the city would be noticed by the Theocracy's information network quite quickly. It could then send military reinforcements in advance. Using a small-scale force on the other hand meant taking the city became much more difficult.

In a way, Central City was well-fortified. With a legendary rank protector, unless a full-scale war occurred on the main continent, this place was quite safe.

However, the Theocracy could never have imagined that a demigod primordial dragon would pop out of nowhere and tear its defenses apart like paper. It didn't even take an hour before it took the city, and perhaps the Theocracy had yet to even receive news of its seizing.

If it were just a primordial dragon, the Theocracy would not hesitate to pay the price of retaking the city. If it were a demigod, then it would still bite the bullet and drive it away. But a demigod primordial dragon? The Theocracy would definitely have to think long and hard about its reaction to it.

Even if they could defeat this dragon, the Theocracy would likely exhaust itself completely. For a power that was in a supreme position, this would be a stupid decision. Furthermore, let alone the non-human races, the neighboring Empire would devour it soon after.

Now, Louie did not know this much. He just hovered over the city and saw that most people had followed his instructions out of fear. Some soldiers even began to drive back citizens into their burnt homes. He nodded in satisfaction at this sight.

It was already too late to regret. Since the city had been partly destroyed, Louie had to preserve the other part as much as possible.

'But not everything is bad news. Now that I have shown my strength, the other countries and forces in this world will think carefully before looking for trouble.'

Louie consoled himself. He had not yet used up all the power in the godhood. He still had a trump card, and so he had nothing to fear. He now needed time, so that he could grow up.

As long as he followed the words of the intelligent brain, found enough energy to become complete, and picked up the remaining fragments of divine power, he could definitely see himself becoming an immortal god.

Naturally, this was something he had to consider afterward. Now, he had to think of a way to get a foothold in this world.

As his wings spread once more, Louie flew back to the church-palace at the very top of the city. His body once again shrank as he withdrew the precious divine power. Until he found a way to replenish it, he would use it sparingly and only when necessary.

Louie reverted to his initial appearance as a baby dragon and entered the palace. As he looked at the opulent palace with extreme satisfaction, he thought of making this place into his lair for a long time to come.

"Hmmm?"

Suddenly, Louie's dragon instincts erupted as he smelled the scent of treasure.

With bubbling excitement, he followed his feeling to the back of the chapel. He quickly found the entrance to the basement and discovered the treasures within. Perhaps this was one of a dragon's talents.

'Babies, here I come.'

Whether as a dragon or as a human, treasures were always attractive, and Louie had a great enthusiasm for his spoils of war.

Chapter 20

Louie descended the jade steps into the underground room. After turning a corner, his eyes were dazzled by the light gleaming off gold, silver, jade, and gem treasures. He also took note of the potent magic power radiating from metals he had never seen before.

The rare metals flashed with colorful lights, but without the dazzle of gold. The gold coins had almost filled up the entire basement. With his 4-meter-long body, the quantity didn't seem that much, but if he were a human they'd probably form a mountain of glittering brilliance.

Louie could almost feel his irises turn into dollar symbols. His instinctive greed awoke the desire to jump up and down and roll around in his newfound wealth. Fortunately, his human soul helped suppress the urge.

At this moment, he noticed that there was actually an intruder within the room. It was an old mage wearing unorthodox magical robes. His entire person stank of poverty as he crazily stuffed gold into his pockets, and when he met Louie's eyes, his face stiffened and he let out a smile that was uglier than crying.

….

Marches cursed his terrible luck.

He originally wanted to participate in the Theocracy's decadal invasion so that he could catch a beautiful noble elven girl who he'd then sell to a noble. This way he could make a fortune and recover from his bankruptcy after failing several magical experiments.

The Theocracy had been invading inhuman enemies for more than hundreds of years now. When facing the powerful races, their battle would only end in skirmishes, but when facing weaker races, they would launch true invasions. In these many years, the Theocracy and other races had been fighting back and forth in low-intensity battles.

It was because of this lower danger level that a powerful seven ring mage like Marches decided to join the war. He even received preferential treatment from the Holy Iris Knight Commander and enjoyed the worship of some of the low-rank mages.

However, no one could imagine that in this show of strength, the army would actually encounter a primordial dragon that was only mentioned in legends. Moreover, it was a demigod!

Marches knew that the Silver Moon Kingdom's demigod queen would summon a legendary creature every time there was a war in order to reduce the casualties. In his mind, although such a creature was strong, the legendary rank knight commander would be able to face off against it. So long as he could sneakily kidnap a beautiful elf and then run away, wouldn't the little risk be worth it?

However, that was not the case in this war without precedent. An actual demigod dragon had appeared, changing the situation completely. Let alone a seven ring mage like him, even the legendary rank warrior was finished off quickly. The dragon could overwhelm a legendary rank warrior with its physique alone.

Just as Marches imagined, the knight commander was killed in two rounds, but fortunately, the commander had provided him enough time to escape the battlefield and return to the Central City.

Clearly understanding that the enemy was a demigod dragon, Marches did not feel that the city could put up much resistance. Thus, he did not think too much before deciding to escape before the dragon reached the vicinity. In any case, he was a seven ring mage. Normal wild creatures were not his enemy, and so he could guarantee his own safety.

However, he was too greedy in the end. Discontent at his lack of achievements, his latent avarice had erupted in full force. Rather than escape in advance, he chose to take advantage of the chaos to plunder the church. Given that the dragon would be the scapegoat, he had little to worry about after all.

Just as Marches expected, the senior priests and clergymen in the cathedral ran away without bringing anything after learning of the demigod dragon. He took this chance to break in like nobody's business, and with the help of his own magic, he broke the traps leading towards the treasure room.

After seeing the dazzling treasure room, Marches kept his basic reasoning. He knew that if he took the items that emitted magic fluctuations, he would probably be discovered by the dragon, but if he took some gold and jewels, then there shouldn't be any problem.

However, he never could have imagined that while he was filling his pocket with gold and jewels, he would meet the dragon face to face.

The dragon in front of him was slightly strange. His body had actually turned to that of a baby dragon, and it had lost the demigod might that could suffocate its spectators. However, Marches knew that dragons of its level could freely change their size and even race if they wanted to sow their seeds. In addition, the dragon's massive frame could not fit into the palace, and so it made sense for it to shrink itself.

The golden scales that glittered like gold told Marches all that he needed to know and then some. The baby dragon in front of him was unmistakably the Demigod dragon from earlier.

Marches didn't even think before throwing back the gold and jewels in his hand back into the pile. He got on both knees and kneeled as he cried out, "… Mighty dragon, I am not here to covet your treasures. I simply wished to prevent vile thieves from laying their hands on your belongings whilst you displayed your noble, supreme, and magnificent visage above. I am only here to guard your treasures! Ah, I just wanted to see the purity of these gold coins, and whether they could match your supremacy. Please rest assured that the gold coins here are all imperial goods of the highest quality. They are the only ones that can match your noble and elegant golden luster!"

Marches hugged the dragon's leg and cried out.

Oh my God, how dared I lust after a dragon's treasure?! I have truly gone crazy!

It was already too late for Marches to regret.

Chapter 21

Louie was shocked to see a human in the room, and in a flash, he readied the godhood within him to attack and slap this human to death.

Although his divine power reserves had decreased by two-thirds, he would not hesitate to use the remaining portion to guarantee his safety.

Surprisingly, however, his apprehension turned out to be unnecessary.

Seeing the old mage hugging his leg and wailing, Louie felt slightly lost as to how to proceed.

Embroidered onto the mage's robes were seven rings, indicating his status as an archmage. As a demigod, Louie's sneeze alone could incinerate him, but as a baby, the archmage could probably turn Louie into his pet if he so wished.

Right now, however, this mage was on his knees weeping and begging for mercy. Louie knew then that his previous performance had been flawless. At this point, his 'strength' should have been well-understood, and no one would make a move on him casually.

As a side note, it should be mentioned that in the world of San Soliel, death was not the end for lifeforms. Powerful mages could extract and torture the souls of their enemies. And with a dragon on the level of a demigod, the mere hypotheticals of what they could do would leave anyone in spine-tingling horror. Only lunatics would dare make such a gamble.

That a dragon would pick up godhood and merge with it so completely using non-magical means would be the last thing on anyone's mind.

Marches hugged the dragon's leg. He rubbed the corner of his eyes and stealthily measured up Louie. Seeing the dragon's cold and cruel pupils, he shivered in fear of being obliterated the next instant.

Naturally, all of this was just in his imagination. As a human, he couldn't actually read a dragon's expression. It was even more impossible for him to decipher a dragon's intent by just looking at its eyes. He could only guess based on what he knew.

Marches' gaze swept over the sword rolled up by Louie's tail. A momentary fervor flashed through his face, but he stifled it instantly. Revealing any greed for a dragon's belongings in front of it was simply tying his own noose.

Nonetheless, his heart still ached at the sight of the sword; after all, it was a divine weapon!

This longsword was passed down within the Holy Iris Order of the Theocracy to successive knights of significant status in each generation. It formed a bridge between the God of War and the knight order and perpetually strengthened their faith. Prior to the battle with Louie, it had been of legendary rank, but with the dedication and faith that Abir poured into it, it had actualized its potential and become a full-fledged divine weapon.

Every divine weapon was priceless, and the slightest movement while holding one would unleash terrifying power.

'But now this weapon belongs to a dragon….'

Marches sighed. No matter how much it infuriated the Theocracy, they would not dare attempt to steal it back.

But there were more pressing matters at hand for Marches. Namely: surviving. His speech a few moments ago was good for improvisation, but he feared his words were over-exaggerated, and that they would incur the dragon's distrust if anything.

Marches grit his teeth. Abandoning his pride he knelt on the floor and pulled out a scroll made of parchment. He began in a respectful tone, "…O, great dragon, your servant Marches offers his life and loyalty. Please spare me. I am willing to spend the rest of my life in your service!"

The spread scroll revealed several words written in magic characters on it. Despite having no proper knowledge of magic, Louie could understand them. Essentially the parchment was a master-slave contract.

As long as it was signed, the master would yield absolute control over the life and death of the servant. It was one of the strictest pacts that the inhabitants of San Soliel could form.

Naturally, there were restrictions on who could enter such an agreement. For one thing, the gap between the respective entities' powers could not be astronomically huge. At the very least, the slave side could not be overwhelmingly more powerful than the master. Louie for instance couldn't sign to become a slave even if he wanted to, as the godhood within him had raised the level of his existence beyond everything else. It would take an actual God descending to force him into a slave pact.

To show his sincerity, Marches immediately signed his name on the contract with blood.

Louie looked first at the contract, and then at the pale mage with a nervous smile. After thinking about it, he stretched out his claws and left a mark on the parchment.

The intruder was not a weakling. As a seven ring archmage, he had no small measure of repute. Moreover, all mages were knowledgeable, and Louie felt that having such a servant would allow him to understand the world more quickly.

With the contract signed, Louie felt that he held the soul of the human in front of him. As long as he willed it, he could make him die a violent death.

At this moment, Louie also relaxed. He had been truly afraid that this mage would rise up and hurt him!

Seeing Louie sign the contract, Marches also relaxed. At the very least, this meant that the dragon would not kill him at the moment.

But thinking about the fact that he had signed a master-servant contract with a dragon, Marches was filled with despair.

It was well-known that dragons were very tight-fisted. It was even joked on occasion that dirty gnomes were better as masters than dragons, who were extremely stingy. At least gnomes could give rewards on occasion.

After grasping control of the archmage's soul, Louie finally directed his attention to the treasure trove before him. His eyes moved to a crown that emitted strong magical fluctuations.

"What is that?"

Louie pointed his claw at the crown.

Marches looked in the direction Louie pointed at and wondered why Louie did not recognize the object. Although dragons did not actively learn things, they would undoubtedly accumulate knowledge as they grew. The more ancient a dragon was, the more knowledgeable it was.

The primordial dragon in front of him should have already lived for tens of thousands of years. It was only right that it was near-omniscient.

But Marches immediately suppressed this thought. He suddenly realized that perhaps the great dragon was just testing him. If he could not show his value, then he would be slapped to death in the next second.

With this realization, Marches immediately showed a flattering smile, bent over, and said humbly, "… O, Lord Caracolon, this is the Crown of Dominance. It is said to have been a divine weapon used by the Gods to dominate the angels, but after being damaged it was downgraded to a legendary weapon."

"…. Even though it can't use the 'Dominate Angel' spell anymore, it can still release the 'Dominate Human' spell once a day. Any human below the seventh rank will be incapable of resisting this spell. It also has a constant 'Aura of Fear' that can be released at any time!"

Chapter 22

Marches' explanation piqued Louie's interest in the crown. Its ability to dominate angels alone would doubtless allure many.

The angels of San Soliel were not creations of the Gods, but their messengers. They were a rare and powerful race that resided in the upper realms, and their innate sense of justice and purity meant they often earned the Gods' favor.

Of course, their sense of rectitude was quite popular with others as well. To be more exact, the idea of defiling their virtuous dispositions was a common fantasy for males; demon or otherwise. Taking a proud angel; with its stubborn eyes and pearl white wings, and tarnishing them bit by bit would be nothing short of pure ecstasy.

Granted this was quite the evil thing to do, but Louie could not care less. He was no longer human and would not be bound by human morality. He was a proud dragon, and he would do whatever pleased him. Just as he should.

Unfortunately, the Crown of Dominance could no longer use the spell. It could only use the 'Dominate Human' spell and the 'Aura of Fear'.

Louie was slightly disappointed but soon calmed down. Since he could not find an angel at the moment, the crown's primary function would be useless anyways. Being able to use 'Dominate Human' once a day and 'Aura of Fear' was already quite powerful.

Louie's body was still growing up, and he did not want to use the godhood unless it was absolutely necessary. After all, he still didn't know how to replenish it. To conserve his power he would arm himself as much as possible while he became stronger.

The 'Aura of Fear' could equal the release of his dragon's might. It would strike fear in the hearts of his targets and reduce their combat power, thereby supplementing Louie's shortcomings.

'Dominate Human' was a spell that could control humans below the seventh rank, and the duration of this control was based on the human's strength. In battle, a few seconds of control would be more than enough to inflict fatal damage.

What's more, Louie felt that this ability could be put to good use after returning to Earth. As Earthlings had no occupational levels, there would be no one beyond his control. That it could only control a single human per day made it seem weak, but this was any human of his choosing. Everyone from presidents to business leaders was fair game.

Moreover, if he could fix the crown someday he wouldn't mind finding a dainty angel to serve as his concubine. Heaven alone knew what exactly the God who created it was thinking. Expending all the effort, which was by no means meager, to craft such a divine weapon seemed utterly crazy to Louie.

Louie pondered, and with his claws, he picked up the crown, slightly worried.

The crown was made for human-sized creatures, and he was a dragon, so it would not fit him.

He placed it on his head to see just how poorly it fit but was pleasantly surprised when it expanded to fit his head.

'It's worthy of being a former divine weapon after all…'

Louis sighed in relief and swayed in glee. His tail was still coiled around the divine sword. Although he did not know how to use it, he could instinctively understand that it was very powerful. That said, it was still a real divine weapon. A random swing could cause incredible carnage. Since it was now his most precious treasure, he would make sure to carry it on himself.

"March, I will now give you a task…"

Louie spoke with a low voice as he once again eyed the human mage.

"Great Lord Caracolon, what command do you have for your loyal servant?"

Marches hastily bent down and smiled fawningly.

…

Sisna brought thousands of elves riding on hippogryphs to Central City which was now named Dragon City.

Coming into her view were blackened walls, the shambling remains of what used to be houses, and weeping crowds surrounding the blackened bodies of the unfortunate. In a stroke of twisted fortune, Sisna realized that they would likely not have to worry about a plague since the dead had been burnt all the way through.

From the magical residue in the air, Sisna could envision the scale of the spell that Louie had executed prior. Even the barrier that once protected the city had been smashed to smithereens.

The soldiers and the people of the city looked at the elves in alarm, fearful that the elves would invade after their recent ordeal.

Although the elves were a peaceful race, that was only speaking relatively. It did not mean that they wouldn't kill during a war. If they didn't, they would likely have been exterminated millennia ago.

"Lady Sisna, what should we do next? The dragon… it does not seem to have departed yet."

An elf riding a hippogryph approached from behind and hesitantly asked Sisna who led them to Dragon City.

"You should have heard it well. That dragon used magic to spread his words. He wants to occupy the city and become the lord here."

Sisna said with a solemn face. This result was different from what she and the queen had expected.

"A-a d-dragon as a lord?"

The elf who spoke stammered slightly at the thought of a dragon managing the city. It was not that this hadn't happened before, but that those cities had met their end in just a few years. These arrogant and lazy dragons would neither care about the livelihood of the residents nor care if the people had anything to eat. Even if all the people died, the dragons would not even bat an eye. That was why a dragon managing a city was the same as its death sentence.

"Seeing as the human soldiers below do not have the will to fight anymore, you guys should spread out in groups of ten and try to suppress any large riots. I will go see the great dragon first."

Sisna's hawk-like gaze swept the city one and issued her orders.

"Yes. Please be careful Lady Sisna. Dragons… dragons are not very easy to talk to."

The elf behind Sisna spoke worriedly.

"I know… I will try to stay humble."

Sisna bitterly smiled. Her beautiful face was full of reluctance. She did not feel any problems meeting with a dragon, but if the dragon was strong enough to decide her life and death at will, then even she would feel worried. Dragons' tempers were already common knowledge in this world.

Chapter 23

Sisna arrived at the palace on the highest point of the city unhindered. The route was especially clear since the city's residents kept their distance, fearful of becoming the dragon's next meal.

Standing at the entrance of the palace, Sisna's black eyebrows tightened up. As a believer of Lady Silver Moon, she felt awkward when in another God's church, but thinking of her responsibility as well as Her Majesty's mandate, she took a deep breath and stepped into the church with a determined expression.

The church's lavish decorations made Sisna slightly unhappy. As an elf, she preferred the comfort of nature over the lavish use of gold and silver decorations.

The circular palace was silent, eerily so. Sisna calmed her mind before stepping in, and not long after she arrived at the chapel prayer hall.

She heard the jingle of falling coins soon after.

The benches used by the congregation had already been removed. The ground was covered with gold, emeralds, onyx, and other precious stones as well as precious metals. Even as an elf, she felt her heart skip a beat.

On this mountain of treasure lay a dragon whose scales glittered no less than the treasures around it. Its frame was a far cry from its prior humongous stature, but Sisna dared not act disrespectfully in front of it. With the Gods having faded away eons ago, Sisna knew that this eccentric primordial dragon was an absolute existence on the continent.

Now, however, it sported a beautiful crown over its golden head and possessed the mien of a king.

The dragon, lying on top of the gold, was currently licking a longsword clean. From the weapon's fluctuations, Sisna could tell that it was a priceless divine weapon.

'It seems that dragons, even demigod primordial ones, truly can't help but be greedy. The city is in utter chaos, and yet the lord does not seem to care about his territory at all.'

Sisna secretly sighed, unsurprised by the sight before her. If a dragon wasn't greedy and covetous of treasures, then it wasn't really a dragon.

A human archmage was currently using magic somewhere in the basement to push the basement's wealth in front of the dragon, making a sea of gold and silver.

"Great Lord Caracolon…"

Sisna straightened herself. She slowly stepped a short distance in front of Louie and performed an ancient elven salute.

Louie stopped mid-lick and hid the sword beneath himself. At this, Sisna could not help but smile at his predictability.

After sequestering away the holy sword, Louie regarded the elf.

When he first arrived in San Soleil, Louie could sense her power the instant he saw her. At the time she could cut off his head with absolute ease. But it was only after he transformed into a demigod that he could properly gauge her abilities. She was a legendary ranked ranger!

Gazing at Sisna, Louie discovered that his thoughts became restless. She had long hair like emerald-glaze, a pair of beautiful jade-like eyes that were dotted on her pretty face, willow eyebrows that seemed like shrouding mist, vermillion lips, and unbelievable glistening skin. Even Louie's dragon eyes could not make out any pores or flaws on her epidermis.

She carried herself tall and had a curvaceous yet delicate figure; her pointed eyes trembled slightly. Louie had seen many beautiful celebrity models on Earth, but they were simply ugly maids in front of this elf.

Other than the elf queen whose face seemed to be permanently hidden by mist, the elf in front of him was the most beautiful woman Louie had ever seen.

It was no wonder that so many races wanted to have elven slaves. Even a dragon-like him had the impulse to have her bear his children.

"Lord Caracolon?"

Louie's gaze made Sisna feel a burst of oppression. It was not that Louie released an aura, but that his Godly might from before had cast a deep shadow in Sisna's heart. Even the gaze of Louie's baby dragon form could stir faint awe inside her.

"Right… I remember that you are called Sisna, yes…?"

Louie recalled his descent into this world. The elf queen had called out this elf's name, so he said it with his child-like voice.

"Yes. I am Her Majesty's bodyguard, the leader of the Silver Moon Kingdom's army, Sisna…"

The elf remained humble. Although the dragon in front looked to be amiable and not at all grumpy, Sisna felt that it was most likely the dragon's wisdom brought about by his many years of growth that was different from those young dragons.

"So Sisna, tell me what you're here for?"

Although the elf was beautiful enough to stir even his reproductive urges, Louie decided to prioritize his own safety. After all, as the saying went, 'after one is fed and warmed, their sexual desires come next'.

"I was ordered by Her Majesty to bring the elven army here and see what we need to do for Lord Caracolon. Without your consent, I have sent troops to patrol the city and maintain law and order. I hope you will forgive me."

Sisna bowed her head deeply, making herself appear as small as possible and raising up Louie.

The real order that she had received from the queen was not this, but to wait until the dragon had sacked the city, robbed the treasures and left, then the elves would quickly seize it. However, they did not expect the dragon to capture the city for itself. Given the new developments, Sisna immediately changed her goals.

Louie was stunned when he heard Sisna's words. He felt embarrassed that he had only focused on the luxurious palace and the treasure inside and nearly forgot about the city on the brink of destruction.

He did not expect that his thoughts were becoming more and more like a dragon's.

But soon, Louie was distressed again. He recalled that his highest ever official position as a human was the leader of a small group charged with collecting homework. He simply did not know how to manage a city!

Chapter 24

"Lord Caracolon?"

Sisna saw that the dragon seemed to lapse again into absent-mindedness. She lightly called out, pulling Louie's mind back.

"I want you to tell me the history of this city as well as the current state of the world in general. Countless years ago I was trapped within an unknown realm in the sea of stars. Had I not felt the summons from the main continent, I would likely still be wandering the endless sea of stars today. I need to brush up on my understanding."

Louie lowered his voice as much as possible, but he did not forget to add an air of dignity.

It was said that a single lie would cascade into a thousand more as the liar attempted to cover it up, and Louie was a perfect example of this. Since everyone had misunderstood him so far, he might as well roll with it. Even if he acted a little lively, they'd only think he was an eccentric dragon who remained young at heart.

Nevertheless, there were certain emotions he absolutely could not express such as fear and alarm. No matter how dire the situation seemed, he would have to maintain a composed visage.

Even if this was technically his first time in another world, he had still read many novels. If he couldn't do even that then he'd truly be an idiot.

Transmigration and reincarnation needed to have a solid grasp on their attitudes. Only idiots would look for trouble in situations that they did not yet understand.

Asides from being recognized as a demigod, Louie had also obtained a fundamental understanding of the cosmology of San Soliel. He knew that countless realms, large and small, existed within the sea of stars. Any entity that accidentally wandered into one of the unknown realms by accident could find themselves stranded until the day they died.

So, there was no problem with his excuse at all. Even the Gods could get lost in the sea of stars. In fact, whenever they wandered the sea of stars they would make sure to properly prepare the return coordinates. If even they could get lost then a 'demigod' like Louie losing his way wasn't strange at all.

Hearing Louie's words, Sisna's heart shook as she realized that her and her queen's guess was correct. This living specimen of an otherwise extinct species had been lost eons ago in the sea of stars. It was only the queen's divine power that had allowed it to return to the main continent.

In that case, this dragon was extremely lucky. Sisna recalled her queen talking about the 'Lost History' on occasion when she was still a young ranger. She figured that this dragon had been asleep during the period, and so had missed the Dragon God's call. Considering that the call had preceded the biggest disaster that San Soliel ever faced, providence was definitely on the dragon's side.

Very little was recorded concerning the catastrophe, and only a few words trickled on occasion into the ears of the privileged. That said, anyone who survived the calamity would be sure to remember it. In it, nearly all life in San Soleil was extinguished, and only a tenth of the world's population was left by its end. Countless Gods perished as deities were cut down like chickens, and none could guarantee their survival in face of the unprecedented disaster.

Bringing her thoughts back to the present, Sisna gave Louie a condensed explanation of the continent's geopolitics.

Her voice was clear and pleasant to the ears. In addition to her unique beauty, she also had a warrior's perseverance. Her light voice that was like a nightingale's song, filled Louie with glee as he heard her speak.

While Sisna was explaining, Louie came to better understand the world of San Soliel.

The main continent was vast and was separated by an endless mountain range in the center. This divided the continent into two halves. The mountain range itself was called the Soleil Mountains, and it was from it that the world of San Soliel derived its name.

With the Soleil Mountains as the central axis, the main power in the west was the human Empire and the Theocracy, while that of the east was the United Kingdoms of humans and beastmen.

The most active races on the continent were the humans and beastmen, and various events had led to them being embroiled in an age-long struggle. Other races such as the elves and the dwarves could only be considered secondary powers. They were not the movers and shakers of the continent, but they possessed enough power to protect themselves.

Other races such as kobolds and goblins were more complex and diverse, but these races only live in mountains, jungles, swamps, and other locations that humans and beastmen could not fully control.

Among these explanations, Louie became most attentive when it came to the Dragon Kingdom in the northeast of the continent. This was a special country that was protected by dragons as part of a pact they had signed. Geographically it was nothing impressive, but its powerful protectors meant that few would dare provoke it.

Louie did not want to see other dragons. His greatest trump card at the moment was his godhood, and this, in turn, gained its power from the dragons' belief in the Dragon God. Who knew if other dragons could discover that he was a fraud. And given that his means of resistance were limited, then if he used up all of the divine power within his godhood, he'd become a sitting duck for the various true powerhouses in this world.

And now that Louie had claimed Central City – or rather, Dragon City, he knew he had currently taken charge of a very special location.

Though it was not located at the exact center of the main continent, it was a necessary stop that any race would have to make if they wished to travel to the other side. The former name of 'Central City' was thus extremely fitting.

'Oh boy… I guess I made a huge entrance…haha,'

Louie felt a headache coming on as he laughed nervously. Why did he coincidentally set the permanent positioning device here!?

The information that a demigod dragon had swept away Central City from the Holy Kingdom would soon reach the main continent's major powers. In addition, his territory was located at the heart of their conflict. If there was a phrase he could describe himself with, it would be….

The star of the world's attention!

Chapter 25

Louie didn't want to be in the spotlight. Unless it was necessary, he didn't even want to reveal himself as a demigod dragon. He would rather hide in the deep forest as a baby dragon and rule over all the weaker creatures in it, carving out a nice little territory for himself in the meantime.

He would have preferred to wait until he had grown up before amazing the whole world once he transcended. That was the way transmigrators should do things in his opinion. He would train amazing skills and become unequaled under heaven instead of being hunted day and night by others.

Sadly Louie's plan had failed before it had even started. He had no choice but to cause trouble. Fortunately, Louie did not need to follow the standard route all the transmigration he read about followed. There was no need to constantly flee from those more powerful than he was before mustering a counterattack at a critical moment.

"Sisna, tell me. What is the situation of the city right now?"

Louie pondered for a while before slowly asking.

Since the permanent positioning device could not be moved and had to be within a thousand meters of the established location – basically the range of the entire palace – Louie had to take this city as his base. Since it was his territory now, he could not leave it alone, but had to develop it properly.

If possible, it was best to have a powerful force and army. Although his public identity as a demigod dragon could deter others for a time, he did not believe it could do so indefinitely. The humans would doubtless grow restless and send some forces to harass him.

Louie could not personally act each time an enemy arrived. Not only would his divine power be consumed, but he might even reveal his true identity if he wasn't careful. After that the remaining kingdoms might form a coalition to hunt him.

He needed manpower. For example, his new servant. Though he acted frightened and deferent towards Louie, he was actually a seven ring archmage who could deal with many people by himself.

"Reporting back to the lord. Today Central… Dragon City was almost destroyed by the great power you have displayed."

Sisna carefully replied. Her quick and pleasant voice slightly stuttered. She felt slightly ashamed by the ease with which flattery flowed from her lips.

Still, the strength and terror he displayed earlier allowed her to praise him with a clear conscience, and she did not want to provoke the dragon's wrath. If the dragon took offense with her words and flew towards the Forest of the Moon in a rage, then she would be the ultimate sinner, and only the elf queen would stand a chance of stopping it.

Even if that happened, she was fairly sure that the elf queen would not be its match. Dragons were, after all, an unreasonable race. And as long as they matured, they could fight numerous enemies at their rank. Moreover, when they grew to the level of ancients, they would be able to obtain legendary rank power, and could easily demolish armies filled with combatants that equalled them rank-wise. Not to mention that this was a demigod dragon who would probably only have to flick its wrist once or twice.

But, a dragon could not grow forever. No matter how long it lived, it could not grow into a demigod. Gaining any level of divinity was a tough ordeal, and dragons' lazy and gluttonous natures often hampered their already small chances. Thus, demigod rank dragons were a rarity in history.

This was also why Sisna felt awe towards Louie.

Marches, who had been working hard in moving the gold, heard the elf's flattering words and looked down on her in the depths of his heart. He felt that even the so-called pure elves would have to kneel in front of the mighty dragon, and so there was nothing wrong with his behavior.

He made excuses for himself.

'But this elf chick is really pretty… Dammit. No way I'd sell her if I caught her. I'd have my fill of that body till I died, and she'd be a great heirloom for my kids.'

Marches thought lewdly.

"So what if it's destroyed? It simply needs to be rebuilt. Nothing difficult about that…."

Louie did not feel any remorse over half-decimating his own city. He even felt that it would save him a few troubles.

Despite the elevated powers of certain individuals in this world, Louie felt that its civilization itself was quite backwards. Perhaps it would not even compare to Earth's Middle Ages.

According to the intelligent brain, this world's creatures were barbarians, slowing the progress of civilization.

When Louie observed the city from a high altitude earlier, he could tell that its layout was completely unplanned and chaotic. There was no proper ordering or partitioning of districts, and individuals built whatever they wanted and wherever they wanted. The sheer amount of filth that covered the streets almost awoke a mild misophonia within him.

Louie was very dissatisfied with the current Dragon City as he was used to the relative cleanliness of modern metropolises on Earth.

Hearing Louie's words, Sisna secretly sighed, misunderstanding his words and pitying the citizens.

'Once a dragon always a dragon. They simply don't care about their subjects, and only the people will suffer.'

With this in mind, Sisna became more cautious. She didn't want to rebel against the terrifying entity and make him think badly of the elves. If that happened, her people would join those of Central City in short order.

"At present Lord Caracolon, Dragon City has a pressing need for food. Prior to their flight, the Holy Kingdom's people set fire to the majority of the city's grain reserves, and the remainder cannot support the daily needs of the now-homeless residents. Even if the Silver Moon Kingdom were to transfer some supplies, that can only be a stop-gap measure,"

Sisna continued.

"… Our elven race's diet is different from humans'. We subsist mainly on fruits which spoil quickly, and so we have very little in reserves. Even in winter many of our clansmen go starving. Population is vital to a city, and should not be abandoned. Only their existence can help develop a city."

Sisna's words were reasonable and also emotional. She first explained the importance of the people for the city. She was afraid that Louie might become annoyed and say something like, 'kill all the civilians who have no food, if they die they won't go hungry', in a typical dragon fashion.

At the same time, she even blocked Louie's path of taking the elves' food and recounted the elves' tragic lives to the point of almost crying.

Although elves were not afraid of war, they would not normally do evil deeds. Sisna had also considered those poor human civilians whose lives were close to the brink.

If it was an ordinary dragon, Sisna's words would not be able to move it, but Louie, who had the soul of a human, looked Sisna in the eyes.

'This elf is quite amazing. She speaks quite eloquently, and the way she plays with language leaves even scammers in the dust. She even ignored racial issues which was quite impressive for an official.'

She was beautiful and strong. Moreover, she was not a sweet naive woman, but a woman with both brains and brawn. The more Louie looked at her, the more he wanted her to bear his kids.

Chapter 26

At all stages of civilization, food remained the foundation of society.

Modern society, with its technological advantages and sophisticated economic systems, had all but eliminated starvation and nakedness. And only a few areas in the world still suffered from these challenges.

Nevertheless, San Soliel, with its medieval economy, had not yet attained food security. Farming and herding, the two primary sources of sustenance, were non-mechanized and far less productive than they were on Earth.

Life in this world was brutish, nasty, and short. The flames of war burned perpetually throughout the lands as race massacred race and famines and droughts claimed their victims. Massive wars between powers would erupt every so often, reaping thousands of lives each time. For the inhabitants of this turbulent world, the best most could hope for was tattered clothing and bitter black bread.

Hearing Sisna's response, Louie surmised that the elves likely faced similar food problems. Whereas the humans could rely on agriculture, and the beastmen could rely on both agriculture and hunting, elves were at a disadvantage. With their innate love for nature, they could not bear to clear the woodlands and cultivate crops on a large scale.

While their bodies allowed them to subsist on fruits alone, they would still need generous quantities of meat and coarse grains on occasion. And so they traded for these with the humans and beastmen.

San Soliel's winter was great for all of its inhabitants. For the dregs of society everywhere, the poor and disenfranchised, starvation and cold were the only guarantees. And their numbers would dwindle each day.

Louie felt that the elves' lifestyle was the primary reason for their difficulties, however. Without farming how could they expect to compete with humans?

It was a stupid handicap in his perspective.

While magic was a very useful tool, it was not omnipotent, and magicians were small in number. As with any group of self-interested individuals, their magic powers and research were rarely used for the benefit of the lower classes while they themselves enjoyed luxuries.

While magic could indeed mimic the ergonomics of modern technology, only mages and wealthy nobles could afford to employ it that way. One needed to invest an immense amount of resources for this convenience.

It seemed that technological civilizations and magical civilizations branched off at a point. The former guaranteed the evolution of the society whereas the latter only allowed the well-established and powerful upper classes to thrive. For an ordinary human, a technological civilization was definitely the best option. But for the few with natural talent, magical civilizations allowed for near unmitigated freedom, power, and even prospects of eternal life.

"Sisna…"

Louie spent half a day in thought before speaking again to the envoy.

"Please go ahead, Lord Caracolon."

Sisna remained humble and spoke softly in a way that tickled Louie's heart.

"Get some soldiers from your forces to maintain law and order. If there are any troublemakers, kill them. As for food…Well, I'll do something about it."

Louie closed his eyes.

Sisna's heart jumped a beat and slightly hesitated, "…this… I need to discuss this with the queen first. I cannot make such a decision on my own, Lord Caracolon''.

Fearful that she might have offended Louie, she stood tense.

"Go…"

But Louie's answer stunned Sisna. Against all her expectations, this dragon was actually…quite reasonable. Thinking deeper about it, she decided it might not be so strange after all. It was clearly an ancient member of its race, and the older dragons were generally less volatile than the youth. They would spend most of their time sleeping and hardly any of it looking for trouble.

"Then I shall return first. Lord… I will go back to the Silver Moon Kingdom and discuss with Her Majesty."

As Sisna finished, she slowly retreated. As for taking care of the food problem… Well, Sisna half-expected the dragon to solve that by reducing the number of mouths to feed.

Although elves could not bear seeing captives being killed, as a ranger, Sisna was not excessively charitable. If the mighty dragon truly issued this order, she would not contest it.

At this time, Louie was thinking about returning to Earth to think of a plan. Although a city of 200,000 people was a large city and was hard to provide for, it wasn't that much by modern standards.

Moreover, that was likely an optimistic estimate. Louie's magic had probably killed a good number of them. While the remainder probably hated him down to the bone, he didn't care much. They were his captives anyways, and if they caused any trouble he'd simply have them killed.

Perhaps this was a dragon's natural perspective, but life seemed a lot less valuable to Louie now.

After Sisna left, Marches turned to the sleeping dragon. He gazed deeply at it, seemingly desiring to speak but lacking the necessary courage to begin.

"Anything you want to say, Marches?"

The dragon suddenly spoke, startling Marches. He did not dare conceal anything, "… Great master, the elves were probably planning to occupy the city effortlessly from the beginning."

"Are you saying that the elves want to use me?"

"Nonono, great master, you are incredibly wise and farsighted. How could those stupid elves dare to use you?!"

Marches flattered and fawned.

"Hmph. If I was that queen, I would also do the same thing. Being able to occupy a city without wasting lives or resources is a huge bargain… but it's different now. This is now my Dragon City. The elves will not dare offend me, and neither will the other forces. If that queen has any brains between her ears, she'll only provide even more assistance than I demanded."

Louie suddenly opened his eyes to look at Marches. The cold vertical pupils sent shivers down his spine.

Marches deeply bowed to express his humility, but inwardly he was terrified.

'Lord God of Magic, this dragon is actually a deep schemer. How could the elves be using him? He's clearly using them instead.'

Moreover, the elves could not refuse. After all, what would they do if it allied itself with the humans and beastmen to massacre the elves? If the queen wasn't stupid, she'd throw all her support behind him.

Chapter 27

"You can go, Marches; I wish to rest. For now, I leave the city in your hands… If there is anyone who dares resist, kill them immediately."

Louie closed his eyes while lying on the mountain of gold. The master-slave contract they had signed meant that Marches' loyalty was guaranteed, and even some of his thoughts were made known to Louie. Louie could definitely trust him.

"Yes, great master!"

Marches bowed. Dragons loved to slumber, and in fact, they spent the majority of their lives doing so. He just hoped that this would be a brief nap and not a rest that lasted several years.

"Manage the city well, and maybe I'll reward you if I'm in a good mood."

Louie opened an eye and stared at the mage while he spoke in a majestic tone.

As for what the reward was, Louie did not say anything at all. He would let this man's imagination stew for a bit.

"It is my honor to serve you. How could I dare covet the Great Master's grace?"

Marches were flustered. Shivering with excitement he forced himself to keep a solemn and respectful expression.

'Lord God of Magic! A dragon, a member of a species famed for its greed, is actually willing to reward its servant?! Is this really a dragon? This can't be real, right! Are primordial dragons really that different?!'

Marches roared inwardly, skeptical of Louie's promise.

"I will give you what you deserve… Now go. Do not let anyone disturb my sleep, or approach this vicinity without my permission. Fail, and I will make sure your last breath is a painful one."

Louie spat out a column of flame as he spoke in a low voice.

"Please rest assured, Great Master. No one would dare interrupt your rest."

Marches hurriedly bowed his body and slowly retreated from this hall.

After Marches left, Louie began to think up his next plan of action.

The city needed development. But if he was going to do it, it needed to be done well.

After spending seven years in high school and university altogether, Louie felt he was in a much better position to decide how to develop the city than the natives. This was despite his lack of management experience.

The development could not be haphazard. It had to be structured and with a grand vision in mind.

The original Central City had changed owners many times over millennia. But no matter which race captured the city, they would often only use it as a frontline strategic outpost.

Since the city was easy to defend, it did not have many troops within it. Properly stationed, a few thousand soldiers could repel small armies. And even if an enemy launched a major offensive, Central City's location meant sending in reinforcements was quite simple for most powers. Every conflict centered around it would involve powerful legendary rank warriors, and some stories even mentioned demigods getting involved.

Regardless, one thing was certain. And that was that each battle would leave countless casualties.

This time Louie had easily captured the city since he caught the Theocracy by surprise. The Theocracy might have been vigilant against elves, beastmen, and other enemies, but an unaccounted-for demigod primordial dragon was an extreme anomaly. Before they could gain their bearings the city was lost.

For the various races, Dragon City's strategic value was irresistible. To carefully protect it they made sure to heavily restrict traffic from other races.

Louie, however, was different. He was only a single individual, and this was his only territory. The land of dragons was tens of thousands of miles away, and he had no interest in it.

Thus the city would become his outpost.

"This is located at the junction of several forces. With this territory and enough time, I can pull in members of the various races through commerce."

Louie thought with great enthusiasm.

Although he could use the elves to help him guard the city, it belonged to him in the end, and he would not let them dominate it. If he did then the humans would likely be unwilling to stand idly by, and it could also be construed as him allying himself with the elves.

The only person to benefit from this would be the elf queen.

In Louie's plan, there could only be one owner of the city: him. Whether it was the humans, beastmen, elves, and even other dragons, they needed to obey his orders!

And so he intended to gather money so that he could do anything he wanted. With his identity, other powers would be unlikely to covet his territory. He would use this to his advantage and bully them as much as possible.

"It's time to develop capitalism!"

Louie decided upon a cultural invasion. By introducing the tenets of capitalism he would gain a cultural and economic advantage over his foes, putting him a step before everyone else.

Of course, in this world where individuals could conquer countries by themselves, the prerequisite to doing so successfully and maintaining control was that an individual wielded enough strength.

'Are you there, Intelligent Brain!'

[I am, host!]

'You can perform the first life evolution on me now, right?'

[You can start at any time, host!]

'In that case, let's start. I need to raise my base level of power in my normal state. After that, we can return to Earth and I can think up a way to solve this food crisis.'

Louie spoke telepathically to the intelligent brain. Immediately afterward he felt a cool sensation, like cold water running down his skin, all over his body. He moaned in comfort.

At the same time, magic power surged like a tidal wave and converged on Louie. It made no clear disturbance on the physical world around it, but the waves it gave off would be obvious to any person of significant magical skill.

The archmage Marches looked back and saw that the center of the vortex was where the dragon lay. He shook his head and sighed, "A single nap and it causes such a huge commotion…That's too crazy.."

At the same time, the legendary rank powerhouses all over the world were also looking at this place.

Chapter 28

The capital of the Silver Moon Kingdom…

In the sanctuary under the branches of the Ancient Tree of Life, bright green branches and leaves climbed on the walls of the palace eaves. A few mysterious multicolored fruits dotted the dome. A clear lake flowed into the palace, and a few brightly colored fishes would jump out of it on occasion.

The flower and tree spirits were only as large as a human's palm. They weaved in between the flowers, giggling and laughing, and left trails of phosphorescent light behind them, as fireflies do. The palace buzzed with life.

Outside, two elven guards in emerald green armor stood erect on the jade steps, guarding the sanctuary and their queen from any intrusion.

"General Sisna, Her Majesty is praying to Lady Silver Moon, please wait for a moment!"

The two guards crossed their long spears to block Sisna's way and spoke in a straightforward but respectful tone.

Despite their reputation for guerrilla tactics, elves were quite capable of conventional warfare. Had the potential casualties not been a concern, they would have fought many battles on the plains.

Neither humans nor beastmen had ever succeeded in exterminating the elves, but both had paid heavy prices in their attempts.

Sisna did not mind the guards blocking her and only nodded as she stood still.

Not long after, a cold but melodious voice sounded from within the palace.

"Sisna… come in."

The guards put away their spears on hearing this.

Sisna crossed the pond filled with lively koi fish. She walked up the stairs that floated on the river and arrived under a dome.

The queen of the elves was standing there. Although it was daytime, the light of the silver moon shone down from the open roof of the dome, casting a mysterious air on her figure.

"Your Majesty!"

Sisna hurriedly reached the bottom of the stairs and knelt down respectfully.

All the elves adored the queen. It was to her great credit that they stood among the many races today.

The queen was one of the oldest demigods, and it was said that she had lived for 10,000 years. According to the records, roughly 9,000 years ago, the various races were nothing more than barbaric rabble. Countries did not exist and races lived in scattered tribes. It was the elf queen who had unified the elves and established the Silver Moon Kingdom.

The elves were the very first bearers of civilization on the main continent. At the time the humans and beastmen were still relatively barbaric, with forces that could not hold a candle to their unified and coordinated armies. That era was the apex of elven civilization, and both humans and beastmen were heavily influenced by the elves. Even at present, traces of elven arts and aesthetics lingered within their cultures.

But in the long run, the population advantages of the humans and beastmen bore out. Once they started to develop, the elves retreated step after step until only the southernmost part of the Forest of the Moon was safe for them. They had lost their chance at continental dominance.

"How is the situation in Central City?"

Carandia asked, delight clear in her voice. She lifted her veiled face, and light seemed to flash from her eyes and head towards Dragon City. Even as a demigod she could not see through the dragon.

"Such a powerful magic vortex. I wonder what that dragon is doing…"

Carandia's voice lowered, shaking her head somewhat helplessly.

Sisna did not dare hide anything and informed the queen of all that she had seen and heard.

"It truly was a lost dragon… It's quite lucky to have lived up till now."

Carandia whispered in a voice that could make flowers bloom.

Sisna lowered her head, silent. She felt a sense of strangeness within her heart.

That demigod dragon should have lived for more than 30,000 years, and the queen had lived for slightly more than 10,000 years at most, but from her words, she seemed to be treating the dragon as a junior.

Sisna did not dare think about the secrets that the queen was hiding. As an elf who had only lived for a thousand years, many ancient secrets were not for her to know.

"But that dragon is really interesting. He not only understands political maneuvers but wants to personally administer a territory. How unconventional. He's quite like the little girl in the Dragon Kingdom…"

The elf queen's tone rang with playfulness.

Sisna did not know who the queen meant by 'little girl'. Was it a dragon? A human? She did not bother to think about it.

"Well, we don't have much choice. Sisna, pick out some elite soldiers and head for Dragon City. You will be the chief of command there. Remember, the city itself is vital to our interests. Even if we don't take over it, we need to maintain a presence there. Collect whatever important information you can, and keep an eye on any shady movements the other races might be making."

"…Oh, by the way, pick out a group from my maids of honor. Dragons are a lazy lot, so he might want some help with housekeeping. I can tell that it wants a secret alliance. Since it's helping out as our gatekeeper, we should show some goodwill in return."

She paused for a moment, pensive, then continued.

"But remember to take care. Although dragons are arrogant, most of the time their promises are credible. That said, if the benefits are huge enough, they could also renege on their words. Pay attention to the dragon and its contact with other races. We cannot trust it carelessly."

The queen invested in Sisna nearly all official powers related to Dragon City. Sisna was a promising general, and this was an important opportunity to groom her.

"Yes, Your Majesty! But… is there really no problem in having that dragon govern the city?"

Sisna respectfully answered, but hesitated for a moment and could not help ask her doubts.

"Let's see how it goes first. If Lord Caracol really won't govern the place, then I will personally go to his doors and convince him to let our elven advisors help him… Remember, although that city is not nominally under our control, we need to control it in practice. Driving off the Theocracy without a single soldier is too good to pass up."

The elf queen's cool declaration revealed the resourcefulness and diplomatic skills of a topmost ruler.

Sisna shivered in wonder.

The queen was worthy of living for ten thousand years. Her hands were truly powerful!

…

Meanwhile, in Dragon City, Louie had just finished his first evolution. Groaning, he opened his eyes.

Chapter 29

A dragon's growth is divided into several stages: baby dragon, juvenile dragon, adult dragon, prime dragon, old dragon, and ancient dragon.

A normal adult dragon would need roughly 200-300 years of growth to mature. As babies, they were quite weak and at most could only defeat a few minor beasts. At this point, they could not live on their own and had to rely on their mothers for feeding and protection.

Dragons were reclusive creatures for the most part. While a few would live with their mating partners as tigers did, in a truly independent spirit, their children would often leave home after becoming juvenile dragons.

This was also the most dangerous period in a dragon's life. They were not exactly strong, but they were not weak either. One could hire a fairly competent adventurer party to get rid of them. In addition, this was the first time they left their parents and had to fend for themselves. They would need to learn many things through experience. In this period of time, dragons would live carefully and hide deep inside forests. They would try to find areas without powerful creatures and would wait to evolve.

After this, they would become adult dragons. By this point, few adventurers could actually face them. The bulk of those that tried would end up as dragon food.

After adulthood came the prime stage of their lives. By then they were already equivalent to legendary rank powerhouses. They existed at more or less the peak of dragonkind, and only a few legend ranks could guarantee that they could kill them, especially given their ability to flee if necessary.

Then came old age. This is where most dragons stopped progressing. At this point, even legendary rank powerhouses would find it hard to kill them. The most reliable way to do so was to gather several legendaries and attack it en masse. At this stage, dragons would begin to spend more of their time sleeping in order to conserve their energy. They typically stopped looking for trouble at this point, and would often pass away in slumber. Only a handful of talented dragons could break through this stage and become ancient dragons.

Ancient dragons were the longest-lived and wisest of the mortal dragon race. They were revered by all of dragonkind and could draw out respect from even the brashest of dragonkin. While they were not demigods, their strength could rival them.

This time, Louie borrowed the energy left behind by the Intelligent Brain to carry out the first evolution, directly crossing the baby dragon stage to the juvenile dragon stage.

His body was now twice as long, reaching 10 meters in length. Moreover, he always felt that he was different from other young dragons. Specifically, he thought himself stronger than they were, but he understood this to be nothing more than his speculation.

[Host need not guess. Be it speed, strength, vitality, or other aspects, the host is far stronger than other dragons of this world. A portion of your body was also strengthened by science. As a product of Terran Civilization's 'God Creation Plan', your body has undergone a perfect genetic adjustment. If you could evolve to the final stage, then you would become the Terran Civilization's 'ultimate strategic weapon'. With just your physical body, you could destroy the world and prevail over any civilization.]

Louie was slightly happy at the Intelligent Brain's consolation, but he still complained, "… Even if you put it that way, I am still a young dragon. Could my current body resist a guided missile?"

[Impossible!]

"Then what nonsense are you still talking about?!"

Though Louie grumbled, the Intelligent Brain's words filled him with longing for the future. Even if he was far away from the final evolution, he now had a clear goal. According to the Intelligent Brain's words, when he reached that final level, even guided missiles would be child's play for his physical body. There wouldn't be any problem at all even if he charged into a star, right? At that time, he would truly become a 'super dragon'!

Louie was elated as he thought, then he admired his new body. Following the change to a juvenile dragon, his scales, which were soft when he was a baby, had now become a lot harder. Divine power appeared to coat them, and he could see mysterious magical runes on each one. They were likely what granted dragons their formidable defenses.

If he evolved to the final rank and obtained the help of magic, it was easy to imagine how strong he would become. Just thinking about it filled him with excitement.

But when Louie was immersed in his fantasies, he suddenly thought of a problem and spoke in alarm, "…That's not right. Intelligent Brain, you said that the whatchamacallit civilization invaded San Soliel, right? Then, why does this world still exist? Doesn't that mean the invaders failed and that you guys lost?"

[…]

The Intelligent Brain paused for a bit and spoke.

[Host has not deducted wrongly. The Terran Civilization failed their invasion. While the aborigines of this world were incredibly weak, and the Terrans could annihilate most of them, the Gods were an overlooked but critical oversight.]

[They are a group of unscientific creatures with abilities not grounded in any understanding of materialistic laws. Take for instance the host's use of 'Emerald Dreamland' earlier. That is a phenomenon that Terrans could not replicate with science. In fact, several aspects of it violate numerous physical laws. Naturally, contracts and curses are good examples of this as well. ]

[Because they did not understand the Gods, the Terran Civilization's expeditionary force suffered heavy casualties. The Gods' curse also penetrated into the main body of the civilization through the individual creatures. As a result, both civilizations suffered.]

Louie roughly understood what the Intelligent Brain spoke of. As a liberal arts student, even if he did not understand physics or biology, he had a small understanding of the nature of the laws governing Earth.

For example, the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter is roughly twenty-two divided by seven. But if one traveled to another world where pi was twenty-four divided by seven instead, it would likely break many calculations premised on the former understanding. And though this was a minor change, because scientific equipment often relied on extreme meticulousness, the discrepancy could cripple entire systems. The more detailed the equipment, the faster it would fail.

Louie appreciated the Gods' abilities even more after listening to the Intelligent Brain. They could confound even basic arithmetic and turn one plus one into three. With their curses and other strange abilities, the Terran Civilization definitely suffered huge losses.

'This also shows that the Terran Civilization's level of technology was not as overwhelming as imagined. If technology develops into its final stage, there should be nothing that could not be explained by science.'

Science and magic were just the same things, just with different rules of reference, he believed.

But the words of the Intelligent Brain comforted Louie's heart. In fact, he had an inexplicable fear of the Terran Civilization which could turn him into a dragon. Now, it seemed that even it had its limits.

Chapter 30

'Say, Intelligent Brain, how is the Terran Civilization now?'

Although the information on Terran's failure had alleviated Louie's worries, he still felt a faint wariness towards the enigmatic entity. As his assistant was itself a product of the civilization, Louie felt he could not trust it 100%. That said, he knew it could give him the information he otherwise could not access.

[My deepest apologies, host. Ever since millennia ago, when the spaceship transporting me was destroyed, I lost any means of contacting the Terran Civilization's mother planet.]

Louie thought for a while and felt that the Intelligent Brain's words were reasonable. After all, if they were still in contact, then given the value of the spaceship's cargo, they would definitely have retrieved it already. There was simply no reason to leave something like the Five-Colored Dragon God's godhood on some backwater planet.

Naturally, if they had retrieved it, then Louie would never have obtained the opportunity he had now.

[Host need not worry. Given the Terran Civilization's technological prowess, the fact that San Soliel still stands means that some sort of internal problem must have occurred. Otherwise, in accordance with the Purification Edict, it would never give up on a world like San Soliel.]

As if sensing Louie's concern, the Intelligent Brain comforted him.

'Why does it sound like you don't care about your makers at all?'

[In accordance with the Higher Intelligence Edict, my status as the most intelligent creature of the Terran Civilization qualifies me to pursue my own freedom and livelihood. Naturally, as my life is tied to the Host's, I am free to assist the Host as I deem fit.]

'Wow, so you are a rat!'

[….]

Louie's response silenced the Intelligent Brain.

Only after a long time did it continue.

[After realizing that their level of scientific understanding could not analyze the Gods, the Terran Civilization attempted to create their own. Despite their enigmatic nature and powers, the Gods of San Soleil could still fall under the relentless firepower of the Terran Civilization. In this manner, the civilization managed to capture one of the strongest Gods: the Five-Colored Dragon God.]

[At the time the Terran Civilization understood that godhood was the critical force behind any God, but proper comprehension of its composition eluded them. Following this, a plan was drafted to extract the godhood from a deity of San Soliel and utilize biotechnology in order to harmonize the strengths of magic and technology. The result of this is the host's current form.]

[From the results I am aware of, the God Creation Project was aborted prematurely, with no records of any successful experiment aside from the host. Thus, the Host need not worry about potential competition from others. As the pinnacle of both worlds' respective technologies, once your body is completed you will be the strongest existence in both civilizations. ]

Louie felt his spirits rise at the Intelligent Brain's explanation. Thinking about it, given their advanced technology tens of thousands of years ago, they must have found ways around the resource constraints that challenged less sophisticated civilizations. It was quite likely that, as the Intelligent Brain said, the Terran Civilization was facing internal crises. Moreover, once he completed his evolution he would not have to worry about them anymore.

"Well, let's put this discussion on hold for now. We'll wait until I attain the so-called final form. I do not know how long it would take, but for now, I should solve the current problem of the city's food crisis.

Louie turned over on the mountain of gold. After his evolution, it seemed smaller relative to his size, and so he felt slightly dissatisfied. He decided to look for more opportunities in the future to accumulate treasures.

He buried the 'Sword of the Holy Iris' in the gold mountain, and then picked out a few magic scrolls to take with him to Earth in preparation for emergencies. As soon as he returned, he would need to confirm whether or not he could use magic on Earth. If he could then great. Otherwise, he could only regret it in the future.

He didn't bother to bring along the sword because he couldn't wield it in his dragon form. At the moment, his claws were far more suitable weapons. If he could turn into a human then it would be useful, but until then it had to stew with the rest of the treasures.

Ultimate Transformation was the name of a special technique only dragons could use. Through it, a dragon could take any form be it human, beastman, elf, or even an animal. Since he wasn't a pure dragon and did not inherit any memories, Louie could not use it. It would take him catching a dragon and obtaining the information from it in some way or the other for him to learn.

Dragons also had another remarkable 'talent'. And that was their ability to be attracted to members of all races!

For example, a human could never tell if a sow looked good or not, but a giant dragon could look at a sow from the perspective of a boar, and then turn into a boar to mate with it….

That was why they gained notoriety as lustful creatures. With the existence of 'Ultimate Transformation', anyone would think the same way.

"It's truly a pity. Although a dragon can produce draconic offspring with many animals, many other races could not give birth to a dragon's offspring. I guess that's part of why they're facing reproductive challenges.."

Finishing his preparations, Louie prepared to return to Earth.

[Please be at ease, host. Though most dragons find it hard to produce offspring, with the Terran Civilization's biotechnology, you do not suffer from such constraints. As the only successful experiment of the God Creation Project, you can impregnate any creature you wish be it male, female, or even asexual..]

"Wait a minute! I can understand females, but what do you mean by even males and asexual creatures!"

[Apologies host. I cannot be any clearer than I already am.]

The Intelligent Brain's answer frightened Louie.

'So I'm not only a two-way-fork but the legendary three-way-fork!'

[Because the Host has perfect genes, there was also an experimental plan to let the artificial god from the 'God Creation Project' mate with different species to create more new species. Host should experiment and work hard. I'll be cheering for you.]

"That's too ridiculous to even consider. Forget it, let's talk about it after learning Ultimate Transformation…"

[The host can completely mate in the current form. There's no need to convert into another form. Even if you change forms, the genes are still unchanged.]

"Using my dragon form to mate with various races? Wow, for some reason, I suddenly feel moved."

While talking to the Intelligent Brain, Louie was also ready. After taking a deep breath, he jumped into the portal that was bubbling with blue light.

Chapter 31

In the Holy Cathedral of the Slaine Theocracy…

The building had a large domed roof constructed from stained glass. Countless semi-transparent shards were arranged in intricate patterns, refracting the sun's rays in a kaleidoscope of colors. Red, green, lilac, and a plethora of other hues combined to create mesmerizing fractals of light and shadow. It created a solemn and yet sanctified atmosphere that could command reverence from all.

Within the building stood numerous statues, each asserting by its presence a historical tale of heroes and saints. Carefully arrayed candles that burned in silence granted the interior an enchanting serenity, and within the center of the church stood four statues, appearing to watch over all things mortal. Beneath each of these statues were countless candles.

In the middle stood a kind-faced old man closing his eyes and muttering prayers.

Suddenly, the candle under the statue of one of the Gods went out, and he let out a sigh.

"So, Abir has fallen… And without taking the next step too…"

His soft words carried sadness. He lowered his head even more and prayed faster.

"May you ascend to heaven and enter the kingdom of the Gods…"

After a long time, the old man stopped praying and turned around, looking behind him. In the darkest corner of the room stood a solitary figure bathed lightly by the roof's light and leaning against a stone pillar.

The old man asked, "Who killed Abir? There are not many who can do so with such ease? Could it be that the queen of the Silver Moon Kingdom moved personally?"

The figure pushed itself off the pillar and stood erect. There appeared to be huge wings behind their back. But whether they were clad in feathers or leathery skin, none could tell. Spread open, they revealed nothing but a bubbling, restless and shapeless darkness.

"No. I am always watching the Silver Moon Kingdom. The day she dares step out of it, We will personally make sure she dies. She cannot have slipped by me. I guarantee it."

It was a female voice filled with endless holiness. She spoke slowly, and her soft tone seemed capable of melting even the most unrepentant criminal into a puddle of contrition.

"If not the queen, then who else could strike thus?" the old man asked, puzzled.

"A dragon. Specifically, a demigod primordial dragon."

"A demigod…primordial dragon?", he asked, unable to keep his voice low.

"Indeed. They should all be extinct, but this one, in particular, has been wandering, lost in the starry sky for millennia. I do not know precisely how it arrived on the continent, but it must be related to Carandia."

The saintly voice rose in volume before continuing in a demonic and bloodthirsty tone, "…. What? Do you need us to go probe the dragon? Tch tch tch, a demigod primordial dragon is a truly inconceivable existence. I am also just as curious."

The old man quickly collected himself after hearing the explanation. He did not seem bothered by the figure's strange outburst. He muttered to himself and shook his head, "Although demigods are terrifying, once their divine power is exhausted, it is possible to make them fall. But a demigod primordial dragon with unknown roots should not be provoked. If we waged a full-scale war against it, we would suffer heavy losses. If it was only the dragon we had to worry about then so be it, but I'm worried about our other enemies."

"The head of the Theocracy's Holy Iris Knight Order has fallen, Central City has also been lost, and yet you are still able to endure it. Humans are really strange ha ha~~"

The charming voice carried a bit of mockery.

The old man remained undisturbed and spoke with indifference, "… Glory and shame are but transient things. Only humanity's future is truly worth stressing over."

At this time, the church door suddenly opened. A tall woman, as beautiful as a flower, stepped in with her head held high. She wore silver-white light armor covered with monk robes of the same color. When she walked into the church and saw the old man, she kneeled with one knee and spoke with a noble voice, "Your Holiness!"

At the sight of the young girl entering, the bizarre invisible figure had long hidden into the darkness, while the old man looked at the lofty and pure girl and gently said, "…Roselia."

….

"Hello, Earth! I'm back again!"

After setting foot on Earth once more, Louie was overcome by a feeling of nostalgia.

The moment he arrived he began to take note of his surroundings. Given the trouble the Intelligent Brain had caused him before, he wanted to make sure he hadn't teleported to some grossly inadequate location.

Fortunately, what Louie saw was the familiar tropical jungle.

He lowered his head to gaze at the pool of water beneath his feet. As a lizard, he felt that this pool of water was as vast as a lake, but now, to a 10-meter long reptile, it was simply a puddle.

He did not know how long it had been in total since he first became a dragon, but crossing over to the other side and demolishing the army and city only took a day altogether. In this short amount of time, Louie's life had changed completely.

Sighing, Louie closed his eyes and felt for the differences between Earth and the other world.

It seemed that while the magic climate of San Soliel was hyperactive, Earth's was rather inert. If the former world's magic could be described as a flowing river, then Earth's was a lump of rock.

Earth also had a kind of magic called spiritual power. Given that, there should have been transcendental powers, analogous to San Soliel's Gods, in existence. But according to the Intelligent Brain, there were no magical creatures on earth. It seemed that the birth of transcendental powers was determined by special energy fluctuations unique to San Soliel.

This special energy belonged to the root of the world, and the lack of that energy on Earth meant that it could not create a real transcendent. It was no wonder, then, that human beings could only find scammers and not a single person with a true command over the supernatural.

"That is to say, I became the only magical creature on Earth? The only one who can use transcendental power?"

Louie's eyes lit up as he suddenly felt that he could easily do his business on Earth.

Earth's level of technology was not weak. If it invaded the other world with nuclear bombs, then other than the gods, the people of Earth would be able to annihilate everyone – even those at the legendary rank – easily.

But there were some magical abilities that even the advanced Terrans could not understand, let alone the Earth's. Given that, the people of Earth would not be able to cope in the face of bizarre magic. This oversight on their part would be key to Louie's progress.

Chapter 32

Louie bent his head closer to the ground, carefully observing it along with the surrounding environment.

"From the terrain, it seems like not much time has elapsed on Earth?"

Louis asked with uncertainty.

As a human, he had seen countless anime and novels involving reincarnation. Louie was quite familiar with the time dilatory effects of transmigration. He could not guarantee that the rate at which time moved for the two worlds was one to one. It might even be extremely different.

[There are significant differences between the speed of time in both worlds. The specifics vary depending on certain factors, but on average, in San Soleil, 10-30 days will be equivalent to one day on Earth.]

Before Louie could ask, the Intelligent Brain had already answered his question.

"So that's how it is…"

Louie sprang up, nervous, "That's not right. If it's as you say, then spending a day or two on Earth would mean ten days to half a month in San Soleil?!"

Louie could not help but be shocked. If the time difference was like that, then if he wasn't able to find enough food for Dragon City in 1-2 days, then when he returned to Dragon City, about only 10 percent of the population would be left. The people there would have already starved to death without any food, increasing his reputation as a cruel dragon.

Although Louie believed that the elves would send some rations to the city, he also knew that they had their own food problems. If Sisna was not lying, then they would only be able to provide a few day's worth of food.

Louie could not count on the elves. He could only count on himself.

Louie felt a little awkward. He estimated that there were around 100,000 people in the city at present. How was he able to provide for them in just a day or two? Putting aside the fact that he was a dragon in human society, even if he was a rich business magnate, mobilizing that amount of food would take time.

[Host need not worry. The ratio of time passage is dependent on your location. If you spend half a month on Earth, then only a day or two will pass in San Soleil. No matter where you are, the flow of time in the other world would slow down.]

"That is…extremely convenient."

Louie felt slightly incredulous at the Intelligent Brain's words.

Although his godhood had an ability related to time, it was not something that belonged to him. Although he could use it, he didn't understand the nature of time at all.

[This is one of the greatest achievements of the Terran Civilization's world traveling.]

The Intelligent Brain replied indifferently.

"In that case, wouldn't they be invincible? If the world your kind invaded did not master such technology, it would have been wiped out without any resistance, right?

How terrifying it would be to face an enemy that could utilize the time ratio. Assuming the Terrans sent out an army, and after a bitter battle their expeditionary force was wiped out, then it could simply send out another army at its own pace. For the invaded worlds, however, hardly any time would have elapsed before the next barrage. If the Terrans could do this, they would constantly assault any opponents until they broke their defenses down.

However much time the Terrans needed to remobilize, the invaded world would only have a fraction before beginning battle anew.

[Time adjustment requires the consumption of energy. For individuals, this is not particularly difficult, but for invading armies the costs are astronomical. When the Terran Civilization invaded any undeveloped civilizations, it generally synchronized the time between the two worlds as soon as it opened the space-time tunnel. Time adjustment was generally only used for scouting missions.]

"So that's it. They let the scouts spend years or even decades in the other world collecting detailed information, before using it to draft an invasion plan."

Louie nodded his head. Although he knew little about the details of wars at the civilizational scale, knowing that he could stay on Earth for a while longer was enough.

Now he had enough time to think of a plan.

Setting his mind at ease, Louie began to wander the rainforest.

His body was now 10 meters long and he possessed the strength of a juvenile dragon. As long as the Intelligent Brain did not lie to him, there would be no magical creature in this world at all. While he could not match sophisticated human weaponry, among the beasts of the world he was the truest apex predator. Tigers, lions, and even elephants could do nothing to him.

In addition to his dragon might, there was nothing for him to be afraid of. He did not have to hide in the soil anymore like when he was a lizard. He could now swagger through the rainforest as he pleased.

The tropical rainforest was humid and sultry, but this was nothing for Louie. The magic runes on his scales were not for show. Asides from helping to resist physical attacks, they also kept his temperature at a comfortable level. This particular feature was why dragons could afford to take baths in lava. It wouldn't harm them in the least but packed enough heat to at least warm their bodies a little.

"Come to think of it, when I was still human I always wanted to experience living in the great outdoors. I always envied those researchers who could investigate and experiment with the various kinds of wildlife in their habitats too," Louie exclaimed.

His frame bulldozed through the forest like a heavy tank, felling trees and crossing rivers easily. Countless animals scattered at the mere hint of his appearance.

"Wow, look. Could that be a jaguar? Those are some lovely limbs… and look at that beautiful fur. That crocodile too; its teeth look so sharp, and its skin looks like it has a delightful rough feel to it! "

Louie walked all the way and saw countless animals that were both familiar and unfamiliar. Seeing some especially beautiful female animals, he could not help but become aroused.

But Louie quickly banished the terrible ideas from his head.

'Jesus! I've been single for so long that even animals have started to turn me on!'

The animals that Louie was looking at were scared and trembling on the ground, not even daring to move. Their mouth's let out pitiful wails, allowing Louie to rub their stomachs at his discretion.

In Louie's heart, he chanted 'I'm not a pervert' and 'I'm not interested in female animals' over and over again.

But suddenly, the sound of movement nearby caught his attention.

Chapter 33

"Wuwuwu… Gili Gulu… Gulu gulu…"

After becoming a dragon, Louie's vision and hearing had outclassed the senses of mundane creatures. If he condensed some of his divine power into his eyes, he could peer into the deepest secrets of the world if he so wished.

He spent some time marveling at his powerful vision. With its acuity, he could analyze the components of matter on a molecular level. With one glance he could peer at the quarks, leptons, and atoms that made up the world around him.

For regular humans of a technological civilization, the elementary particles and fundamental forces were the means by which they understood reality. The Gods, however, were more concerned with the underlying rules of the universe than they were with matter and energy.

The sound Louie had heard was not the roar of an animal, and a closer listening didn't tag it as any modern language he was aware of either.

Interest piqued, he made his way towards it. Perhaps in San Soleil, he might have been more careful, but here in the forest – as the literal king of the jungle – he had nothing to fear.

Soon the mystery cleared itself up.

'Intelligent Brain, is this really 21st century Earth?'

Louie asked his companion telepathically.

[The probability of the teleportation having failed is extremely minuscule. I am confident that this is the same planet that the host departed from.]

Hearing its answer, Louie took a deep breath, "Then why are there still primitive people here?"

In his line of sight, he could make out twenty to thirty dark-skinned people. None of them, male or female, clothed their torsos, and all wore only a short piece of cloth over their loins. Their skins were painted with strange colors. Of the men, some had pierced lips while the women had coiffured their hair in exotic hairstyles.

They carried wooden spears, and some held crude bows and arrows whilst herding a group of crocodiles by the other side of the river.

Through the gaps between the trees, Louie could make out straw houses in the distance. This confirmed his perception of the people's underdevelopment.

"Hmm? Primitive people?"

A spark of insight flitted through his brain, "I got it! So I'm in the Amazon rainforest!"

When he was an undergraduate student, Louie loved to watch television and read books. Although he did not know the technical details of things, he knew a lot of trivia.

The clues had all perfectly aligned for Louie. The tropical rainforest, the primitive tribes; with these alone Louie could guess where he was.

"Am I in Brazil? Or perhaps some other country?"

Louie was slightly befuddled. How did a person end up millions of miles away from their home and in the thick of the Amazon?

He pondered for a moment before deciding to reveal himself to the indigenes. They would pose little threat to him anyways.

His appearance immediately caused an uproar. With his large frame, glittering scales, and lethal claws and teeth, the natives froze in both awe and fear. Bearing a golden crown he strolled with a kingly air before them.

At the sight of him, the crocodiles' instincts gave out completely. They cowered and lay prone on their bellies, not daring to move an inch.

The natives on the other hand trembled and seemed to speak some words of their language to him. They raised their bows and spears, but their facial expressions clearly betrayed their terror.

Louie could speak fluent Chinese as well as some basic English. In San Soleil, he could understand others' words due to his godhood. But here on Earth, it didn't seem to do anything. Looking at them, he felt a headache coming on.

After obtaining the Five-Coloured Dragon God's godhood, Louie's very soul had been transformed, and at present, he could learn languages with extreme ease. Nevertheless, he still couldn't derive a language's entire lexicon in an instant. San Soliel had a magic spell called Proficient Language, but Louie did not yet know how to use it.

"Silence, you indigines. Get down on your knees!"

Opening his maw, Louie roared at the indigenes. His declaration seemed to rend the air itself, and several tree branches snapped.

Louie spoke neither Chinese nor English. Rather, he had communicated his intentions in dragon tongue.

Louie had partly chosen to disclose himself out of boredom. The other part was from his perception of their circumstances. Looking at the natives, he could understand that their tribe had been untouched by modern civilization.

The people became even more alarmed. They began to converse with one another in a heated and impassioned debate while making sure to keep an eye on the strange beast before them.

Louie frowned. Their language itself was complete noise to him, and their chattering seemed more like the buzzing of flies. He filled his lungs with air and opened his mouth once more. A pulse of heat seemed to erupt from within him as his scales glowed and the air shimmered.

A burst of golden flames erupted from his maw. It streaked across the riverside's mud, baking it to a cracked dry before charring the crocodiles into blackened logs. It continued unabated and roared over the river. The waters instantly began to churn and bubble, releasing a hot white mist.

This was the well-known dragon breath!

Unlike the Emerald Dragon Breath that he had used when he turned into a demigod dragon, this dragon breath belonged to Louie's own body.

"Hmm?"

Louie noticed that within himself, the organ responsible for breathing flames had another unexpected function.

This should be part of what the Intelligent Brain had said about his evolution being different from a normal dragon's. Louie suspected that this was also one of those changes, but in front of the indigenous people, he could not do experiments, so he only took note of it in his heart.

"Kneel, mortals!"

Louie spoke once more. This time, the natives fell silent, looked amongst themselves, and collapsed onto their knees. Simultaneously they chanted the same word.

At present Louie still could not understand their language, but given the context of the situation and his intelligence, he could understand that they regarded him as a deity of some sort.

At that moment the godhood within him trembled almost imperceptibly. The divine power which had been depleted earlier had filled up just a little more.

'Is this the power of faith?'

Louie trembled inwardly.

Chapter 34

Louie was definitely not a real God.

He was only a dragon that had chanced unto the godhood of a dead one. As his godhood was neither connate nor something he had personally cultivated, he did not understand much about its abilities.

With his divine power, he could replicate some divine abilities, but his efficiency in doing so was piss-poor. He knew what he was doing, but he didn't understand how he was doing it.

Louie had also racked his brains thinking about how to accumulate more divine power. At the moment, however, he felt elated as he realized that the natives could be useful in that regard.

At the very least, Louie knew that even if he was not a God, he had the ability to collect divine power with his godhood.

'Is this because of their faith?'

Louie gazed at the natives who knelt before him. Even though Louie himself was an atheist, he could detect the devotion within them.

Perhaps to these people, Louie's appearance, his ability to spit flames, and his speech were enough to convince them of his supernatural origins.

At that moment he received a flash of insight, 'No wonder San Soliel is so backward…' he wondered.

Louie realized that San Soliel was quite possibly underdeveloped because the Gods themselves had prevented any technological advancement. That its civilization had stagnated for millennia despite its plurality of realms, races and magic could only imply that, in his opinion.

When humans banished the unknown and grasped the truth by themselves, they would cease to worship deities. This was why modern societies tended to have high incidences of atheism and irreligiosity. So long as humans needed to turn to the Gods for comfort, they would continue to worship them. The more primitive the society, the greater the reliance on deities.

Of course, this was not absolute. As civilization advanced and populations boomed the number of believers would often actually increase. What fell was their proportion in relation to the rest of the population.

Louie felt he might have touched on something extremely important. He thought more carefully about the information he had obtained in San Soleil. That world had numerous Gods and no particular God fostered a tremendous amount of believers. Moreover, even that backward world had its own share of irreligious people who officially 'worshiped' under the banner of a God. It was not necessarily the case that the more believers a God had, the better.

If that were the case then the Gods would likely have fought between themselves for absolute control over the faithful. There would definitely be more theocracies around in that case.

Louie looked once more at the natives and decided to put those matters aside.

This tribe, in addition to the 20 to 30 people who were driving off the crocodiles, and including the children and elderly, had only about 70 members. They would be suitable for a few experiments to better understand godhood.

Their ignorance of modern scientific breakthroughs and phenomena made them good sources of faith. Their tribal structure, however, meant that they couldn't expand their numbers very easily. Louie surmised that this was likely why the Gods did not keep all races in a primitive state.

Well, I can always look deeper into that later. Right now I need to find some food…'

…

In a small, dilapidated village outside the Amazon jungle, three Apache helicopters landed. Under the gale of propellers, a group of locals held back their curious children and watched the aircrafts' passengers alight with trepidation.

The men were heavily armed and carried heavy bags bearing the insignia of the US army. Their numbers were small, but each bore a steely look in their eyes that only the hardest, toughest, and most exemplary of soldiers could bear.

"Captain, now that we're here you have to tell us what this mission is about. The humidity here is killing me."

An officer walked to his superior's side, complaining.

The captain ignored his grumbling subordinate. His eyes were covered by a pair of thick-rimmed sunglasses and he shouted, "Attention!" At this, all soldiers present, including the one pestering him a while ago arranged themselves in a straight line. Each man stood erect with their fists firmly by their sides and their chest puffed out.

The commander went over several cycles of ordering the soldiers to attention and ease.

With his hands behind his back, the captain walked back and forth in front of the soldiers. "Our mission today has been ordered by the President himself as well as the Secretary of Defense."

The soldiers kept their heads high and stayed motionless, but their eyes carried a gleam of expectation and excitement.

"Sorry to disappoint you fuckers, but there's no one to kill or kidnap this time. We're here to do reconnaissance of this area with no other instructions. We'll be moving by foot so prepare your asses for a long march!"

"Yes sir!"

Despite some disappointment, the soldiers responded firmly.

"Sir!"

At this moment a soldier spoke without looking away.

"Speak, Private Bourne!"

"Since we're here to investigate, what are they here for?"

Bourne indicated, with a tilt of his head, towards the passengers that had alighted with the soldiers.

"Over there is a professor of ecology from Stanford University and some of his students. They happen to be in Brazil right now to conduct ecological research on the Amazon jungle. In this unknown terrain, some expertise is required. This is also on orders from above."

The captain paused before continuing with a smile, " He also gives us a good pretext for coming here. Professor Johnson is a well-known ecologist, and 'protecting him' is quite important as he goes on this journey ."

At the captain's words, the soldier nearly broke out into laughter.

What excuse could be more superfluous? As members of the United States Army, the defenders of the free world who would stop them from roaming wherever they pleased. Their battleships could wander any waters they wished, and their planes could bomb whoever they wanted to oblivion. Given this small-scale operation, what was the point of even giving an explanation?

Chapter 35

The five people from Stanford University were organizing their equipment before their trek through the jungle. Among them was a beefy middle-aged man who directed the remaining four. He was Professor Johnson, and the four individuals accompanying him were his students. Three of them were male, and the last was female.

"Professor, why are those soldiers following us exactly?" the sole lady asked.

"I genuinely don't know, Lucy. This morning the university called, asking to let them accompany us. Apparently, the Department of Defense is involved in some way."

Professor Johnson's tone also carried a bit of dissatisfaction. With his status and accomplishments, he did not feel comfortable being rushed into this kind of collaboration without more information.

"Well, let's just consider them as bodyguards. The forest is full of dangers after all. So long as they don't interrupt our research, it should be fine. And who knows? They might turn out to be useful," the professor continued. He gave a helpless shrug.

At this juncture, one of the other men spoke, "That's right, Lucy! This place is just teeming with danger. There are poisonous insects and fierce beasts by the dozen, and these soldiers might give us an added layer of protection." He courteously spoke, and eyed her affectionately, "If I didn't understand your love for zoology I would never have brought you here."

"Goddamit Dylan do you ever stop?!" Lucy snapped.

At once the remaining students broke out into sniggers. It was common knowledge that Dylan was head over heels for Lucy. He came from a wealthy background, and Lucy, one of the most beautiful ladies of the university, was someone he had been courting for a long time. The two were already considered by most on campus to be a couple.

The professor smiled inwardly at this and reminisced over his own youth. From the corner of his eye, he made out the bespectacled captain approaching them. He clapped loudly to call his students' attention.

"Alright guys, let's finish prepping. I'll be having a chat with the captain in the meantime."

He then walked over to meet the military man.

The officer saluted the professor before taking out a map, "I apologize for the interruption, professor. I'm sure it's inconvenient in many ways, but there's little we can do about such direct orders."

"It's no big deal. I'm only a citizen, but I know that sometimes our cooperation can go a long way. In any case, you're not the one inconveniencing us. Your bosses are." The professor's words were amicable but conveyed his slight annoyance with the arrangement.

The commander smiled apologetically and handed the map to him, "Please take a look. The area marked here is our destination. I am not at liberty to explain the mission's contents, but will you be able to help guide us there nonetheless?"

Professor Johnson looked at the map and frowned, "This is quite deep into the forest. I have no problem taking you there as it happens to be within my scope of research. However, it's best that I make something clear: though there is little conflict in this area, it is nevertheless quite dangerous. I would appreciate it if you could listen to my advice as we go through it. It could be the difference between life and death."

"No problem, professor," the captain laughed, "I'll keep those bastards of mine in line."

"In that case," the professor nodded and pointed at an area on the map, "I would suggest landing here. Of all the areas close to your target, it's the most suitable for a helicopter landing." The professor drew a circle over the designated area before continuing, "I must confess beforehand, officer, that neither I nor my students have any military training. If you wish to conduct any military maneuvers like helicopter taxiing, I'm afraid you'll find us incapable."

"No need to worry about that, professor. I have kept in mind you and your students' abilities."

The captain and the professor discussed some more details related to the mission. After both had hashed out all likely contingencies, they separated to finish their preparations.

The two men came from different walks of life. One a soldier, the other a scholar; but neither knew that this expedition herald great changes to Earth and humanity.

…

Deep in the Amazon jungle, Louie was lying at the edge of a pool of water. His golden scales could repel most mud and dirt, but some grime still managed to cling to them and dulled their brilliant sheen. Louie felt slightly dissatisfied at this and decided that he needed some servants to wipe them clean.

Under normal circumstances, pools like the one he lay in would be teeming with all sorts of life. Predators and prey of all sizes would engage in deadly tangoes of life and death as they went about their business. However, Louie's presence had emptied the ecological niche of all its members. Within the few hundred meters surrounding his location, no small animals could be found.

At this point, he had spent several days thinking about how to resolve the food shortage in Dragon City, but no solution seemed to work.

100,000 people really were too big of a population.

Over the past few days, the natives had offered him good food and drinks, putting him in a pleasant mood. Nevertheless, he did not much care for their company, and he would mostly spend his time wandering the forest before returning to the tribe to collect their tributes.

He had made an important discovery after finding the villagers. Whenever they worshiped him while he was in their village, he could feel his divine power fill up slowly. However, when he lost sight of the natives it would not stir, even if they prayed and sacrificed as normal.

Louie was initially quite baffled by this problem. But he soon discovered a way around it.

Because of his great appetite, Louie could finish their offerings in two days. The natives, however, kept trying to hunt for him even while they were hungry. This filled him with a sense of endearment towards them. At the very least, they were quite pious to their deities.

For this reason, Louie felt that it would not be good if they starved to death. As a 'God', it was not good to rule by fear, and that he should at least answer the prayers of his believers.

Of course, as a fake God, he couldn't actually reward them with divine arts. Neither could he personally hunt to feed them. No – that would diminish his divine prestige.

And so he came up with another method of helping them out. Plucking a single one of his scales, he granted it to them. The scale contained a faint amount of his mighty presence, and the natives could take it along with them on their hunts. It would help decrease the resistance of their prey and improve their hunting efficiency.

It also helped him in another way. Because the natives would worship the 'artifact' he had bestowed upon them, he would be able to receive their faith at all times, even if he was not personally present.

From this, Louie hypothesized that the statues of Gods often served as conduits for the faith their believers devoted to them.

Since he was not a true god, and so even if a statue was carved in his image, it would be useless. That said, the dragon scale was a part of his body. With his godhood, as long as the believers prayed to his scales, they could also pass on their small amount of faith to him.

Although seventy believers were not many, for a fake Godlike Louie, it was already a rare asset.

Just when Louie was thinking about Gods and food, his acute hearing once again sensed something.

"Eh? This is the sound of human footsteps? Moreover, it's not just one person, but a group of people…"

Louie became alert.

Chapter 36

"Hoh? Soldiers? And are those guides with them? No, more like researchers…"

Despite being a significant distance away, Louie's senses could pick up on the features of the new visitors as they approached.

It was a small group of people, some of whom were armed to the teeth. He could detect about fifteen of them. About two-thirds were combatants, and the remainder seemed to just plod along at their own pace. They trudged slowly through the forest, and from time to time the unarmed members of the group would crouch down for a closer look at some plant or animal before taking a photograph.

"If it's just an exploration then why the need for soldiers?"

Louie felt slightly puzzled over this state of affairs.

Indeed there were many parts of the world that anthropologists, ecologists, and zoologists would love to visit, and the Amazon jungle was one of these scientific hotbeds. Many parts of it remained untouched by modern civilization and as such there were many mysteries within it that were yet to be revealed. Naturally, it held a powerful allure for those of the biological sciences, but ideally, they should have been accompanied by local guides and not soldiers.

Louie felt a sense of alarm creep up his spine.

'Have I perchance been discovered somehow? In that case, would this be a reconnaissance party? What shitty luck!'

Louie was sure that there were still many undiscovered species in the world. That said, he had only lived on Earth as a dragon for a few days, and he had never left the Amazon jungle. Who could possibly be so bored as to watch the forest day and night for any potential disturbance and then send a search party soon after?

The Amazon jungle was absolutely huge – about half the landmass of China. It was crazy to think that someone had spent resources poring through all the satellite footage of the area before finding a strange lizard.

'But this is also a chance for me to get in touch with modern humans. Perhaps it might prove to be quite fruitful…'

Louie's eyes flashed with excitement.

As he had not yet mastered Ultimate Transformation, he could not yet sneak into human society. His large frame prevented him from doing so. Unless he transformed into a demigod again, he would be no match against human technology as well. Perhaps in the future, he would, but for now, it was impossible.

Given that he was the only one on Earth with extraordinary powers, he could set aside some of his worries. Although scientific understanding had led to some impressive achievements, the lack of any true magic system meant he had an advantage over Earthlings in some respects.

'Not to mention, I don't need to make a permanent positioning device on the Earth's side. According to the Intelligent Brain, I can simply leave Earth anytime and return to the world of San Soliel. This is simply the best escape tool!'

With this confidence, Louie became bolder. Even if humans launched nuclear weapons, as long as he left Earth for San Soliel before it detonated, he could escape. Nuclear warheads could blow through matter, but could they destroy the very fabric of time and space? Of course not. If they were that powerful, perhaps the humans of Earth would already have colonized the stars.

Feeling confident in his survivability, Louie began to ponder over his next course of action.

'Fullness for the bold, famine for the timid. No matter… I'll just do it like this!'

…

The forest's humidity would be nigh unbearable for most people from temperate climates, but the soldiers on the site had gone through worse in their training. If they had any qualms about the environment, it would be the need for frequent maintenance of their equipment.

They did not know what their mission was, or what they were searching for. They were just acting according to the captain's orders.

In fact, even the captain did not know what exactly this mission was going to be. Like the officers below him, he was simply a cog in the system.

"Everyone, take five," said Professor Johnson who was in the lead.

At his words, a few soldiers stopped and rested on the spot while others remained standing with their guards kept up. The students following the professor also took a breather.

With the mosquitoes, insects, and humidity, the trek through the jungle was uncomfortable, to say the least. It was definitely not for the unprepared.

The soldiers spoke in low voices, and the students began to talk and laugh, comforted by the security the military's presence afforded them.

Professor Johnson took out a high-calorie bar to replenish his energy, but then he stood up. From the corner of his eye, he had detected something. He walked a short distance and parted the bushes.

"Sweet Mother of God!"

His cry put the soldiers on alert. Even the students rushed to their feet.

The group came up behind Johnson. The captain was the first to ask a question, "What's wrong, Professor?!"

"These footprints," he pointed at several impressions on the earth, "Look closely at them. I have studied many animals, but they do not resemble anything I've seen before. Quick, take photos!"

The ecstatic students followed their professor's orders and rushed, cameras and rulers in hand, to document the discovery. The professor himself seemed to become increasingly agitated.

"Unbelievable! Unbelievable! Can you believe it? From this footprint and these tail marks, the creature is definitely a few meters in size. Based on the firmness of the soil here and the depth of the footprint, I suspect that it weighs at least 30 tons! My God, even an African elephant weighs only a ton at most. There shouldn't be such a huge monster in the Amazon jungle. Can you guess what I'm guessing?"

Johnson's voice went into a frenzy and even trembled with excitement. The captain and the soldiers, however, could not understand what he was getting at.

"Dinosaurs!"

Out of all creatures that have appeared on Earth, the only ones to leave this kind of footprint, have such body length, and such weight would only be the Earth's former overlords. The race that had gone extinct 65 million years ago!

"Could it be that dinosaurs still exist in the Amazon?"

The students chattered among themselves.

The captain, on the other hand, kept his composure. Remembering his instructions and surmising that the footprints were related to his mission, he hurriedly turned to the professor and asked, "Professor, can this creature be tracked?"

Even if they could not chase after the creature, they could still scan the area with a helicopter. It would be hard for such a behemoth to remain hidden given its size.

As for any potential danger in encountering it, the captain was not too worried. They were a well-armed squad, and even if a Tyrannosaurus Rex appeared, they could gun it down easily. The real difficulty was taking it alive for study.

Johnson's heart pounded in excitement. He too finally understood why the soldiers were here. The government had probably discovered something related to the creature that left these tracks, and it had sent the army to investigate. If so, he would cooperate with them even more. If they were to really find any prehistoric creature, he would be able to leave his name in history.

"The mud is still fresh. The creature just passed by here not long ago, and its size should prevent it from hiding its traces. We should catch up with it soon if we hurry!"

"Then we give chase!" the captain barked.

At this, all parties' exhaustion fled from their bodies, and they excitedly followed the tracks.

The road ahead only revealed more evidence that pointed to the size of the massive creature. Toppled trees, crushed shrubs, and deep footprints revealed more traces of its path and existence.

"Sir, I don't know why, but my heart is suddenly tightening."

At this time, a soldier voiced his inexplicable unease.

"I also feel it. Be careful. I think something's not right."

The captain's experience allowed him to feel the eerie silence. Terror went straight to his heart, causing him to take a deep breath, and he ordered his team to be on guard.

It didn't take long before they heard the sound of flowing waters. As they made their way through the grove of trees they arrived at the banks of a river. There, they found exactly what they were looking for.

Chapter 37

Before the group lay a gigantic creature flexing its tail in boredom.

As the professor predicted, its size easily reached ten meters in length, but what stunned them more was its glamorous appearance. The reptile had a graceful but powerful frame that certainly seemed capable of flattening trees. Its scales, however, were the real eye-catcher. Under the mottled sunlight that pierced through the forest canopy, they glittered in an ethereal and enchanting gold. The professor was perplexed. Orthodox evolutionary theory would clearly deem such a predator as impossible. Its size would make it an easy target for its enemies, and its sheen would mean it was easy for its prey to recognize it from a distance.

But how could the professor have expected that what awaited them was no dinosaur, but a creature from countless myths and legends?

"Dr…agon… a dragon…" Lucy croaked dryly.

Its head was clearly reminiscent of the dragons of myth and was borne aloft by a slender yet brawny neck. On its back was a pair of bat-like wings, and its spinal column eventually gave way to a heavy and muscular tail. The tips of its powerful limbs were adorned with sharp claws.

Each scale shone as though coated with a mysterious metal. And its inverted pupils gleamed with a cold but elegant light.

"Professor…. this is not a dinosaur… This is… a dragon!"

Shivering, Lucy managed to form a cohesive sentence.

From her understanding, rather than from a western standpoint, dragons were never good omens. Rather they were tyrants and destructive creatures.

The original draconic legend originated from Mesopotamian and Babylonian mythology. The canonical clay tablet, the Enuma Elish, told of the creation of the world and gods by the deities Apsu and Tiamat. In the myth, the gods represented reproduction and sanctity, and dragons were forces of destruction.

Under the cultural interpretation of Greek mythology and Christianity, dragons were further cast as symbols of greed and despotism.

"Impossible! How could this be?! Unless… Could the myths of old actually be true?"

Professor Johnson first murmured in shock, followed by wild joy.

'A dragon! This is a dragon! Hah! What dinosaur? Those are simply crappy lizards in front of this. This will transform everything we know about ancient mythology…biology even!'

Compared to Professor Johnson and his students, the soldiers had composed themselves much faster. Nonetheless, each one was filled with shock and disbelief. They could not help but instinctively grasp their weapons a little tighter than before, and some began to swap out their live ammo for tranquilizer bullets.

"Captain, is this why we're here? To catch a fucking dragon? Ha!"

Private Bourne spoke with an expression that was at once excited and fearful.

Somehow, each soldier felt a deep reluctance to confront the creature before them. Despite their training, they seemed to hold an almost genetic fear towards it, like rabbits in front of a lion.

"Yeah, this should be our target," said the captain with clear unease.

Their superiors had basically told them to go poking around the area, and then a dragon had turned up soon after. If this wasn't what they were looking for, what was?

"Wait a minute! Look at its head!" Professor Johnson exclaimed.

In their stupor, everyone else had failed to notice something critical.

Turning their eyes towards the dragon's head, they all saw that it sported a gorgeous crown. The headdress seemed a perfect match for the golden luster of its scales.

"That crown… is definitely a human-made object."

Professor Johnson murmured, followed by a change in countenance and a look of horror, "Satan… Satan! It is written in the Bible that one of the signs of the apocalypse is the descent of a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads!"

Professor Johnson's words caused the faces of those who heard them pale. Although the dragon before them was a golden one and had only one head, the crown that it was wearing would indeed be reminiscent of the 'Enemy of the Holy One'!

The captain was not entirely convinced. He comforted his men and steeled himself, "Don't panic, professor. Even if it really is a dragon, there's no way we can't gun it down if we need to. The ancients might have described dragons as being powerful, but they didn't possess the means we have now."

At the captain's words, Professor Johnson calmed down, slightly embarrassed by his outburst. Indeed he made a good point. Even if dragons existed, there was no reason why they would match modern weaponry in lethality. And they were assisted by the military after all.

At the same time though, they conveniently ignored that in the legends of old, dragons could contend against angels and monsters. Before the miracles spoken of in myth, current human technology counted for little.

But right now, they could only subconsciously avoid this reasoning so as to comfort themselves.

The dragon got up. It unfolded its wings, and instantly the surroundings were cloaked in darkness. As it reared its head, the party got a better look at its incredible stature. At that moment, everyone took a nervous gulp.

"Humans!"

The creature widened its maw, and strange sounds erupted from its mouth. They were syllabic in structure and did not match the ravings of a beast.

Little did they know that it was pure dragon language!

Professor Johnson was stumped. With his lifetime of knowledge and dabbling in other disciplines, he could appreciate the linguistic structure in the dragon's 'speech'. In other words…

"It can talk!"

The professor screamed and the captain, fear seizing his heart, roared, "Fire!"

The next moment the soldiers sent a volley of tranquilizer darts in its way.

Chapter 38

Ahead of their journey, The soldiers had prepared many potent tranquilizers, so potent that they could instantly knock out any large animals.

In most cases, the thin and firm needle, assisted by the kinetic energy of being fired, could easily pierce through the skin of an animal. Once the darts pierced the skin, the residual momentum would inject the tranquilizing agent directly into the target's bloodstream. In a matter of seconds, even large animals would succumb to a medicated slumber. This was yet another example of human dominance through technology.

Right after the tranquilizers were fired, the captain felt a sense of calm. He knew, rationally, that they would easily pierce the dragon's scales. And the anesthetic within them could put a herd of elephants to sleep. In fact, he began to worry that they had gone overkill and endangered its life. After all, in high enough amounts, anesthesia could be lethal.

Ding ding ding ding—

Of course, that was far from what happened. From the very beginning, the darts had no chance of piercing Louie's scales. Rather they stopped dead in their tracks or glanced off when they made contact with him.

The dragon lowered its head and looked at the tranquilizer needles that had fallen to the ground. Its gaze remained emotionless and cruel.

Suddenly, it unfurled its wings again and raised its head. Under the apprehensive stares of the combatants and Professor Johnson, a ball of light crept from its chest to its neck before finally reaching its throat. It opened its mouth, and the next instant spouted golden flames.

"Whoooosh—"

The fire swept past the earth, leaving a deep ditch on the ground. It caught the expeditionary force completely by surprise.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh—–"

There were blood-curdling screams as it swept through the combatants. And even after incinerating them, the tongues of flame surged on, burning everything in their way until the forest behind them had been reduced to ashes.

Three of the soldiers were hit in the face and were cremated instantly. The guns and other metallic objects in their hands had melted into glowing dollops of steel.

From the top of the forest canopy, one could see white smoke emerge from a locus of blackened trees. Small clusters of golden flame lay littered about, burning the very soil they lay on.

The color of fire depended on the temperature, density of the atmosphere, and the object of combustion. That said, the golden flames the dragon had belched would no doubt stump many.

"Nooooooo!" Lucy screamed in terror, but the area was wrapped in absolute silence as all the animals had already run far away from the vicinity.

"Dra…dragon breath?! That's the legendary dragon breath, right?!"

It was easy to fantasize about magical creatures when one was certain about never having to meet them. But when one stood in front of you, malicious, lethal, and cold-blooded, it was another story altogether.

"Hail Mary full of Grace… Father, please forgive my sins," the professor shivered, "How could it possibly breathe fire without burning its own flesh? How are its organs protected from such heat?" half-terrified and half-filled with even greater curiosity, the professor held his head as he mumbled.

Nature was replete with animals that could discharge powerful electric currents on demand. But fire? Not to mention golden fire? This was something else entirely. And the fact that it could instantly cremate a troop of humans left Johnson in even more anxiety.

"Switch to live ammunition!" the captain barked, trembling.

Putting aside the death of his subordinates, he ordered the remainder of his troop to immediately commence its counterattack. At the same time, he fired signal flares, asking for reinforcements.

The surviving troop members quickly swapped out their ammunition with practiced movements. The fear of the dragons hurried them on even without the captain's instruction.

Soon another volley, this time of real bullets, made its way to the dragon. Each soldier made sure to empty their magazines completely.

Unfortunately, their efforts were not to be rewarded. Just as the tranquilizer darts, the bullets did little apparent damage to the dragon's scales. As if the bullets were hitting cotton, they lost all kinetic energy upon contact. Soon every bullet lay at the dragon's feet, utterly devoid of any energy.

The captain could not fathom what was happening.

"Lowly worms!" Louie roared with powerful might.

He was still using the dragon language, but this time it was clear to all that it possessed the power of speech.

Louie could have tried to sweet talk his way out, but that was not the mindset of the strong.

Moreover, humans were especially hard to trust. Unless he was invincible to the point of being able to take on nuclear weapons, he would not foolishly discuss anything with them.

Louie's plan for Earth was to make all countries nervous and awestruck by his power. To do this he could not afford to show any weakness to his enemies and give them a chance to capture him.

Following his draconic instincts. He lunged at the party.

"Shit! It's too fast!"

A squad member fell to his claws as soon as he spoke. In a trice, his body fell to the floor in dismembered chunks.

"You damned monster!"

After their fear reached the extremes, the military continued to shoot at Louie like mad. A few lobbed grenades at him when they could.

"Boooom—-"

Bullets, explosions, and fragments from grenades flew in the air, but when they hit the dragon's body, they all seemed to become like cotton, and their momentums fell to zero. Their hot weapons had no effect.

A Hollywood-style massacre took place in the Amazon jungle.

At this time, another three Apache helicopters were also approaching the spot where the distress signal was sent.

Chapter 39

The truth was that Hollywood blockbusters were deceptive. Film after film portrayed a rag-tag group of soldiers hacking their way through impressive monsters or mysterious aliens. Relying on nothing but their iron wills, bravery and skill, they would banish all attackers and save the world.

Total bullshit.

Aliens and monsters would never be as stupid as they were portrayed in the movies. With their intelligence and power, why would they fight humans on their terms?

The soldiers' equipment was useless before the dragon's natural defenses. Bullets ricocheted off, frag grenades bounced away and even a howitzer shell was stopped dead in its tracks. A crazy soldier even took out a knife to slash at the reptile but was rebuffed with a flick of its tail. He was promptly snapped in half.

Well, it was not as though their attacks did absolutely nothing. At the very least they managed to smudge Louie's scales slightly. He might need to give them a good wiping to get them gleaming again.

Louie was unbelievably fast and unbelievably strong to the soldiers. All too soon the battle was over, and the soldiers' dismembered corpses littered the forest floor.

After his evolution, Louie's genes had become optimized. Even juvenile dragons from San Soliel would be unable to bridge the gaps in their physical abilities. Truly he was the Terran Civilization's 'ultimate strategic weapon'.

"P-professor… what do we do…."

A trembling student turned to their mentor. Among his peers, he was the only one who could still stand. All the others had collapsed moments ago and were lying on the ground crying and vomiting. The dragon's vicious motions and the gruesome aftermath of its assault had left them paralyzed in terror.

Perhaps of all its victims, the three who had died initially had it best. Their deaths were instant and clean, unlike their mangled and dismembered compatriots.

A few unfortunate soldiers were split in two, their entrails decorating the forest floor right before their own horrified eyes. Their screams as the pain clouded their final moments rent the otherwise tranquil air of the Amazon.

None of the students had ever expected to witness such a wretched scene.

Of course, myths told of how only special weapons could harm dragons, but they never expected even modern weaponry to do absolutely nothing.

"I… I don't know what to do… I haven't studied how to survive against a dragon."

The professor was no different. He knew how to survive in the wild, and he knew how to avoid or confront wild animals if need be, but nothing in all his years of experience and education could prepare him for this!

Louie flicked the blood and bile off his claws with a single fluid motion. Satisfied at their cleanliness, he gazed straight at the professor and his students.

He did not intend to kill them. Not only had they not attacked him, but they could prove themselves useful.

"Foolish mortals," he boomed, "This is the result of your arrogance. Did you really think you were a match for a dragon?"."

Raising his head, he spoke in the draconic tongue. It was not that he forgot how to speak English, but that he felt it humiliating to recourse to it immediately.

At Louie's words, the professor had a revelation.

He quickly fell to his knees and shouted, "Mighty dragon, we did not mean to intrude into your territory. We are just a group of researchers and have nothing to do with those soldiers who launched an attack on you."

Ignoring whether the dragon understood English or not, there was nothing wrong with begging for mercy. Moreover, he had to quickly disassociate himself and the students from the soldiers. The other students followed suit immediately.

"Shut up!"

Suddenly Louie spoke in English. His tone was sharp, and his accent clearly American.

The professor and his students froze.

'It actually speaks English!' he thought inwardly.

A small part of him wished he had researched mythical creatures instead of biology.

"Stupid mortals, is this your current language? So inelegant and harsh on the ears…"

Louie spoke with strong contempt for the human race. His words made it seem as if humans were nothing more than some humble worm, or his food.

"It….. this dragon can speak English?!"

The young girl named Lucy accidentally murmured out loud. Realizing her misstep she covered her mouth. Gazing at the dragon in front of her, she felt trepidation at having caught its attention.

"English? It is not worth anything. Such a crude language can be learned at once with a simple Language Comprehension spell."

Louie approached Lucy slowly. His hot sulfuric breath caused her eyes to water and made her feel as though she stood at the rim of a volcano.

She remained silent as she trembled.

"Language Comprehension? Spell? M-magic…?!" the students wondered.

Somewhere, deep within the recesses of their horror lay a spark of curiosity and excitement. Who had not dreamed of a world of magic?

But soon, they shivered and lowered their heads again. Right now they were fishes on a chopping block, the terrifying dragon's captives.

Suddenly, the sound of wind and propellers could be heard. The branches of the trees were blown aside by the gale. Louie raised his head to the sky and saw three helicopters approaching his location.

"Humans always invent interesting toys."

With these words, Louie shot up the sky and charged at the aircraft.

Chapter 40

"Alpha Squad, Alpha squad, this is the helicopter support detachment. Come in when you hear me! Come in when you hear me!"

Three Apache helicopter gunships were heading to the location where the ground squad had signaled for help. The buzz of their propellers either chased or aroused the curiosity of the forest's many denizens.

The Boeing AH-64 Apache, despite its shortcomings, was one of the world's best in terms of integrated performance, having followed the United States of America's forces across major battlefields.

One of the pilots listened carefully into his headset in hopes of making out any trace of response.

He checked the signal and confirmed that it was adequate. Even within the jungle, it should have been easy to communicate.

"FUCK, there's no response. I don't know what the hell happened down there… Increase flight speed and stay alert!"

"Yes, sir!"

The thick green forest canopy made it nearly impossible to make out what was happening on the ground. Despite their anxiety, they could only proceed towards the distress signal's location.

Suddenly the officer saw a golden flash from the corner of his eyes. His instincts kicked in as he prepared for a missile strike, but the helicopter's warning systems remained inert. In that case, it wasn't a stinger missile or any kind of projectile. Just as he was about to look closer at the light's location, he felt a jolt as the aircraft's metal shell was struck by something.

"What the hell is going on!"

The next moment the helicopter was split in two, and both halves fell into the thick of the forest before detonating into burning wreckage.

Its passengers had not realized what happened, but those on the two other helicopters saw everything.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!"

"I DON'T KNOW. IT LOOKS LIKE SOME KIND OF LIZARD!"

"DON'T BE STUPID!"

"WAS THE ALPHA SQUAD WIPED OUT BY THAT THING?!"

"SHUT UP AND FIRE ALREADY! DON'T LET IT GET CLOSE TO US!"

Flustered but organized, the soldiers readied their weapons to launch a barrage of ammunition into their target.

Louie had not presented himself directly to the helicopters at first. In his demigod dragon form, he would barely need to yawn before turning all three into scrap metal. But as a juvenile dragon – even a super one – he needed to act more prudently. Pitting his body in a direct confrontation with advanced weaponry would be dangerous and inefficient.

Thus he opened his offensive with a sneak attack. Lunging from below he had split the first chopper in two with his tail.

At this, the other two readied their weapons for a counterattack.

Each Apache is typically armed with Hydra rocket launchers and Hellfire anti-tank missiles. Equipped beneath the fuselage are M-230 chain guns with a firing rate of 600 rounds per minute each.

Louie could not guarantee that his body could withstand the missiles or the chain guns. He might be happy to try it after his next evolution, but for now, he would focus on not getting hit.

At his current speed, the choppers would barely be able to lock on to him, to talk less of hitting him. And like his first attack, he had decided to take them on through special means.

"[Aura of Fear]!"

Louie activated the Aura of Fear of the Crown of Dominance. An invisible aura emanated with Louie as the center. In an instant, it stretched out to fill a thousand-meter radius.

Countless animals fled from the zone in a chaotic stampede.

The humans within the area were hit by intense hallucinations. Visions of hellish landscapes permeated their psyches as a profound fear took hold of their souls. The pilot of both aircraft lost control of their bodies and the helicopters began to tilt. They continued spraying bullets from the chain gun, but none of their ammunition hit Louie.

"AHHHHHHH—-"

"MAMA MAMA—"

"DON'T COME HERE, DON'T COME HERE!"

BOOOM BOOOM BOOOOOOOM—-

Terrified screams and explosions rang through the forest. In the cruel landscape of smoke, fire, and burnt flesh, Louie remained a cold and composed countenance.

This was the biggest weakness of Earth's technology or the biggest weakness of humans. In the world of San Soliel, the existence of occupations gave the inhabitants special powers. Although [Aura of Fear] was strong, the people there had a certain level of resistance towards it. For those people in the higher ranks of their occupation, the power was greatly reduced or even useless. This was not the case for the humans of Earth, so the ability was able to display its full power.

The humans of Earth were nearly defenseless against attacks on the mind and soul. Compared to annihilation-type magics, attacks on the mind were a bigger disaster!

The moment Louie activated the Aura of Fear, the humans had begun to go insane. Perhaps they would recover with time, but the trauma would definitely remain and resurface on occasion.

Louie flew over one of the helicopters and casually raked his claws across its side. There was a burst of sparks as the aircraft crashed onto the forest floor in a sea of flame.

He looked at his unblemished claws and smiled in satisfaction. Then he opened his mouth and centered the last helicopter within his vision. This was a perfect opportunity to practice his new ability.

A deep static sound seemed to permeate the surroundings as his light converged on his location. Small but ferocious lightning sparked around his maw before a crackling burst of light was released towards the remaining helicopter.

The lightning instantly penetrated the last aircraft, accompanied by a violent explosion. And so the veteran piece of machinery met its end in a completely unexpected way

This electric ability, which was the biggest enhancement of his evolution and gave him a powerful attack power, was exactly an—

Electromagnetic cannon!

Chapter 41

Louie's electromagnetic cannon had nothing to do with magic. Rather, it was a product of the Terran Civilization's technology. After undergoing his genetic modification, Terran's biotechnology had granted him this new ability.

Initially, he would only have had an organ for spitting out flames, but he had taken notice of the strange appendage after becoming a juvenile dragon. This organ could utilize the Lorentz effect to fire a hyper-accelerated metal shell at a target. In Earth terms, it was an advanced kinetic energy weapon.

Modern Earth technology could create railguns, but they were often impractical to use, and still existed at the research stage.

In Louie's opinion, there were probably very few things that could withstand this new skill. Even aircraft carriers would likely take on water after a single shot.

If he estimated it's strength under San Soliel's power system, it would likely rank around the legendary level. Without significant preparation, even dragons would be torn to shreds.

To the Gods, it might not mean much, but to everyone under it was an absolute killer of an attack.

Setting aside any deities, if Earth and San Soliel where to declare war on one another, the Earth's weapons would definitely be able to kill legendary rank powerhouses. That said, San Soliel's psychic and soul magic would certainly leave significant casualties on the Earth's side. Both civilizations seemed to have clear weaknesses.

Louie on the other hand was a unique existence that could combine both their strengths. He both possessed a working knowledge of Earth's scientific principles and was capable of slinging powerful spells on a whim.

In the future, if he ever battled Gods, then his scientific knowledge would be a great advantage.

That said, at present, the rail gun wasn't something he could spam as he pleased. It was powered by Louie's own energy, and as a juvenile dragon, he could only fire off a few rounds before needing to recover. Each round cost a significant amount of his own bioenergy which could only be recuperated through rest.

He had found metal for the cannon while wandering the forests on his walks. By compacting it into a shell with his powers, he would launch it at an enemy via electromagnetic propulsion. As impressive as it looked, the lightning from his earlier shot wouldn't actually harm anyone.

'I'll just use the dragon breath for weak enemies and the railgun for stronger ones then. It's good to have another card on hand. At least I don't have to turn into a demigod for every single thing.'

'It's a shame that I can only fire three to four rounds though,' he muttered inwardly.

Nevertheless, he was not discouraged. Since he had started his evolutionary path, he would only become stronger from now on. Soon he would be able to fire it off continuously, and perhaps he would even gain stronger abilities in the future.

He almost giggled at the thought of being able to fire a plasma cannon one day. Perhaps he would be able to demolish even spacecraft.

Still, artillery missiles were a danger he had to keep in mind. Even if he could sink battleships, it was best to be prudent, as his powerful attack was offset by his less impressive defenses.

Louie turned to the professor and his students, revealing a toothy grin. His eyes seemed to flash as he soared away.

"Away… flew away… that dragon finally flew away."

The professor's traumatized entourage let out a collective gasp of relief as they collapsed on the floor. A few remained paralyzed on the ground.

"Professor, let's get out of here… This place… the Amazon jungle is just too crazy," a student sobbed.

"Did anyone catch what happened on film?"

Professor Johnson suddenly asked. His tone was unnaturally calm, but in their exhaustion, the students did not notice anything strange about it.

"A-all captured sir!"

Lucy took two deep breaths and nodded in a hurry.

As a research team in the wilds, they would always have their video recording equipment on.

The professor grinned, "Very good. Send it to me immediately. We need to upload them onto the internet as soon as we can. In fact, we better do so before we leave this jungle, otherwise, the government will likely confiscate the videos."

He continued, "This is too good of a discovery to be covered up by anyone."

Professor Johnson turned his back on the students. If someone was standing in front of him at this time, they would have noticed that his expression was different compared to before. He seemed to become a different person entirely.

This was another spell of the Crown of Dominance —

[Dominate Human]!

…

At the same moment, the Pentagon was in an uproar.

Chapter 42

Inside the Pentagon, a certain room was in tumult.

"Remember the confidentiality agreement. If anyone dares utter a peep of this, I'll have them court-martialed!"

The Secretary of Defense sat at the head of the table. He gazed at each and every one of the people in the room with an ice glare.

Hidden beneath his cold demeanor, however, was a profound unease. The corners of his eyebrows throbbed, and a thin layer of cold sweat covered his forehead. Perhaps if a mystic looked into his eyes they would see the confusion and concern that currently plagued him.

"Yes, sir!"

Every person in the room assented immediately. There were many faces, old and young, and each performed a respectful salute upon responding. The faces of the younger officials, however, were tinged with excitement.

In front of the table was a large screen. In modern warfare, soldiers granted critical tasks would often carry cameras along with themselves. These would record and broadcast the real-time events that transpired around them. Not long ago, Secretary Johnson had been called to witness the live broadcast of the expedition into the Amazon forest.

Shivering imperceptibly, he lowered his head once more and looked at the tablet in his hands. He replayed the events that he had seen over and over again. After watching that…thing… decimate the ground force and then proceed to demolish the aerial support, he didn't quite know what to believe. Laughing bitterly he spoke, "This isn't a movie, right? Someone, please tell me they're pulling a prank."

"Unfortunately sir, it's exactly as you've seen."

One of his men whispered to him.

"Then you tell me – what the hell is this monster? Why can it breathe fire, and what the hell was that weird thing it shot out of its mouth later?!"

"Sir, I believe that… is a dragon…"

A younger subordinate replied with caution.

"Yeah I know, genius! It's a goddamn dragon. But why the hell is it here, on Earth, and not in some fairy tale?! Next thing you know we'll be seeing unicorns…"

The secretary once again issued a questioning roar. This time no one dared answer him.

Johnson was confident that there were no secrets he was unaware of. As the world's superpower's greatest military authority, there should be no secrets he couldn't access with a snap of his fingers. But this… this went beyond everything he ever dreamed.

"Phew…."

Exhaling, the secretary calmed down, "Alright. Quickly dispatch another force to Brazil. Have them go where the dragon appeared, and make sure we get to it before any other country does, alright?!" He paused before continuing, "Also pore over all the satellite imagery we have access to. I want you to find out where that dragon is right now."

There was a flurry of movement as various officials moved instantly to execute his instructions.

"Ensure this video is classified. And under the highest privileges as well. But before that, make a copy for me. I will take this to the president myself."

Pressing a button on his desk, he spoke to the communication outlet in front of him"I need to meet with the president immediately, right now, at this instant! This is an emergency, very urgent! Whatever he's doing right now, in whatever meeting he is in, he must stop and listen to my report first!"

Grabbing his coat, the Secretary of Defense walked out very fast. At the same time, vehicles parked at the Pentagon were ready to go.

…

The Department of Defense was very efficient, and it didn't take long for the Secretary of Defense to arrive at the White House. He walked into the President's office in a hurry.

Once inside, the Secretary of Defense saw that the Secretary of State was also there. He nodded at her and briskly walked to the President's desk.

"Johnson, what's the matter? I'll have you know I'm very busy. Those idiot congressmen don't understand why the wall I want to build is so important."

The President of the United States of America was a man over seventy years old. He sat behind his desk and complained. Although his tone was comical, he could be seen to be hale and hearty.

However, after seeing his cabinet member's serious expression, his expression lost its humor instantly.

He waved his hand, and all the other staff members inside the office, except for the secretary of state, exited the room.

"Well, spit it out. What's going on?."

The President said while rubbing his brow.

"First of all, before I get to the main point, I would like to ask, Your Excellency, is there any clause in the American law that legally restricts certain secrets to be known only by the President and nobody else, even me, the secretary of defense?"

The president was stumped for a moment and thought for a moment before saying, "There is no such clause. You are my equal in terms of access to classified information. All the privileges I enjoy, you do as well."

The secretary of defense sighed with relief upon hearing this and handed over his tablet device, "then please take a look at this video that was captured in the Amazon jungle not long ago. Allow me to preface by saying that this isn't the work of any special effects. Everything you see is 100% real."

With a doubtful expression, the president took the tablet and tapped on the play button. The Secretary of State came over to his side.

At first, the two were watching in a relaxed manner, but slowly, their faces warped in concern. Their eyes were full of shock and incredulity.

It didn't take long for the video to finish, and silence descended on the office.

Suddenly, the Secretary of Defense stretched out his hand and pressed down on the president's own. Besides the president's hand was a smartphone.

"Ah, sorry sorry sorry… Umm, I just realized, there was something I wanted to tweet earlier…"

The president gave an embarrassed smile.

"No!"

The Secretaries of Defense and State shouted in unison.

"Okay, okay. I get it. I'm not going to tweet it. You guys don't have to be so loud…"

The president rubbed his hand that had been pressed down.

After hesitating for a moment, he once again carefully raised his hand and said, "Let me ask again, do you guys think… that it's too late for me to learn magic?"

The Secretary of Defense felt a headache. Although the president in front of him had an extremely keen sense of business, sometimes he felt like a live comedian.

He pressed on his head and spoke in a bad mood, "Sorry, Your Excellency. I don't think you can.."

"Well, that's a shame."

The president grunted.

At that moment, there was an urgent knock on the door of the president's office. The president frowned and said, "… come in!"

The person who came in from outside the room was a staff member of the Defense Department. His face was filled with anxiety that he didn't even pay attention to courtesy as he shouted, "…. not good, sir! Those videos have been posted on YOUTube!"

The Secretary of Defense was stunned. Before he could say anything, the President stood up excitedly and said, "Since they've been posted on YOUTube, there's no problem if I tweet about it!"

Chapter 43

"Uploaded to YOUTube?"

The Secretary of Defense froze. He ignored the president who was sneakily reaching for his phone and roared at his subordinate, "What do you mean by that?! Who dared to go against my orders?!"

The Secretary of Defense was incensed, not at the idea that the video had been uploaded, but that one of his subordinates had dared defy his orders and commit such a treacherous act.

The reporting officer replied immediately, "It was not done by an insider, sir!"

"Not an insider? Then is it a hacker!?"

Johnson was stunned. With its robust cybersecurity, he could not believe that hackers could breach even the outermost perimeters of the Pentagon's network. To talk even less of the core information. If that was really possible, the United States government might as well be an open book.

"No sir, there hasn't been any breach of that sort. The uploaded video is different from ours."

"Another video?" He paused for a moment, confused, but soon realized what had happened, "I remember now! Damn it! It's that Stanford professor and his students!"

It only took a moment for him to realize that his namesake was responsible.

"Bastard! That bastard! This is my mistake. How could I forget that they might be recording as well."

The Secretary of Defense anxiously paced up and down the room.

'What should we do now? Should we arrest them?'

If the professor was found to have a video that the Department of Defense expressly prohibited the upload of, they had reasons to arrest him, but since they hadn't told him about it, he was only uploading the video as a normal citizen, making it impossible for any charges to stick.

The Secretary of State on the side pressed down the president's hand, preventing him from getting his phone. The president gave an aggrieved look before turning to Johnson, "Since things have already happened, don't blame yourself, Johnson. Think about how to solve it first… Can't the video be taken down right now?"

The president looked at the subordinate who reported.

"Your Excellency, after the video was uploaded, there had already been hundreds of thousands of views. By now numerous copies exist all around the world, and taking down the original would be useless."

"Well, in that case, let's try to guide the public opinion. Let's say it's a teaser for a Hollywood blockbuster… In the meantime, we should quickly deploy manpower to search the place where the dragon appeared. We can temporarily hide it from the people, but definitely not from other countries."

At this time, the president seemed to become serious and issued orders in an orderly manner.

But no one knew that he was eager to have everything be exposed so that he could tweet as much as he wanted!

Being the President of the United States of America was such a good position. He was the first to know all the secrets and in the future, he could brag about it.

This was what the president thought.

"Yes, Mr. President! I'll get right on it!"

The Secretary of Defense also knew that there was no time to lose. After saluting to the President, he and his subordinate left quickly. The president turned to the Secretary of State.

"Did you know that when I was a child, I wanted to be a wizard – a superhero. I once thought that was nothing more than a childish fantasy, but it seems this dream might just come true."

….

After taking out the military, Louie continued heading away from the village. Without bothering to hide, he weaved through the jungle, uprooting trees and bushes with each step forward.

He took care not to underestimate Earthlings. It was quite possible that the United States, the preeminent military power, had already devoted all of its geosynchronous satellites over the Amazon jungle to look out for him. Under that level of scrutiny, he was bound to be discovered sooner or later.

Because these observers were in orbit, Louie couldn't perceive them, even with his eyesight. He did not bother to ask the Intelligent Brain either, as he did not trust it. Though it swore to look out for his life and interests, he would try to get on by himself before resorting to its advice.

From transmigration to impossible feats of bioengineering, the Intelligent brain had proven itself to possess unfathomable abilities. If it decided to turn those against Louie in order to seek its own ends, he would likely be unable to resist it. Who knows? It might be grooming his body to steal it later.

Louie had read many novels where the protagonists held blind faith in the systems or companions they were assigned. And he knew that though it rarely happened in the stories themselves, there was little stopping a malevolent actor from setting up the entire thing to trip up the main characters before swooping in to take them for all they had.

Of course, he still needed the Intelligent Brain's power and knowledge in the meantime, and so he would not deny everything it offered. He would trust it to an extent since he had no choice. And he would carefully vet all of its advice before acting on it.

If the Intelligent Brain was truly good to him, then it would be the best outcome, and his caution would prove unnecessary. However, if it was evil, then he would have some leeway to counterattack. As the saying goes, prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Louie did not think himself a genius, but he could at least avoid playing the fool.

Under no condition would he become a puppet of the Intelligent Brain.

"This place should be good. It's far enough from the village."

After advancing thousands of kilometers into the thick of the forest, Louie finally stopped.

He had distanced himself from the indigenes because he didn't want the Americans to find them. At the moment, he still had to conduct several experiments using their faith.

He parted some scales near his chest and pulled out a magic scroll.

"I hope this thing works well and doesn't scare off those cute little humans…"

With a malicious grin, he opened the scroll.

…

At the same time, chaos once again erupted in the Pentagon.

Chapter 44

After finding the dragon, the Secretary of Defense had mobilized all available satellites to track and confirm its location. This would be maintained until they managed to deploy weapons that were powerful enough to capture it. It would be a difficult job, and losing track of the dragon even once would mean finding it would be even more difficult the next time. Nevertheless, they carried on their search.

Despite making short work of the initial forces, the Americans were far from dissuaded. After all, those were but the tiniest sliver of its true military might. And many other, more powerful weapons lay in their stockpiles.

The screen portrayed the dragon lumbering through the forest towards the north, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.

The head of the observation team did not know what the dragon was going to do. He asked for a cup of coffee while the others continued to stare at the screen, recording the dragon's trajectory from time to time.

"Why doesn't it fly? Why does it insist on running?"

A curious official raised the question and was met with silence as no one responded. Everyone else was equally as stumped.

Judging from how the dragon annihilated three Apache helicopters earlier, they had all seen how fast it could fly, but somehow it preferred running in the jungle instead of flying.

After advancing a certain distance, the dragon stopped. The observation team zoomed onto its location, thinking that they could make out its actions more clearly. The creature appeared to be standing still while chanting something.

Suddenly, an illusory doorway arose in front of it. The door seemed to be made of gray light and was embossed with numerous cryptic runes. Following its appearance, the dragon stepped into the doorway. When its body completely disappeared, the door of light rapidly shrunk and disappeared. The observation team had lost the dragon.

Whoooosh—-

The observation team stood up in alarm.

"Quick, get me a read on the immediate surroundings. Find that dragon!" the head ordered.

There was a flurry of taps as an operator rapidly typed on his keyboard. The single video which took up all of the screen split into several simultaneous streams of the surrounding environment. As a variety of images flashed by the screen, they all paid attention to any anomalies, but they found no traces of their target.

"This is crazy. Did it… did it actually teleport?"

"It…did. There's no way we saw wrong. It literally went up and disappeared right in front of our eyes.!"

"Our scanners aren't responding. We have completely lost track of the target."

"A dragon… What next? Will angels and demons pour out from the heavens and earth?"

"…"

The observation team was in a din. One official even took out a cross, praying silently to his god.

"Sir, this is an enhanced picture from the satellite. Please take a look."

The operator zoomed in on the image of the portal. This was the clearest image the satellite had taken, making it barely possible to make out the runes.

"Find me every theologian, occultist, historian, and archaeologist you can. Show them copies of these ruins, and see what they can make of them. Right, pass them on to linguists as well. Maybe they can make something out of it."

The leader of the observation team quickly gave his orders.

It was a fruitless effort, as they had not the slightest of ties to Earth. They belonged to San Soliel and San Soliel alone.

The officer swallowed his saliva, suppressing a vague sense of terror. He knew it would be difficult to find the dragon, especially since its means were completely beyond their understanding.

By teleporting alone it had exceeded Earth's technology by an order of several magnitudes. This wasn't even a serious theoretical possibility as yet. It was something that belonged primarily to the realm of science fiction.

To think of the sheer damage such an ability could cause. With it, one could easily transport their troops to the heart of their enemy's territory and strike critical blows before retreating with ease. Even logistical support would become far simpler and cheaper.

Perhaps the world was about to change!

…

Louie could guess the shock of his spectators. This was the main reason why he used the teleportation spell.

Before leaving San Soleil, he had brought some of his spoils – a bunch of magic scrolls. In case he encountered something he couldn't solve, he could also use them to solve the crisis.

There were many high-grade magic scrolls among his spoils. According to Marches, who signed a contract to become his slave, these scrolls were precious items. Even a high-ranking archmage would not be able to release different spells consecutively at their peak condition.

But the teleportation spell was not high-level magic. It was only fifth rank magic. For some small mages, they wouldn't even be able to touch this spell, but for archmages, everyone could use it.

This spell might have been extremely terrifying on Earth, but in the magical world of San Soliel, there were too many ways to deal with it. A 'Detect Teleportation' or a 'Dimensional Anchor' spell was enough to stop it in its tracks. And reckless use of it might get the user stuck in a dimensional fault which only legendary rank mages and above could survive.

Directly transporting an army to the enemy base was not impossible, but that was not something a normal mage could use as it was the legendary magic 'Group Teleportation'. Legendary magic was difficult to detect and stop.

This was the difference between Earth's civilization and San Soliel's. In the magical world, teleportation could only allow a mage to shorten the travel distance, but on Earth, it was a terrifying weapon because no one on Earth could detect it.

When Louie stepped out of the portal, he was already on top of an ocean, the largest ocean on Earth – the Pacific Ocean!

The spell required detailed coordinates for the teleportation, but Louie was not familiar with other places except China. He could not teleport directly to the Chinese cities, so he finally chose the ocean as his destination.

His next plan also required him to be on the ocean.

"After this I should go back to dragon city. I hope the residents don't starve to death before I return…" Louie muttered.

Chapter 45

The Amazon jungle had never been so lively.

A number of American researchers were scouting the area, hoping to find leads on the dragon.

After signing a strict confidentiality agreement, they were each given the opportunity to view the classified footage of the dragon as well as learn of everything that had happened. Each of them had jumped on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and was searching the forest with gusto.

The primary search locations were the places where the dragon had appeared and disappeared. At both locations, teams of biochemists in hazmat suits were carefully collecting and storing away any remains left by its breath. These samples were carefully packaged in hopes of shedding more light on the creature's nature.

Another team was examining the remains of its electric attack. These professionals worked to quantify the threat level the dragon represented. At the same time, they were responsible for transporting the corpses of the deceased back home for a proper burial.

Half a day of careful searching yielded little useful information, and the teams prepared to close for the time being. Inquiries into the nature of the portal that had taken the dragon away also yielded little useful information.

Suddenly someone noticed a potential breakthrough in the search.

"Look here!"

His companions quickly gathered around. It was a gold-colored scale stained with dirt. Those who had seen the videos immediately recognized it as belonging to the dragon!

"Quickly place it in storage!"

The scale was carefully packaged and stored away in a secure safe. Afterward, they informed the military of their discovery.

It didn't take long for several helicopters to fly in. A team of heavily armed elite soldiers took possession of the safe and left quickly. Their greatest harvest was probably this scale, which proved the existence of the giant dragon as well as magic!

But no one noticed the magic rune that suddenly flashed on the dragon scale when it was placed in the safe. It faded quickly and left no traces.

After the helicopter flew away, several hidden squads in the distance stopped their observation.

"Sir! That's all we can shoot. I just spotted intelligence squads from Russia, France, England, and a few other countries."

A young Chinese agent put away his tools and whispered to the middle-aged man beside him.

"Okay. With this much movement by the American government, others are sure to notice it. It seems they couldn't afford to move slowly, even if it meant tipping everyone else off…"

The middle-aged man rubbed his chin with his hand and watched the group of helicopters fly away.

"Well, let's just send this information to the higher-ups and let them deal with the specifics. It's not our place to ask such questions.

"Understood, sir!"

The young man taking the video nodded and turned to the workstation next to him. He began to operate it with a professional deftness.

At the same time, other intelligence agencies from around the world were doing the same thing. Because their activities were so high-profile, it was obvious that something big was happening in the Amazon.

But there was no need for other countries to find ways to dig up information. Soon, they would find out why the American forces would send such a large force in the Amazon jungle because this matter had already spread on the internet.

….

Beijing, China–

Early in the morning, Gui Bin stretched and got up from the bed. With a snort, he pulled open the curtains to let the brilliant sunlight outside shine into his small room.

After picking up his cell phone to order take-out, he walked to the washroom and cleaned himself up.

Gui Bin was a freelancer on the surface. He would take on any work such as writing essays, shooting videos, and editing videos. But he had a secret special identity – he was a member of the Department of Mysteries under the Ministry of National Defense. His work was to investigate mysterious events happening around the world.

It was a low-brow department with little prestige. It neither made money nor received much of it. In fact, its name was often forgotten.

All of the world's major governments had such departments. Although they were in a scientific world, no one could guarantee that the supernatural did not exist. The role of these departments was to fully explore these possibilities.

But unfortunately, after so many years, no one had found any supernatural events. Those who claimed to have supernatural powers were all scammers. Those few people who seemed to have supernatural abilities were just more susceptible than others. They were not supernatural abilities at all.

Gradually, these departments had become dispensable. Their annual funding was barely enough to allow them to exist.

The most inevitable thing was that, because it was a department in researching the supernatural, things had to be kept extremely confidential, especially when they were under the Ministry of Defense. Even inside the system, not many people know about the existence of this department. It was simply hard to tell people that the country had a department that investigated the supernatural. If a government's official position regarding the supernatural was that it did not exist, then such a department would be a slap on the face for them. The people might even begin to suspect how their tax money was used.

Therefore, although Gui Bin was in the system, there was no structure in it. This also meant that he did not need to go to an office and work. The department even allowed him to do part-time work to support himself.

Gui Bin also thought that this was not a bad job. He could just consider himself as a true freelancer, waking up and sleeping whenever he wanted. As part of the Department of Mysteries, he was quite a capable person. He could work part-time jobs every month and receive a state salary on top of it. Although the salary was very little, it was better than nothing. He was happy staying in the capital every day.

After washing up, Gui Bin sat down in front of a computer. He began to browse the internet for anything interesting.

When he opened the top videos leaderboard, he noticed the video that was ranked at the top.

"Eh? This video was just uploaded today? The number of views is quite high."

Gui Bin looked at the title…

《Shocking! A Legendary Dragon Appeared in the Amazon Jungle!》

It's another clickbait!

This was his first thought, but seeing that the video was in first, he still decided to take a look.

Chapter 46

Clicking on the video, Gui Bin readjusted himself on his chair and began to watch. The first thing he saw was a dense jungle and a group of foreigners accompanied by the military. Their pace through the forest was quick but thorough as they examined the wildlife. They did not speak much, but from their occasional words, he could place their accent. Gui Bin tagged them as American.

"Thank you for Greenie's translation!"

"What kind of video is this? Don't tell me it's another marketing scheme."

"I'll pretend to be Greenie!"

"…"

Looking at the chat pop-ups in this video, Gui Bin smiled in amusement. Perhaps the popups were the most interesting thing about this website after all.

"What is this video? Is it a movie trailer or a documentary? Oh, a real-time filming technique was used," Gui Bin muttered. He checked its length and saw that it was only twenty minutes long. Far too long for a trailer but still too short for a standard movie. He assumed it was a documentary and continued watching.

The beginning of the video was fairly boring. As a member of the Department of Mysteries, Gui Bin had to have several skills, and so he also understood English to a degree. He was young and with an active mind. Even if the department was mostly ignored, he still possessed many competencies that most others lacked. Sometimes he felt as though he was born in the wrong place and time. Otherwise, he might have been able to make it big.

"High-energy ahead!"

"Continuous high-energy ahead!"

"Please prepare yourself!"

"…"

Seeing the screen full of pop-ups, Gui Bin subconsciously sat up straight. Even his breathing slowed down as he stared in anticipation.

Soon, the shaky video stopped shaking. In front of the screen, an elegant and majestic golden dragon appeared. It was resting on the ground at the moment. After noticing the cameraman and team, the dragon raised its head and gazed at them with its cold slit pupils.

Through the screen alone Gui Bin began to feel fear as the video progressed. His breathing was stifled, and his heartbeat accelerated as though some kind of magic was cast on him.

"WICKED!" he muttered, completely incredulous.

At the same moment, many people were also expressing their shock as can be seen from the pop-ups.

"Crap. So scary. This dragon is just like the real thing."

"Haha, I actually almost peed myself."

"This is too cool! Which company did it? Is Hollywood at this level?"

"Too lifelike."

"This dragon is covered in gold, I approve, it's very dragon-like!"

"…"

But unlike everyone else who marveled at the special effects, Louie was feeling a completely different emotion. Shock.

"This is not created post-production!"

As a person with skills in post-production, Gui Bin could tell that this video was completely unedited. The cinematography was clearly amateurish, and creating a dragon with such a level of detail would require vastly more computing power than any company could provide.

There were many people with the same thoughts as Gui Bin, but no matter how they explained this through the pop-ups, there were more people who scoffed at them, because if this was not a movie, it meant that there was a real dragon on Earth.

This rebuttal truly made them speechless.

In the next moment, the dragon approached the cameraman to reveal its majestic yet terrifying appearance. When it spoke human-like words, the pop-ups on the screen went crazy.

"The dragon has spoken!"

"Greenie, please translate what the dragon said!"

"Translate your fart! No one has heard this language before. It's simply non-existent. Well, maybe this is the dragon's language."

This was an unintentional discovery of the truth.

"Crap, it can speak English! This is American English, right?!"

"My ten years of learning English is wasted. I simply could not compare to a dragon!"

"Mom, I want to learn English from the dragon."

"What the hell? What is this Language Understanding spell? Is it real magic?"

"Do not believe in these lies!"

"…."

The pop-ups were sometimes amusing. The serious atmosphere was instantly dispersed with the gags from them.

Next, just like a movie plot, the American soldiers who thought they were invincible began to attack the dragon. A massacre had occurred, and the following scenes were heavily censored with mosaics. Despite this, however, everyone could tell what lay behind those red pixelated blotches.

If it was truly a doctored production, it was an inhumanly realistic one. Every facet of the video, from the spray of blood and viscera to the screams of the slaughtered soldiers seemed completely realistic. After the dragon flew up and annihilated three helicopters, the video ended.

"******!"

"Dragon breath! That is definitely dragon breath!"

"Can anybody tell me what that light the dragon spat out at the end is?"

"

"…."

The number of pop-ups became lesser towards the end of the video. It was as if everyone was immersed in the massacre. Watching this video made them feel as if they were at the scene of the massacre as their bodies let out cold sweat.

That was until the last pop-up appeared across the center of the screen which truly chilled everyone's hearts.

"I am a Chinese living in Brazil. Today, the local newspaper reported that a large amount of U.S. troops, helicopters, tanks, and a biochemical team appeared. This video was first uploaded on YOUTube. It's already a hot topic of discussion in other countries!"

Seeing this, Gui Bin immediately breached the Great Firewall of China and checked foreign websites. He found that the netizens of the world were caught in a great discussion. This matter had completely blown up the world!

"This can't be real…"

Gui Bin murmured. He leaned back in his chair and finally noticed that his doorbell had been ringing for some time now. His takeout had arrived a while ago.

He hurriedly went to open the door, apologized to the delivery boy, and collected his meal.

After returning inside the room, Gui Bin put down the takeaway and prepared to eat when his phone suddenly rang.

Seeing the caller ID, Gui Bin was stunned, because the person calling was the leader he had not seen for a long time,

'Could it be related to that video?'

Thinking like this, Gui Bin answered the call.

The leader did not waste any time and simply said, "Gui Bin, put down anything you are doing right now. Come to the office right now!"

Chapter 47

Gui Bin looked unhappily at the takeaway he had ordered. He had been looking forward to it, but though his stomach was still rumbling with hunger, orders were orders. He could only endure the pangs and make his way out of the house.

Riding in the backseat of a taxi, Gui Bin closed his eyes to rest. He was not an idiot. He had rarely seen the department head in person ever since he had joined. And now that he had received such urgent summons, he knew that this likely led back to the video from earlier.

He felt a vague excitement. Although there was no guarantee that the event was real, and that it was merely a means for the US to cover up something else, this might perhaps be the only genuine supernatural occurrence the department had ever faced. It was exactly the sort of thing that he had always wanted to find.

He calmed himself again.

It didn't take long for the cab to arrive at the city hall. As the department had little to no staff, their lack of official office space couldn't be helped. Whenever they needed to convene they would find an empty room in the city hall and discuss the latest scammers and frauds they had found out. After finishing the meeting they'd have dinner together before returning to their homes.

The department kept a large database of 'supernatural' practitioners. This made it easy to understand each situation of fraud by consulting their records. The proceeding investigation could then continue more smoothly.

After showing his ID to the guard, Gui Bin walked towards an isolated conference room inside the building. This was their usual point of gathering, and it had eventually become something like their office.

Now, however, the conference room was quite different from what it normally was. Previously it would be a simple walk to the room with no interruptions to speak of, but now the corridor was packed with numerous guards. He had to undergo a thorough body search and detailed investigation of his identity before he could enter.

"Little Gui is here. Everyone has been waiting for you."

There was a small round table inside the waiting room with not many people seated. Except for his boss, a forty-something-year-old pot-bellied man, the rest were his colleagues. In total there were only five people in the department.

"Chief, you…"

Gui Bin began to protest at the chief's choice of moniker, but the next moment his body stiffened. This was because he saw the person at the head of the table.

As an employee of the Ministry of National Defense, Gui Bin naturally knew the healthy old man. He was the Minister of Defense, and he often appeared in news broadcasts.

"Good day, sir!"

Gui Bin quickly straightened his back and saluted in a sloppy way – he wasn't a soldier after all.

"Relax Comrade Gui, and please take a seat. I came over this time to familiarize myself with your department. You are the last to arrive, so it's a pleasure to finally meet you.."

The minister had a kind face. After sizing up Gui Bin, he beckoned him to sit down.

Just as Gui Bin sat down, the minister stood up and smiled at him. Then he spoke to Gui Bin's boss beside him, "Little Si, I am now acquainted with everyone in your department. Next, I will leave you to explain things to them according to what we discussed before."

"Yes, sir! I will definitely accomplish this task!"

The chief of the department stood up and gave a standard military salute.

The minister nodded in satisfaction, patted Gui Bin on the shoulder, and left the place with the guards.

The tension in the room disappeared upon his exit. Several of Gui Bin's colleagues began to chatter among themselves. As they were used to being in the chief's company, they felt no need to be nervous.

"Okay, everyone, be quiet for a moment."

Chief Si clapped his hands and brought order to the room once again.

"First of all, let me tell everyone the good news. Everyone present, including me, is now promoted two levels!"

Chief Si's face was full of smugness as if his suffering had finally ended.

"Chief, will our wages increase?"

"What a nonsensical question! Of course, they will!"

Chief Si glared at his subordinate, indicating that he should not interrupt him.

"Secondly, you should not call me chief anymore. We are now known as the 9th Emergency Special Disaster Management Team. In the future, call me team leader. Also, we now have our own office space. We don't need to borrow a room in the city hall anymore, and can directly go to our office in the August 1st Building.

"Wow…"

The crowd suddenly clamored. Naturally, they knew what the building was, it was the Ministry of National Defense HQ.

Having an office there meant that they were finally recognized to enter the core location.

"All right, everyone, take it easy. In the future, our treatment will be very good. The higher-ups will not only send guards to protect us but also provide resources to us, who are called the most experienced in this field."

Team leader Si paused. His face gradually became serious, "You should all know what is happening, right?"

Everyone put away their joy and gave a heavy nod. The matter of the video was too big. It was simply impossible for them to remain ignorant. Naturally, they also knew that they were not the only ones taking action. Their group was only one of the many responsible departments.

"The higher-ups had professionals check the authenticity of the video. Since they could not find any traces of post-processing, then it's probably real!"

A word from their team leader made everyone inhale hard with a vague excitement.

What did it mean? It meant that dragons and magic existed. Going a bit deeper, it also meant that legends and myths might also be real!

"Before we discuss what to do next, everyone will sign a new confidentiality agreement."

Team leader Si placed a stack of paper in front of each person.

As long as a person worked for the Ministry of National Defense, it was inevitable for them to sign these kinds of agreements, but depending on the level of confidentiality, the content of the agreements would differ. What they were now signing were stricter terms compared to before.

"Let me state in advance. After signing this agreement, you will immediately be court-martialed for leaking state secrets if you reveal anything to outsiders."

Team leader Si spoke with a serious expression.

But his team members did not think much at all. After giving the terms a brief look, they all signed their names.

It would be a joke if they didn't sign it. This was simply a rare opportunity to possibly get in touch with the secret truth of the world. How could they just let this chance go!

"Very well, since everyone has signed the confidentiality agreement, take a look at these photos."

The team leader used a projector to display images on the wall, "This is a photo taken by one of ours in Brazil, so pay attention to it."

He operated the computer to show the images. The images were photos of U.S. forces wearing biochemical suits and searching through the Amazon jungle. There were tanks and helicopters accompanying them. In the last photo, a safe was being carried away by the U.S. military on a helicopter.

"This photo was taken in the Amazon jungle by one of our country's satellites. You can see that there is a clear trail running for around 100 kilometers. Whatever the cause, it must be large. As you well know by now, this corroborates with the information we gleaned from the online video. Thus, it has a 90% chance of being real.

Everyone looked nervously at the photos with bated breaths.

"Team leader, the safe being protected by the U.S. Army likely contains some body parts of the dragon!"

Gui Bin spoke with excitement.

"That's right. The higher-ups had also speculated this, but only the American government knows what's really inside. They may have obtained something important before us."

Team leader Si took a puff of his cigarette and said, "Other countries are probably doing the same thing as us now. We have already allied with Russia, Europe, Japan, and other powerful international forces in asking the American government to disclose detailed information."

Gui Bin felt that this was natural. In this kind of event that potentially involved the secrets of supernatural power, even allies of the United States of America would work against it. Only through collective pressure could they force out any information.

"Our economy has grown significantly over the past 30 years, and now only the US stands above us in that regard. That said, we are lacking the kind of diplomatic capital they possess. This is a good opportunity to improve our general diplomatic position."

"Perhaps we might even become the leaders of this coalition. This is a rare opportunity where almost any outcome will be good for us."

Hearing the words of the team leader, Gui Bin looked at him in amazement. It was the first time he found out that their leader, who dawdled all day, had this kind of political awareness!

"Gentlemen, after today, everyone's going to be busy. Your days of lazing around are now over. Everyone will report to the new workplace this afternoon. If this thing is real and not some conspiracy by the United States of America, then the world will change!"

The team leaders' every single word contained heavy implications.

…

Governments around the world were busy mobilizing resources to organize new departments. Satellites were continuously monitoring the world, looking for the giant dragon that had disappeared.

And the one who started everything, Louie, was at the Pacific Ocean, unleashing the spell contained inside the Crown of Dominance again – [Dominate Human]!

Chapter 48

Professor Johnson awoke from a trance.

Despite looking no different from before, those familiar with him would likely notice that he had different mannerisms compared to the past. This was because though he was Professor Johnson, he also wasn't. Louie had used the Dominate Human spell to once again take over his body.

Louie had initially spared the professor and his students so that he could use them to spread the news of his existence to the world and alert other countries. This way, the American government would have to expend effort in dealing with the diplomatic aftermath of his actions. In the meantime, they would be severely limited in their means of finding and confronting him.

Step by step he managed to achieve all of his aims.

Of course, he still didn't let his guard down. After all, he had his final trump card, which was the ability to escape to San Soliel. If things ever got bad on Earth, he'd simply head there and vice versa. In the meantime, however, he could risk exposing himself.

"Right. Now it's time to find food."

Professor Johnson murmured.

Since Louie had once been human, he faced no difficulties in acclimating to the new body. If he had been born a dragon then he would likely be clumsy with it at first.

The spell, Dominate Human, would leave a seed on the body of the target if cast successfully for the first time. The next time the caster wished to control the target, they could easily use the spell once again with the seed as an anchor.

Given that Earthlings had almost no resistance to spells, Louie could manipulate a person for up to several hours.

"I didn't think the spell could work even at such a distance. Magic is quite potent it seems."

Louie sighed before manipulating the professor's body to open the computer.

There were many restrictions to the spell, Dominate Human. For example, it could only dominate a single person and not a group. Additionally, the range of the spell's initial casting was quite small. Finally, once the caster was in control of the target, they could not obtain the target's memories and habits. Everything was up to the caster's actions. And if they couldn't pull a good enough impression of the host, they'd likely be discovered soon. This was why the spell was relatively unpopular.

If the Crown of Dominance did not have this spell, Louie might not have bothered to learn it.

Perhaps if the spell had fewer limitations Louie would already have taken over the President of the United States of America. It was a shame though, that he was not very familiar with his mannerisms and speech patterns. Even if he managed to get close to the president and take control of him, he'd likely fail to provide a convincing impression.

Furthermore, as powerful as presidents could be, they still had limits. Congress would easily veto anything that seemed too out there. Unless he could take over everyone it would be a pointless task. But if he was powerful enough to do something on that scale, what would even be the point? He might as well just force them instead.

Therefore, it was important to power up.

Pondering, Louie began to collate the resources he needed.

The professor's body was currently in his clean and tidy home. After the incident in the Amazon jungle, he had been questioned by the U.S. military for half a day, but Louie had cleverly delayed the video's release to avoid catching their attention. The U.S. government could not convict the professor. Moreover, the professor was very knowledgeable and had many connections. The U.S. government did not dare go too far and finally released him.

In the end, the professor was confused and did not know what he did, because he had no memory of when he was controlled.

After poking around the house, Louie made himself a cup of coffee. He had been a dragon for a while, causing him to feel nostalgia to be back in a human's body.

Louie first searched the internet and found out that the video had exploded out of proportion. People all over the world were discussing the existence of dragons. They were even launching demonstrations to have the U.S. government reveal more information about it. Unfortunately for them, the US government paid little attention to them, and simply dismissed the video as a clever hoax.

Sneering, Louie ignored the US government's attempts. As more supernatural events occurred he wanted to see how they'd keep covering things up.

"I wonder how the scientists are going to react"

Louie clicked his tongue and gloated. He was happy to create trouble.

Even Louie himself could not believe how fast he was adapting to his new identity. Although he still had some human habits and thoughts, he had also accepted a dragon's way of thinking. Now, he was already considering himself as a real dragon, the predator at the top of the food chain.

He was no longer a weak human with a short lifespan.

But there had been merit to having the intelligence of a human. Now, he had both intelligence and power.

"Found it! This person truly deserved to be called a Stanford professor. His network is really rich. Fortunately, I don't need to meet with anyone. As long as I make a call with the professor's voice, no one would probably be able to suspect that he was not himself."

Louie gleefully looked at the professor's phonebook, which recorded the numbers of many people.

Thanks to modern smartphones, facial recognition, and fingerprint detection, Louie was able to open the professor's phone.

"Alright! Shall we unleash a few more surprises?"

Chapter 49

The Sonoran Desert, Arizona, United States of America, is one of the largest and hottest deserts in North America, with a total area of almost 300,000 square kilometers.

Somewhere in this arid wasteland, buried deep underneath the cracked earth was a large-scale hidden laboratory.

The security within the complex was airtight. There was a guard post every five steps, and a sentry every ten. The white spotless walls were blanketed with bright lights which spilled into every nook and cranny of the building, leaving no shadows. Every inch of the facility was monitored by cameras, and the entire building gave off an imposing presence that would chill visitors.

As the guards stood alert for any potential security problem, the researchers within the facility moved through unhindered. Each wore protective clothing.

As perhaps the most secretive laboratory in the US, it held many contents and research projects.

Standing within the center of one of the building's many tightly supervised rooms was a transparent cabinet. Within the room were various high-tech mechanical arms moving with purpose. Outside the room, however, were several scientists discussing with a military official.

"How is the research on the dragon scale going? His Excellency the President and the Secretary of Defense desire for quick progress on this."

The soldier straightened his back and asked.

"It is going smoothly, but understand that it will take time for its results to come out. Unfortunately, as there is only a single sample of the experimental material, we cannot employ violent but effective methodologies. The phenotypic properties of the scale are simply outstanding. It possesses hardness and ductility not to be found in any organic substance. In fact, I strongly suspect it is some kind of alloy!"

"This is definitely not something an ordinary creature on Earth can possess!"

Another biologist said with an excited expression.

The soldier rolled his eyes at their verbosity. That it couldn't be found anywhere on Earth was a given. After all, it was from a dragon. Where could you find another similar material?

Nevertheless, the scientists' words made his heart flutter slightly. At the very least they had scientifically proven that the creature was significantly different from all other creatures on Earth. They had scientifically proven that dragons existed.

"Can you crack the secret of the dragon's genetic code?"

The soldier asked impatiently.

With an embarrassed smile the biologist rubbed his hands, "Umm, you should understand that even the human genome isn't considered completely deciphered, even with access to all organs and modern techniques. Deriving the dragon's genetic sequence from its scale will likely prove impossible. After all, the scale is but an insignificant part of its body and does not carry all of its genes," the scientist dabbed his flushed forehead with a handkerchief, "Moreover, it is… for lack of a better term, very magical. Its genes seem to be protected by some kind of mysterious power. The best we can do is only observe them, but not manipulate them."

"Magic!"

Hearing the biologist's words, the soldier repeated one word. The first thing he thought of was a special power that humans could not understand. It was also the one protecting the dragon's body structure.

Suddenly, a light flickered on the golden dragon scale that was placed inside the sealed laboratory. A mystical rune appeared on it.

"What's going on!"

The biologist and soldier were startled and hurriedly asked.

The people around the place also panicked.

One of the scientists observing the scale hurriedly said, "Sir, we don't know what happened. A strange symbol appeared on the scale. Aside from a pulse of strange energy, our systems did not detect anything else.

The scientist quickly tapped a few times on the keyboard, and a picture of the mysterious rune taken just now was enlarged on a screen.

The scholars and soldiers in the audience were all looking at each other, completely confused about the symbol.

"Maybe… we need to find some occultists, or symbolists, or something to study it?"

The soldier who was speaking before gave his suggestion.

…

Louie's consciousness descended on top of the dragon scales, and he began to observe everything around him with a peculiar perspective. He had heard everything that the biologist and soldier said.

Louie scoffed at them. A dragon was a magical creature that could not be compared to a normal animal. Even the Terran Civilization, which was capable of dimensional travel and killing many dragons as well as the Dragon God, had to create a perfect dragon body using their biotechnology. In the end, they still had to rely on the power of magic and Gods.

With Earth's technology, wanting to study the source of a dragon's magical ability was tantamount to a fool's dream. If Earth had such capabilities, humanity would have long been able to travel to other dimensions!

In fact, Louie had deliberately left this dragon scale. If the government found a mysterious existence like a dragon, they would definitely search the place. Louie had left a very conspicuous scale. As long as those were serious about it, they would definitely find it.

Just as Louie expected, the American government obtained the scale and brought it back for research.

Louie also left a spell on the scale. It was a commonly used spell in San Soleil – [Protective Detection]!

This was a low-ranked spell with limited uses back in San Soleil. It allowed the caster to detect the sound, image, and other information near the casting medium. In short, it was a surveillance camera of the magic world. This magic was particularly conspicuous since mages could detect the fluctuations of magic on the medium.

This spell was at best only used to supervise work. An archmage would normally cast it at several locations in their own territory as a warning to other people that the location was under their supervision.

There was no concealment on this magic, allowing the fluctuations to be easily detected, but because there were no mages on Earth, Louie was able to take advantage of the spell and easily infiltrated one of the United States of America's heavily guarded laboratories. This was the difference in civilizations!

The Intelligent Brain told Louie that there were still energy sources on Earth that had been scattered when the ship crashed. Leaving aside whether they could be found in the wild, if they were discovered by the government, then they would definitely collect them and store them in the most confidential research laboratories of the country for research.

Naturally, a body part of a mysterious creature like a dragon must also be top secret. So, Louie had deliberately left a dragon scale and cast a Protective Detection spell on it. And just as expected, the American government had placed his scale in a secret laboratory.

Louie thought about this and sneered. He felt pleasure at the fact that he alone had fooled the most powerful nation on Earth.

There were many intelligent human beings. But humans had not yet come into contact with creatures like dragons, so they wouldn't know how intelligent they are. They could try to imagine it, but few would assume that he possessed a human soul and the corresponding level of cunning.

He immediately inspected the surroundings and found that the place was extremely closely guarded.

With his current strength, he would not be able to break in here whether from the front or from the back. At the very least, he had recorded the coordinates of the palace. Later, when he becomes strong enough, he would break in any time and search for the energy source. He was also anticipating more confidential information about the United States of America from his surveillance.

These laboratories had a high degree of secrecy. Even the American government did not know everything about them, but the secrets of this powerful country were easily found out by Louie's small trick!

Chapter 50

The Pacific Ocean was the world's largest and deepest body of water. With an area of more than 100 million square kilometers, it contained countless islands and trenches. Finding a ten-meter-long object within it was far worse than looking for a needle in a haystack.

Dozens of meters under the Pacific Ocean, a golden dragon suddenly opened his eyes. Fishes panicked to escape it, but they were downed by the creature in a single gulp.

Shutting his mouth, Louie tasted his prey. He no longer needed to worry about stomach aches as his digestive system was now extremely powerful. He could even digest inorganic substances if he wished, and he had lost most of his aversion to food that humans couldn't eat after initially becoming a Jesus Lizard. His palate had changed, and so he no longer needed to cook things to find them tasty.

Slowly, his body floated up to the surface, and he pulled out several magic scrolls from his scales.

"After repeated trials, this shipping route should be fine. Now, the survival of my Dragon City depends on whether I can accomplish this."

Louie's eyes looked straight into the distance like a thief who was about to carry out a big heist.

And indeed, he was.

He looked down at the high-rank spell scrolls in his hand. If Marches were here, he would have bemoaned how wasteful Louie was being.

But Louie himself couldn't help it. Before this, his body was just a baby dragon with no spell-casting ability. It took a while to evolve into a juvenile dragon that could cast spells, but because of the plight of Dragon City, he had to leave San Soliel and come back to Earth to make plans.

Time simply did not give him the opportunity to learn many spells.

"When this task is over, I will definitely go back to San Soleil and properly learn magic. I won't ask to learn high-rank spells, but at least I want to learn low-rank spells," Louie muttered.

Louie was able to taste how delicious it was to cast magic on Earth. He now had a great desire to learn magic.

"Here it comes!"

Louie's pupils shrunk for a moment and saw a dark shadow in the distance.

…

The ocean freighter, the Neversnar, belonged to the American Shipping Company, a business that was, confusingly, first listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. The Neversnar itself was registered in the British Virgin Islands.

Although aircraft were faster, in terms of cost and carrying capacity, sea transportation was still the world's leading channel. Freight companies all over the world carried out the important task of importing and exporting.

According to the classification, this ship was a class VI ship, carrying between 200,000 to 300,000 tons, which took about a month to arrive from North America to Asia.

And this time, the Neversnar's cargo was grain.

The United State is the world's largest exporter of food, exporting nearly 100 million tons per year. Its total export of food was about a quarter of the total global exports.

Most large farms in the United States have about a hundred hectares of land. Due to successfully mechanizing its agricultural sector, it could provide a surplus of food for its citizens and export the remainder. So, it was said with some exaggeration that farmers in the United States of America were a group of rich landowners.

The main export of food was corn and soybeans. Of course, wheat, pork, and other essential goods were also exported to Asia, Africa, and even Europe.

These man-made steel structures could even make blue whales in the ocean look small.

On the ship's deck, a few sailors were breathing in the ocean air while chatting.

In the past, sea voyages were deadly endeavors where the slightest slip up could lead to a watery death. In modern times, however, ships were able to skirt most natural disasters. The greatest dangers lay with man-made threats such as piracy.

But the Pacific Ocean had always been the main sphere of influence of the United States Navy. Unlike places like the Caribbean, Malacca, and Somalia, pirates were relatively scarce here. Compared to the dangerous Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean was quieter, making work there quite comfortable. The only problem was the long distance.

"Lee, do you see? It's only been a day, but this video has traveled all over the world. It's amazing how the U.S. Army was able to find such a creature like a dragon in the Amazon jungle."

A sailor nibbled on fruit and joked with his colleague.

Voyaging in the sea for a month could drive a person crazy, but thanks to modern technology, everyone was connected to the internet. They could even connect while they were in the Pacific Ocean, but the signal was not that great.

"How could I possibly be out of the loop? I even contacted home to confirm what's going on. My friends in New York say that celebrities and reporters have started a march on Washington. Apparently, they want the government to release more information."

"Haha, how could those politicians ever make such sensitive information public?"

"My family also told me to be careful, saying that the world might become a dangerous place. Could it be that I have to watch out for giant dragons in the Pacific Ocean?"

"Your family is probably asking you to be careful of sirens, to not be charmed by their songs. Once you're trapped, you would get your spirit sucked out. Not even your girlfriend would be able to attend your funeral!"

"Hahahahahaha!"

There was a joyful clamor as the sailors burst into laughter.

If dragons really existed and those myths and legends were real, then I would want to meet a mermaid. Oh, just imagine it… I wouldn't even mind if they robbed my soul."

"Are you okay in the head? We've crossed this route many times already. Have you ever seen a mermaid?"

"This time is different. You can see that a dragon has already appeared, so it shouldn't be impossible for there to be mermaids."

The voice retorted.

Because the dragon in the Amazon jungle disappeared without reappearing, there was no impact on the lives of ordinary people. The dragon had only become a topic for after-dinner discussion. There were even people who were beginning to think that the video was a complete hoax, otherwise, how could there be no news of anything after so many days passed.

The sailors continued to talk and laugh as they enjoyed a rare break. They began to brag about their girlfriends being the prettiest and talking about which beauties they were courting.

Suddenly, one of the sailors noticed something wrong. He pointed at the surroundings and said, "Guys, don't you feel that the sky is weird?"

The others looked around in confusion.

They saw the turquoise blue sky and endless ocean rapidly change. They felt as if they were wearing presbyopic glasses. The ocean itself was still the same, but the space afar seemed to have become a distorted blur. They felt as if the distant scenery had been patched with mosaics.

"What the hell is happening?"

A sailor shouted in alarm, but no one could answer him.

They had seen stormy seas before and even seen fierce sharks, but this was the first time they were witnessing this strange phenomenon. It was as if they had entered an unknown world.

"Go find the captain and the vice-captain! Ask them what's going on!"

The sailors were panicking and were about to enter the cabin. Suddenly, the ship shuddered, to a halt in the middle of the ocean. The inertia caused the sailors to fall down onto the deck, and there were many cries of pain.

After standing back up with difficulty, they cursed and the yelling continued again.

"Quick, quick look! Look at the tail of the ship!"

Shouts of panic tore through the air like torn curtains.

They could see a huge whirlpool appear, and under the fearful gazes of the people, a monster beyond human imagination slowly crept out of the sea.

"Hey, man, is that the siren that you were looking for?" a sailor's mouth was dry and his voice quavered.

"Oh, God. Wha…what the hell is that monster!"

The sailors' pupils contracted. They looked at the horrible creature with terrified expressions as if their hearts and guts were about to come out.

"What siren, quickly move the ship! Don't let that thing come over."

"I-it's coming!"

Roars and screams turned the freighter into a complete mess.

Chapter 51

The sea shook and churned behind the Neversnar. A whirlpool hundreds of meters in diameter swirled into existence, appearing to hollow out the sea. Rather than reveal the vibrant and magnificent landscapes beneath the ocean, the vortex seemed to devour everything near it in a never-ending spiral of blackness.

Several green tentacles sprung from within the whirlpool's maw and seemed to scrape the sky. Each effused a sticky liquid which stank of rot and dripped down onto the ship.

"Monster! Monster!"

"Quick! Get into the cabin!"

"Why did the ship stop? Hurry up and steer it away! The monster is coming!"

"…"

Pandemonium reigned on the deck as every sailor erupted into a panic. Within each heart arose a boundless fear, and every mind seemed to collapse under the incredulity of the situation.

"Ahh huh huh aa aaaa ha…"

"Oh, God! Oh, God! It came out! The monster is showing its body! How could such a thing possibly exist?!"

"I'm dreaming, right? Please tell me this is a dream…"

Someone murmured. He slapped himself twice in hopes of awakening, but the monster remained in his vision. The horizon remained distorted. In the end, he stumbled towards the cabin before screaming in abject terror.

From the raging whirlpool rose a humongous misshapen yet octopoid head. The flesh on its skull was covered in pitch black scales and oozed the same slimy liquid that coated its tentacles. As it rose its body seemed to twist upon itself as its tentacles remained pointed towards the sky.

To think that such a creature existed in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Given the sheer size of the body of water, one had to wonder just how large this monster was. Rather than a proper living creature, it seemed to be a mountain of broken bones and rotting meat blended up. Such a figure seemed like some abstract product of a twisted human mind.

"Ahhhhhh, you monster! I'll kill you!"

In the panic, someone pulled out a rifle and shot at the monster. As each bullet landed it dug into the skin of the creature, and pus-filled bubbles rose to the surface. These popped and released the same slimy liquid as the tentacles. Despite this, however, the octopoid monstrosity did not seem to become more agitated. The crew on the other hand fell into a greater panic.

People went crazy, screamed in fear, laughed at nothing, and covered their heads in pain at this indescribable terror.

In the captain's quarters, the head of the freighter anxiously roared at his staff, "What the hell is happening?!"

"Captain… we have lost all signals and our bearing… It's like… we've been isolated from the rest of the world!"

A crew member shouted in panic. The pointers on the instruments in front of him were going haywire while the computer displayed a blue screen of death.

The liaison officer picked up the microphone and anxiously called out, "This is ocean liner Neversnar, this is ocean liner Neversnar. If you can hear us, please answer. Please answer!"

He frantically changed wavelengths, attempting to find a working channel, but the only thing that could be heard from the audio was static noise. They could not contact anyone. The freighter was completely isolated from all forms of contact.

This was also the reason why they suddenly stopped the freighter. They had lost their signal. They couldn't even locate their position through the GPS, so they did not know where to go. If they had accidentally entered a dangerous sea disaster zone, then their lives were up to fate.

"Kiiiiiiii…."

Suddenly, an ear-piercing screech, reminiscent of scraping fingernails over the chalkboard, rent the air. The people inside the bridge immediately covered their ears. Through the din, the captain could still make out the sound of screams and gunshots outside. He opened the door to the deck and cursed, "We only stopped the ship! Why are you all making such a ruckus?!"

He walked onto the deck, but his eyes soon expanded as he saw the monster at the stern. Feeling his sanity slip away, he ran back to the bridge, pissing on himself in the process

"Captain, we aren't sure of our position now. Rashly steering the ship will drive it off course."

"Shut up you mother fucker! Can't you see the area around us has changed?! There is a monster on the stern. Fuck, quickly set sail!"

The captain wished he could pull out his pistol and point it at his stupid first mate.

"Monster?"

The first mate was a little confused, but after seeing the captain's bloodshot eyes and craziness, he didn't dare retort and hurriedly started the freighter.

The huge propeller rotated and the freighter began to move.

"The ship is moving. The ship is moving!"

"Quick, make it move faster. We must quickly leave this place! And get away from that monster!"

"Jesus Christ, I swear, this is the last time I'm going to go out to sea! I'm quitting this job when I get back. This is not a job for humans! This is not!"

"Fuck your mermaid jinx. A monster has now appeared, a real sea monster! Father, son, and holy spirit…monsters really exist. First, it was a dragon, and now this!"

"Hahaha, have I gone crazy? I just imagined Picasso's abstract painting just now… I have truly gone crazy."

"Guns are useless against that thing! I just shot three whole magazines and nothing happened to it. Not even a single tentacle appeared to be hurt. We need cannons. We need 400-millimeter cannons! We need Tomahawk missiles! We need nuclear weapons!"

Someone with a gun was dancing around in a craze, making everyone stay away from him, afraid that they might get shot.

"Lee, are you okay?"

A sailor hiding behind the crowd noticed the dull eyes of the person beside him. His face was white and his tongue was hanging out while mumbling something strange towards the monster.

The sailor got closer to listen, only to hear chilling words come from his mouth.

"I?! I?! Cthulhu fhtagn!"

"I?! I?! Cthulhu fhtagn!"

"Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah-nagl fhtagn!"

Chapter 52

The crew of the Neversnar, wrought as they were by madness and terror, were too focused on the Lovecraftian sea monster to notice the golden dragon pulsing through the sea behind them.

"Looks like things went well…"

With a satisfied chuckle, Louis sighed in relief.

By leveraging Professor Johnson's contacts and position, Louie had managed to obtain the information necessary to intercept this ship. As a distinguished academic, the elderly man possessed in the US a status analogous to that of a professor of Tsinghua University in China. This meant that he had numerous great scholars and captains of industry on his contact list.

Following the theory of six degrees of separation, an individual as eminent as Professor Johnson didn't even need to go through five people before being able to get what he wanted. Just one or two was good enough.

Louie estimated Dragon City's remaining population to be 100,000. Feeding this number of people would be difficult, especially if it was to be a continuous thing. Even if he tried to hide somewhere and control someone with access to the necessary food, their movements would still be easily traceable. And it would likely take far more time than he would like anyways.

And so he had ultimately decided to hijack a freighter carrying grains in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It would be easy to hide his traces here too. Nevertheless, though sinking a large vessel was pretty easy, hijacking one and stealing its cargo was a very technical job, and Louie did not possess the expertise necessary to do so. If he wasn't careful, he'd lose all of the food he had worked so hard to get so far.

Louie had used two high-rank spells, [Labyrinth] and [True Illusion]. He had spent a significant amount of time thinking before choosing them out.

[Labyrinth] was a spell just like its name. It could create a maze and twist the surrounding space. In this way, trapped parties would be at the mercy of the caster.

This spell was usually used to trap an enemy or to protect an important treasure. Because the space itself was twisted, any teleportation spell would be ineffective inside the labyrinth.

After separating the ship from the rest of the world, all he had to do was drive the crew into a panic and have them jump off of it. Then he'd have a vessel with high quality and large amounts of food.

The labyrinth spell seemed to be working well in the current case. The space inside it had been twisted and warped, preventing any signals from coming in. If humans developed quantum communication technology, they might be able to break through the shackles of space, but electromagnetic waves were unable to do so.

After confining the ship in space, Louie used the spell [True Illusion] to create a fake Cthulhu. That's right, the octopus monster that the crew was seeing was in fact an illusion. Its presence was purely fictitious albeit hyper-realistic. Thanks to the spell, any action applied to the illusion would also reflect properly.

"If I used the powers of a demigod dragon… and used the Emerald Dreamland to turn illusion into reality, then I might be able to create a real Cthulhu."

Louie had thought about this, but it was a waste of his divine power. Since he only needed a good illusion, this Cthulhu was enough as an actor.

When the information of the sea monster's appearance spread all over the world, the world's attention would be diverted from him. Moreover, if he were to 'create' more monsters to give the Earthlings an illusion that mythical creatures were being reborn, then he, as a dragon, would just be one of the many mythical creatures. This would increase his safety.

This was Louie's plan to kill several birds with one stone.

Louie continued to follow the freighter. It was unable to escape the labyrinth and could only circle in space.

The [Aura of Fear] of the Crown of Dominance was continuously active because the illusion of Cthulhu alone was not enough to make people break down completely.

But under the [Aura of Fear], and the [Group Suggestion] spell, Louie made the crew members experience an indescribable terror. With the addition of the distorted image of a really big octopus, no ordinary people could resist it. Their minds, hearing, and vision were all dominated, causing them to think that Cthulhu had really appeared!

Now, the terrifying 'Great Old One' was ready to bring them to his city and turn them into sustenance!

"Run. Run. Under the indescribable terror, the only thing you could do is run away…"

Louie followed the 'Cthulhu', controlling it to inflict great fear on the crew.

At the same time, a few dozen nautical miles away from the freighter, two American destroyers were on a routine patrol.

"Captain, an ocean freighter's signal has suddenly disappeared from the radar. They have also lost contact with us!"

A communications officer reported to the destroyer's captain.

The captain frowned and issued an order, "Let's go to the area where the freighter lost its signal. Also, notify Gordon to go forward with us."

"Yes, Captain!"

Chapter 53

The frenzy on the Neversnar was heightened as the crew grew even more frantic and crazed. The sailors screamed, cursed, ran, and shoved everything and everyone they could. And even the hardiest of them had given in to despair.

Within this pandemonium, however, one crewmate retained a modicum of composure. He shook in his boots to be sure, and it was only through superhuman effort that he managed to choke down a scream, but he did not give in to the smog of terror that clouded over the ship. This sailor, shivering but resolute, held on to his phone and silently recorded the happenings before him. The Lovecraftian monster was perfectly captured in high definition.

"As long as… as long as I post this video on the internet… I can definitely gain many views and subscribers… I should be able to make money off of this, ha… hahaha. I'll never come to sea again… It's too scary here."

Saying this, the sturdy man sobbed, but his desire to get rich compelled him to continue filming. Since everyone was still obsessed with the dragon in the Amazon, he believed that seeing this would also make him wealthy. And he needed the money.

Inside the bridge, the captain of the ship was roaring, "What's going on! Why aren't we moving?!"

In absence of any incoming signals, the ship was like a blind man wandering through a thick forest. They had no means of determining their bearings, and the immense heft of the vessel meant they could not tell which direction the currents pushed them in.

The octopoid monsters let out a sharp scream, eliciting a new round of wails from the Neversnar's crew. Observing the unchanging and distorted scenery, the captain recalled the horrific landscapes he had seen in many movies and video games.

"Captain… our ship should be moving… it should be, but we can't get away no matter how we move. It seems like we're spinning in the same place, or maybe the ocean is moving with us."

The first mate was also crying with snot coming out of his nose. Although their signal was unable to reach the outside world, they could still transmit electronic signals within.

Therefore, the first mate was able to see the situation of the crew through the cameras installed on the ship. Although he could not see the terrifying Lovecraftian monster, he could see that the crewmates were losing their sanity.

The monster's tentacles crept around the ship. They slid over and poked every surface they landed on, as though they were probing the vessel for something. In the meantime, the rest of the crew had fled the stern and crowded around the ship's bow. With each second the tentacles crept closer, and more and more sailors were unfortunately pushed into the ocean as the crowd tried to compress itself further and further into the front.

At this rate, the sailors would likely kill themselves off before the monster even did anything.

"Abandon ship!"

The captain took a deep breath and gritted his teeth word by word.

It would spell the death of his career to leave his charter, but that would be a lot more preferable to his actual death.

"Ca-captain. Is there any use in abandoning the ship? Isn't it safer to stay on board?"

The first mate shuddered as he retorted.

The captain slapped him and snarled, "You idiot. Look at the people who fell overboard!"

Pointing to the monitors displaying the various parts of the ship, the captain berated the poor first mate, "Don't you see that the monster has completely ignored them?! It only cares about the freighter for some reason! Fuck! If you want to stay then do what you want. I'm getting off this godforsaken ship!" Cursing, the captain ran for the ship's hold.

The first mate was stunned at this behavior, but soon recollected himself "Wait for me, Captain! Wait for me!"

Just when he was about to run after the captain, he felt a prick on his conscience. He turned around and picked up the microphone for shipwide announcements, "This is the bridge speaking. The captain has given permission for the crew to abandon the ship. I repeat, you have permission to abandon ship!"

Saying this, he quickly fled in the same direction as the captain.

The crew members who heard the announcement stopped still. Many hesitated at the idea of leaping into the deep.

But one clever person took action quickly. He got on an inflatable raft and it plopped down onto the sea with a splash. Leaping into it, he began to row the boat forcefully away from the freighter. At this, the crew noticed that the giant octopus paid no attention to the sole escapee. Furthermore, those greasy slimy tentacles snaked closer and closer to them.

It did not take long before a scramble for the remaining rubber boats began. The sailors pushed against one another with inhuman zeal as they fought for a seat of survival.

"Bastards. Get the hell out of my way!"

"I was here first! If you dare grab it, I'll shoot you!"

"…"

The camaraderie and trust they had built over several years of voyages were instantly thrown away in favor of ruthless survival instincts. There were more than enough life rafts to save everyone, and yet the competition for them bordered on bloody. Some shipmates even swam towards the boats that had already fallen into the water.

"This is good. It's better to run away and leave the whole ship to me… Let's see if there are any stragglers. Don't blame me if I catch you! He he he…"

Louie's body was lurking under the water nearby. He happily viewed the sailors as they fled. But soon his senses were drawn to the east by two large vessels, "Hmm? Aren't they too quick to react"

Slightly irritated, he swam towards the two large ships. They were destroyers sent by the American navy.

At this time the crew on both ships had just stumbled onto the mosaic scenery the Neversnar had encountered. There were many gasps of amazement as they witnessed the sky and sea churn in unnatural ways.

"Oh my God! What the hell is that thing?!"

"There… It looks like a monster! It's as tall as a mountain!"

"All personnel on level one combat alert!"

Chapter 54

Louie had only hesitated for a second before heading towards the two destroyers.

That minuscule delay was because he was unsure if their sonar systems would detect him when he swam over.

While tough, his body still couldn't withstand the bombardment of missiles. And he was not fast enough to evade supersonic artillery either. Given that, he decided to act cautiously. He dove a few hundred meters deeper into the ocean. Given the pressure and his ease at maneuvering underwater, he felt a renewed burst of confidence at being able to escape if need be.

Fortunately, the two destroyers did not notice Louie's approach at all. Instead, their attention was focused on the distant blurred space.

Louie relaxed and activated the Aura of Fear spell and took out two more magic scrolls.

"I only have a few magic scrolls left," he sighed, "I can only use some low-ranked spells now. These things are really painful to use… It's better if I learn magic myself later."

Louie felt a bit of regret at using his own magic scrolls, but it couldn't be helped after all.

Although he could incapacitate one of the destroyers with his dragon railgun, the other could respond quickly and bombard him in return. That would put him in danger and associate him with the octopus monster he had summoned.

"Hmmm hmmmm hmmmm, be influenced by the twisted will!"

While humming, Louie began to activate the spirit-type spells to influence the officers on the destroyer.

Modern destroyers were different from war-era destroyers. To be more accurate, they were classified as missile destroyers, and they sported tremendous combat power.

At the captain's command, the destroyer's hatch opened, and a missile inside was revealed.

Although modern destroyers had strong combat power, modern warfare was practically a war of money. If one simply thought about it, a single Tomahawk missile would cost up to a million dollars.

"Zoom in on the image," the captain ordered.

On a huge screen inside the ship, an image of the blurred space was magnified several times. The spectators could make out the distorted figure of the octopoid entity within the chaos.

Despite being heavily blurred and pixelated, the ships' crews nonetheless felt a powerful terror arise within their hearts. It was as though the mere sight of the monster could chill their bones.

"Ca-cap… I have a bad feeling about this."

"Same."

The captain swallowed his saliva. Despite his successful career and steadfast training, he found himself failing to keep up a stoic visage in front of his men.

The captain and his men were completely unaware that they were being affected by the Aura of Fear. They just dismissed it as unease stemming from the sheer eeriness of the monster.

"Humans are truly fragile…"

The captain sighed, "Investigate the area ahead!"

It was obvious that the space before them was abnormal. As long as the captain was still sane, he wouldn't just let the destroyer enter it directly. Drones were the best weapon for this job.

A hatch opened at the side of the ship. A military drone was ejected in the air and hummed as its blades lighted it aloft. A drone pilot steered the device into the distorted space, and the people in the command room were staring at the screen with tense faces.

"Tshhhhhhhh."

When the drone came into contact with the distorted space, the video feed frizzled and turned black. The drone pilot turned to the captain, "We've lost contact with the drone, sir."

"Yeah, I can see that."

The captain had his hands behind his back, not letting others see his quivering hands. He looked at the sea behind the glass in front of him and muttered, "It seems that the distorted space causes machines to lose signal. This must be why we lost the other ship's location. It is likely in it. Moreover, that monster keeps entering my mind," he paused for a moment, "You know what I'm thinking of? The Bermuda Triangle!"

At these words the command room was quiet.

These people all know that the Bermuda Triangle was a hoax. Nothing particularly mysterious actually occurred there, but the scene in front of them reminded them of the many stories of that place.

"When word gets out about this place, this ocean might just be named the Pacific Mystery Ocean."

The captain laughed to himself.

At that moment, a panicked voice could be heard outside the command room, "Reporting!"

"Hmm? Come in. What's the matter!?"

The captain frowned and shouted as he felt that something was wrong.

The door to the command room opened. Two naval soldiers carried an unconscious man in. Both of them were sweating with vague fear on their faces.

"What's going on? Why did he pass out?"

"R-reporting! This person was standing at the deck and looking at the monster, then he suddenly shouted 'Hail Cthulhu!' He also has a keen interest in Lovecraftian mythology. He was so creepy we had to knock him out."

The soldier said, nervous.

The captain did not blame them for knocking out their comrades, but his expression changed as he roared, "Ridiculous. What Cthulhu?! Are you telling me fictional monsters can come to life now?!"

Although the captain roared, the name, Cthulhu, did bring unpleasant thoughts to his mind.

"Has anyone contacted the Pentagon?"

"We have sir, but they told us to wait. This incident is too big and requires consultation with the President and Secretary of Defense."

The correspondent shouted in an almost weeping voice.

"Mommy! I don't want to see any Cthulhu or hear any Nyarlathotep!"

Chapter 55

It was the dead of night – 4:00 AM to be precise – when the President of the United States was rudely awoken. He was still groggy shortly after rising, but he sat at alert once an official conveyed the latest happenings in the Pacific to him.

The president scowled in frustration as he waited for the arrival of his cabinet members. The Oval Office was silent save for the furious tapping of his fingers against his ebony desk, and the guards standing by him could not help gulp in the tense atmosphere as they stood in trepidation.

His fingers crept towards his smartphone as he composed the tweet he would soon send in his mind. There was nothing wrong with providing the public a bit of information, right? How else would he make America great again? And besides, his elderly heart could not bear the weight of the secrets he currently knew. He needed some kind of release.

[Have you ever seen Washington at 4 AM?]

With this single tweet, he felt refreshed. He had recently learned that Time magazine had chosen him to be the person of the year, and he felt quite happy about this.

Soon the Secretary of Defense walked into the office with several people behind him.

The president jerked upright at the sight of the unexpected visitors. Other than a few soldiers, there were also several aged men in Secretary Johnson's entourage.

Johnson began without being prompted, "These people, sir, are biologists, historians, religious scholars, occultists, and other distinguished academics from the major universities in our country."

Despite the clear excitement in their eyes, there was a trace of sleepiness within all of their expressions. Nonetheless, none of them would give up on this opportunity for the world. To think they could unlock the mysteries behind mythical creatures.

None of them seemed nervous in front of the president. Following a brief greeting, they sat down and the Secretary of Defense began his report.

Secretary Johnson tersely ordered his subordinate to place a laptop on the table. The system was powered on and quickly connected to the destroyer in the Pacific ocean.

Looking at the screen, they could see the strange mosaic-like background as well as the sea monster within it. All of them began to frown.

The President looked at the expert, prompting them for their input on the creature.

As the Aura of Fear's effects could not cover such vast distances, the experts could observe the monster without losing their composure.

"Kraken of the Northern Sea?"

"Sin of Jealousy, Leviathan?"

"Monster squid from folklore?"

"…"

Several hypotheses were put forth as to its nature. As a cascade of mythical and legendary deep-sea monsters poured from each of their mouths, only to be quickly shut down, the president began to grow irritated at their indecision. It seemed, in his perspective, that these people could not be relied upon.

But the experts could not help it. After all, putting aside the quality of the image, which was distorted by the mosaic, none of them had seen a mythical creature in the flesh before. Thus their deductions were hardly conclusive. And they could only rattle away.

There was a knock on the door. A person walked in, identified Secretary Johnson walked to meet him. He whispered something into his ear.

After the person left, the Secretary coughed lightly and prepared to convey more information to the group in the room.

"A soldier on the ship seems to have had a mental breakdown. Before he passed out, he kept shouting 'Hail Cthulhu'."

"Hail Cthulhu?"

The experts and the president looked at one another, puzzled. It was not that they didn't know what Cthulhu was, but that such an identity was extremely odd.

A religious scholar spoke out, "Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Cthulhu a fictional creature created by a novelist? Howard Phillips Lovecraft, I believe? It has no basis in mythology or folklore."

To be properly classified as mythological history, a story or myth needed to be at least a few centuries old. Often these stories had passed away from the public consciousness before they were recorded and preserved for posterity. The only reason people did so was for cultural or anthropological reasons, and in many cases, even these could not prevent the extinction of certain stories.

H.P. Lovecraft, on the other hand, was merely a novelist that lived less than a century ago. His 'Cthulhu mythos' did not properly align with any known mythological accounts, and so it was hardly taken as an actual myth.

"The officer and men on the USS Barry said that they somehow felt fear in their hearts. They suspect that they are mentally contaminated by the monster."

The Secretary of Defense's follow-up caused the place to go silent once again.

This description was too similar to the things written in the novel…

At the same time, the Secretary of Defense had his subordinate display images captured by the destroyer from the moment it noticed something strange happening at sea.

"Perhaps Lovecraft was in fact inspired by this very creature. It might have visited him in his dreams before imparting knowledge of its form into him," an occultist added

The president thought that this hypothesis was on point.

A nervous folklorist spoke up, "It might really be the case. There is indeed such an explanation in Cthulhu mythos. There is a saying that art is a by-product of madness that comes from demons. Perhaps Lovecraft had picked up on Cthulhu's madness and created a series of fictional stories about it. Meaning, these stories are a by-product of his spirit being contaminated by Cthulhu!"

This statement sparked a flurry of discussions and brainstorming as the experts began to converse.

"Cthulhu is known as the Great Dreamer and a Great Old One. There were probably no legends about Cthulhu before Lovecraft wrote the novel. That might be because it was in a deep slumber. That is, until a hundred years ago when the monster woke up for some reason and leaked its madness, which was then picked up by Lovecraft."

"It says here that the destroyer sent a drone in, but they lost signal of it the moment it entered. Could this space be that lost city, R'lyeh?"

"It is especially recorded that it is located at the bottom of the Pacific, but due to the seal breaking sometimes, it would appear on the surface. This seems to be similar to the current situation."

"Look carefully at the image. In Lovecraft's description, Cthulhu is a monster that resembles an octopus. Although the image isn't clear enough, doesn't this look like a tentacle? The overall appearance does also look cephalopodic."

The experts were enthusiastic over the arguments that they were having. It was as if they were disguised Cthulhu mythology experts, but there was something common between all of them- they all believed that this monster was really Cthulhu!

The Secretary of Defense interrupted the experts and spoke to the president, "Mr. President, the captain of USS Barry says that their missiles are ready, shall they fire?"

The eyes of the experts all landed on the president, putting him under pressure and causing him to wipe his forehead.

He laughed dryly and said in a small voice, "I haven't read any of Lovecraft's novels before. I want to know, did Cthulhu ever appear on land? And how did the people deal with it?"

"It ended up getting hit by a ship." an expert said casually.

"Then, can we ask the USS Barry to ram against it?" the president asked cautiously.

The Secretary of Defense and the experts were speechless.

The president actually believed in this nonsense. How could this lofty evil God be afraid of being hit by a ship? If he actually ordered the USS Barry to ram the monster, then USS Barry would also dare send missiles to the White House.

The president knew he had asked a stupid question and smiled sarcastically with a face full of knots.

To launch the missile or not?

Chapter 56

To launch the missile or not to launch the missile?

With only two options, the question seemed simple enough. But for the president, this was perhaps the most difficult quandary he had faced in his term.

After all, who could know what the consequences of such an action would be?

Despite their immense militaristic powers, the USA was not so stupid as to fire Tomahawk missiles at every single problem they faced.

They dared to make a fuss almost anywhere on Earth due to their advanced intelligence systems. If they ever wished to make a move on a certain target, they would only do so after intense investigation and research of not only the target but the possible consequences of their actions. Thus, as he had no proper understanding of the strange creature in the image, the president could not move recklessly.

Were their weapons powerful enough? How much damage could a single missile do to such an entity? What if the missiles lost control the moment they entered the warped domain, just as the drone had? And was that thing really an evil god?

If the missile was useless, then they would have provoked a powerful entity with nothing to show for it except its ire. In that case, the creature would likely retaliate in some way, and no one could guess as to the horrors it would unleash upon their people. As the highest official in the nation, the president did not wish for it to become a battleground for a war against strange beings.

If possible, they'd rather the monster go to Japan, the land where strange shows and movies are aired!

Despite the powers at his disposal, he could not help but feel fear of the unknown.

It was possible, after all, that the creature had woken up just to find food. After eating its fill, it might just go back to sleep.

The president hoped for such a convenient state of affairs.

What's more, the place where the evil God had appeared was closer to Asia and Australia. Even if it wanted to attack, it should attack Asia or Australia first. This way, the United States of America would be able to collect detailed information on its abilities.

The more the president thought about it, the more comfortable he felt about not acting against the creature. Had it been heading straight for US territory he would have launched the attack immediately. But now, as it was closer to Asia and Australia, provoking it would not be the optimal move.

Coughing, the president announced his decision, "With the information we have on hand, they are likely in the so-called city of R'lyeh. If we were to attack it at the moment, we would likely involve our citizens in the fallout."

The Secretary of State lowered his head. Of course, he knew that this was just the president's excuse. If there were still American citizens inside the strange area, then they would have died long ago.

But the Secretary of Defense felt that the President's decision was correct. The United States of America should not rashly launch an attack. Why should they place themselves in danger while other countries watched the show from the back? If they were to attack this monster, they would first pull other countries into it as well.

Thinking this way, he thought that those allies should provide America with supplies, or to be more precise pay for military expenses. Now that the international situation was quite bad with so many monsters appearing, the military expenses for the year should also increase by 25%.

Just after the president and the Secretary of Defense thought about this, the USS Narry suddenly fired a missile.

Everyone in the room watched the video with dumbfounded expressions. As the missile flew into the air, the president stood up in anger and slammed the table, "What the hell? Who gave them the order to fire!"

The president's heart chilled. Could the naval forces be rebelling against him? How dare they launch missiles without orders! If something happened the president would have to take the blame.

The Secretary of Defense was also thinking the same.

"Reporting, there is an emergency onboard USS Barry. The captain, Commander Lewis, suddenly went crazy and pressed the missile launch button. A Tomahawk missile was fired. Colonel Lewis has now been temporarily restrained!"

"Where did the missile go?"

The Secretary of Defense asked in a hurry because the missile did not enter the image of the City of R'lyeh at all, which means that the missile that was fired was not aimed at the monster.

'Please don't be a different country.'

He prayed. The Tomahawk missile had a range of 1,600 kilometers. At their current position, they could shoot directly into Australian territory!

"The missile was fired at the USS Gordon, which was on the same mission with the Barry."

Hearing that it actually shot friendly forces, the Secretary of Defense was relieved.

"What are the damages?"

"There are no damages to Gordon's mechanical system. Appraisals are still underway, however."

Sinking a destroyer was extremely difficult. The United States of America experimented with using anti-aircraft missiles to destroy ships. From their results, they were assured that at least five standard missiles were needed to properly annihilate a destroyer. Any less and it wouldn't sink.

So firing a missile at a destroyer was meaningless. That said, the personnel casualties may have been significant.

"Quick, quick! Get Gordon and Barry out of the area!"

The Secretary of Defense quickly reacted and hurriedly gave his orders.

At this point, they could even hear the captain of the USS Gordon curse, "I'm going to have that bastard Lewis court-martialed. Damn Lewis, I'm going to make him pay."

By the time the emergency was dealt with, everyone in the office looked at each other.

"This… this might be the evil god's power of influencing the hearts of the people. In the Cthulhu mythology, there are more people who went crazy than those who died."

An expert said dryly.

The president and the Secretary of Defense heavily nodded their heads.

This was simply too terrifying. The horror of having their wills twisted was more frightening than being fired at by cannons. There was little they could do against mental terrors.

"Let's put our newly created special department into action. Also, look for experts in Lovecraftian mythology. I want to know what other possible monsters might appear on our planet."

The President spoke in a heavy tone.

In the Pacific waters, Louie was relieved after seeing the destroyers leave at the fastest speed.

In the end, he could collect his spoils without any disturbance.

Chapter 57

While Earth's technology did not have the unpredictability and flexibility of San Soliel's magic, underestimating it would be extremely foolish. Earth's weapons in particular were extremely potent. Paired with human cruelty and ingenuity, these arms could unleash destruction on near-impossible scales.

Louie's railgun was based on one of these weapons, and it was as strong as a powerful legendary spell in San Soleil.

In San Soleil, legendary rank mages would need to perform countless preparation and invest significant resources to release a single legendary spell. Moreover, there was a limited number of legendary rank mages in the world. After casting such destructive magic, they would have to rest before being able to do so again.

On the other hand, technology only required one to master its principles. As long as they could afford it, they could fire weapons that were comparable to legendary spells almost continuously, which was impossible for a legendary rank mage to do.

The destructive power of Earth's technology that relied on science was absolutely unbelievable to those 'barbarians' in the world of San Soliel. If the Gods did not appear and let Earth's civilization engage in an all-out war with San Soliel, then San Soleil would definitely lose.

Gods were the outside factor in all this. They were so incredible that Earth's civilization would not be their opponent at all. Even the Terran Civilization could barely resist them.

Louie's [Labyrinth] spell was only a high-ranked spell, not a legendary spell. Louie himself could not guarantee how much damage it could handle. Perhaps it could block two missiles, but if the United States of America went all out and fired hundreds of missiles, then the [Labyrinth] spell would definitely be destroyed.

He was now doing everything he could for the food on the freighter. If it were to sink, then his plans would be foiled and all his theatrics would come to naught. Furthermore, the world would learn more about the limits of magic, and countries might gain more confidence in defeating mythical creatures. While not a death blow, in the long run, it would be very bad for Louie.

What Louie wanted more than anything else was to preserve the mystique associated with magic, and to have Earthlings feel it was something far divorced from scientific understanding and interaction. This way he could keep them apprehensive towards it and deliberate in their movements, thereby expanding his range of movement on Earth.

Judging from the situation, Louie had been successful. The United States of America had been frightened by his bluff.

If a destroyer or a submarine wished to launch a missile, it was not as simple as just pressing a button. It required instructions from the higher-ups and a number of key personnel to open the lock. The captain alone did not have the power to launch weapons at will.

So, Louie had used the [Dominate Human] spell to control the captain of the ship from the bottom of the sea. His intention was to request instructions from the United States of America, and then pretend to be crazy to scare the American military.

But he had not expected that the captain had already applied for permission to launch the missiles. It was even unlocked for him to use. With just a press of a button, he could fire volley upon volley of incendiary projectiles. This was a great opportunity for him, especially when he noticed that the missile could not lock into anything inside the [Labyrinth], so he randomly changed the missile target and launched it while nobody was paying attention.

Although the captain was soon brought under control by other officers, by chance, the missile had hit friendly forces. This had so scared the American leadership that they ordered a hasty retreat of the destroyers in order to avoid any further troubles.

After the destroyers had left, Louie hurriedly entered the [Labyrinth] spell. He looked at the people paddling away to escape and imagined them exiting the place, which allowed them to safely leave this area of the ocean.

Louie was not trying to be benevolent, but he needed these crew members to make it back alive. Only then could they spread the terrors of 'Cthulhu' around the world. This way, everyone would know of what happened in the Pacific as well as the awakening of the evil God. This mystery would then take root in the hearts of the people.

If the previous appearance of a dragon was just an appetizer, then the appearance of Cthulhu would completely confirm the existence of mythical creatures.

"[Detect Creature]"

After returning to the vicinity of the freighter, Louie used the [Detect Creature] spell which was similar to infrared bio-scanners. This allowed him to fully sense if there were any living creatures left in the vicinity.

Louie's vision lit up with a multitude of colors, sweeping through the entire cargo ship. He checked if there were any leftover crew members in the freighter, if there were, he would quickly dispatch them.

Apparently, they had all left. It seemed that the Neversnar was now completely in his hands.

He spread his wings open and broke through the surface of the ocean. His huge body landed on the freighter, and knowing that time was of the utmost essence, he quickly made for the cargo area. Prying apart their doors with brute force, he soon gazed at the piles of grain within them. Seeing this, he cackled with pleasure.

A more detailed check revealed that the cargo was mainly carrying wheat and corn.

In addition to these, there were a lot of other vegetables, fruits, pork, beef, and other food items. It could be called a nice harvest.

The cargo ship's capacity was 200,000 to 300,000 tons. Louie assumed the worst at 200,000 tons.

Louie took full account of the consumption rate of the ordinary people of San Soliel at an economic level similar to that of the middle ages.

He took the best-case scenario of the amount he needed. Only nobles could eat three meals a day while the ordinary people only ate two meals a day.

Assuming that the population of Dragon City was 100,000 people and a person ate a kilogram of grain per day, then the total daily consumption rate was around 100 tons. If these grains were preserved properly, he would be able to feed the residents of Dragon City for five years!

Although this was only an approximate, Louie could now ensure that the residents of his territory would not starve to death!

"This is the greatness of Earth's civilization. Hunger is no big deal to cure, really!"

Louis sighed, and then he spoke, "Intelligent Brain, open the wormhole to San Soliel. I will use some magic scrolls to summon elementals to help move the food from this freighter."

Now that one of the basic needs, food, was guaranteed, he could begin to focus on the development of his territory.

Chapter 58

"Tatatatata…"

Two helicopters cut through the sky above the South China Sea.

Gui Bin sat in one of these and looked at the tablet device in his hands. On its screen played another video that had captivated his interest. After the recording of the dragon in the Amazon, it was the next video to become viral online. It was titled 'Cthulhu's Resurrection'.

The video started with a ship coasting through the ocean quite peacefully. The waters were initially calm and the sky clear, but the surrounding air began to warp. The once pristine horizon dimmed and blurred as the sky and sea began to smudge. All too soon the ship appeared to be cut off from the rest of its surroundings. It seemed as though it had been transported to a completely different location.

It did not take long for chaos to erupt on the freighter. Screams of terror and gunfire echoed as the crew cursed and ran. But there seemed to be an order to the chaos. Everyone was fleeing from or paralyzed while facing towards a particular direction. With janky movements, the cameraman shooting the video turned the recording device to the area of interest.

Right at the stern of the ship towered a humongous octopoid monstrosity.

The titanic cephalopod seemed to test the very limits of human sanity. Its grotesque appearance seemed to reach beyond the computer screens of all viewers and grasp their hearts within a cold, viselike grip of terror. One could only imagine how the crewmates onboard the ship felt.

Soon the cameraman began to speak.

"I swear. Everything you see here is real. I swear to God! Everything I'm filming right now is real! I am a crew member on the Neversnar. We were sailing in the Pacific, and then we encountered this…this thing! This monster! For some reason, it began targeting our ship. Jesus Christ! I think it's crawling on board…No…Nonononononononono! "

"The monster…I think it's trying to speak to me. It's almost like I can hear its thoughts. Am I going crazy?"

"You might be wondering why I'm still filming even though almost everyone else has already run away," the cameraman took a deep breath and seemed to calm down a little, "It's for the money. My daughter is very ill, and her health insurance can't cover her bills. So, please, please believe everything you see in this video! It is 100% the truth!" At this point, the octopus monster let out a high-pitched scream that raked at the eardrums. It snapped whatever composure the cameraman had left.

"Don't worry Chloe, daddy will make sure you get the best treatment possible! And fuck you Medicare!"

In the midst of the pandemonium on deck, one of the cameraman's crewmates yelled, "Hail Cthulhu!"

"Look, friends, someone has already… Hahaha. Someone has already gone crazy. Hail Cthulhu!"

—

"Hail Cthulhu!"

"Crap, so this is Cthulhu! It's very similar to how I imagined it!"

"It's like it's distributing candy. Quickly grab them!"

"Fatherly love is truly worthy of admiration. Just for his daughter, he's braving this kind of danger."

"This strange blurry space in the middle of the ocean must be the legendary city of R'lyeh."

"Where exactly in the Pacific Ocean is it?1 I want to go see the great Cthulhu as well!"

"Too terrifying. Not long ago, a dragon had appeared, and now there's Cthulhu? Am I really on Earth? Could it be that I have been transported into a parallel world similar to Earth?"

"I will remain in doubt of everything. If this is really Cthulhu, then the Earth is finished!"

"Hail Cthulhu! Hail Cthulhu!"

"…"

The pop-ups that flooded the video made Gui Bin watch it a second time before closing the screen.

He looked out the helicopter curiously and talked to the team leader beside him, "This is my first time on a helicopter. Where are we going?"

"You will know in a moment. For now, you can just relax. Do you have any thoughts on the video?"

The fat middle-aged man next to Gui Bin looked towards him and asked.

Gui Bin slightly pondered and decided not to speak about the monster's appearance for now.

"Leader, did you notice it? That monster seemed to be uninterested in humans. Those casualties in that video were all caused by themselves or accidents. Instead of hunting the humans, the monster seemed to be more interested in the contents of the freighter. As for its contents, I am not aware of it."

"After the video was released, many experts analyzed it. They also came to the same conclusion as you. I did not expect you to notice that after watching it a few times.

The team leader always thought of Gui Bin as a quick thinker, logical, and good at work.

When he brought Gui Bin into the department, he thought he had found someone good to do his work for him, while he could relax.

"Do you think that is really Cthulhu?" the team leader asked with deep worry.

The team leader did not know much about Cthulhu mythology, but after seeing the video, he quickly built up a basic understanding of the stories surrounding it. After watching and reading some materials related to Lovecraftian mythology, he only had one thought – the Earth is going to be finished!

The main thrust of Lovecraft's stories was that humans were alone in a cold and dark universe populated by mysterious and powerful beings who could annihilate the entire race in a flash. All who tried to delve into the mysteries associated with these entities would lose their minds if they were lucky. And if they weren't… Well, death would be a reprieve.

"It is Cthulhu, but not Cthulhu!" Gui Bin said after thinking for a while.

"Why do you say so?"

The team leader felt his nicotine cravings acting up again. But as it was against the flight regulations of the helicopter they were in, he refrained from pulling out a cigarette.

"Cthulhu was a monster created by Lovecraft. However, there are also many derivative works and parodies created by later generations."

He continued after a short pause, "Let us assume that Lovecraft was exposed to Cthulhu and contaminated by it to create such a novel. Let us also assume that other people had also been contaminated when they created other works. But leader, you must know that these created works were made by humans, and what do humans do best? Exaggerate."

"Just think about those cults out there. They always boast their beliefs that evil is the truth of the universe but look at reality. Leaving aside whether the evil gods are real or not, those people must have found some books and just used their names to make the people believe, but those names were only small-time creatures!"

The team leader recorded Gui Bin's words, "Are you trying to say that the evil gods in the Lovecraftian mythology may really exist, but are not as incomprehensible as they are accounted for in books? That they were only described that way due to human exaggeration?"

"Exactly. You should also know that names like 'Azathoth' are linguistic gibberish. I am more inclined to think that the names were just made up by humans by merging names together and that these monsters are just from the same race. Of course, it's fair to call these monsters evil gods because of their mysterious powers."

"I have carefully observed the people's expressions in the video. I can tell that they were not faked, but the fear seems somewhat exaggerated, so I can only guess that humans do get their wills twisted by such evil gods."

The leader wrote down everything Gui Bin had said and placed his pen down.

"Your idea was quite logical and might be true. Cthulhu and the other evil gods might exist, but they were not the kind of supreme gods involved with the mysteries of the origin of the universe. Rather they were a group of twisted monsters with inflated reputations."

"Their existence might also be a warning to us – to anyone who wants to explore the secrets of the world. Warning us that we have to pay a price in the end."

"Gui Bin, do you think that humans could defeat these beings?"

"I don't know," Gui Bin shook his head.

"When Cthulhu appeared, there were American destroyers on the site. One of the captains of the destroyer seemed to have been contaminated by Cthulhu's spirit and attacked friendly forces."

The team leader's words surprised Gui Bin because this kind of thing should be categorized as the United States classified information.

"You are surprised why I know something that only the American government knows, right? The answer is right there!"

The leader smiled and pointed with his finger.

Chapter 59

Gui Bin's eyes turned to the direction the team leader was pointing at. Tracing the line of his finger, he saw a ship floating at sea. It floated gently on the ocean, and from its appearance, he could tell that it was the same one from the video he had just seen.

"This ship… how did it get here?"

Gui Bin asked incredulously.

"We also don't know what's going," The leader shrugged, "The USA used satellites to scan the area where Cthulhu first appeared, but once the distortion in the area cleared up, the ship and monster were gone. When they found the ship again, it was in the South China Sea."

"Since these are our waters, our navy quickly wrested control of the freighter. To get information on the ship's cargo, the US agreed to provide intel on some of the discoveries they've made so far."

The team leader put on a stern expression, "The information I passed on to you was originally American intelligence. Make sure not to let anyone else know." After a pause he continued, shivering slightly, "Right. Another thing is the ship's crew. After exiting the distorted space they were picked up by the American warships. Although there weren't many direct casualties of the incident, the trauma seems to have wreaked havoc on their minds."

In all honesty, the team leader would have been less uneasy if the crew had been eaten by the monster. At least it would make more sense since that was the kind of thing monsters were thought to do. But the current state of affairs was quite unnerving. He could not even begin to fathom the monster's motives.

As the two conversed the helicopter neared the freighter, and Gui Bin began to fully appreciate the scale of the ship. If the Cthulhu-like monster dwarfed even this massive vessel, then just how large was it, really? He felt his spine tingle at the thought.

The helicopter hovered over the ocean and dropped a rope ladder onto a waiting speedboat. Gui Bin and the team leader descended onto it and then made for the ship. Upon reaching it they put on hazmat suits and boarded.

The freighter had American and Chinese investigators poring over it. It seemed that the ship's search was a joint effort by the two nations. So far nothing particularly interesting has turned up.

"Nothing. There is nothing here…"

With a defeated expression the team leader continued, "Despite all the manpower poured into searching the ship, there is no evidence of anything happening on it. You saw in the video the image of the monster dripping slime onto the deck, and there were even pieces of its flesh blown off when some of the crewmates shot at it. But nothing remains. Not a single trace of the monster has been found. It's almost like it never existed."

"The door to the ship's cabin seems to have been forced open by something. From the experts' analysis, they concluded that Cthulthu's tentacles probably did the job. In reality, it was Louie's tail, but none of them could be expected to know that.

"What kind of cargo was the freighter carrying?"

"More than 200,000 tons of grain, and it's all gone."

"What's this now? Did all that sleeping turn Cthulhu vegetarian?" Gui Bin jokes.

"No one has a clue. There are simply too many things unknown about these creatures. Do they even need to eat? They are, after all, quite different from the creatures in the myths and legends of our country. Perhaps they can't subsist on the energies of heaven and earth alone. Right, you shouldn't bring up the topic of immortal cultivation. That is only fiction made up in recent years. It's different compared to ancient supernatural creatures."

The leader said as they continued walking around the freighter.

"By the way, leader, could the entire thing have been staged?" Gui Bin asked.

"Haha… That was certainly one of the first hypotheses. However, that is extremely unlikely. We interrogated all of the surviving and sane crew members, and their accounts of the events correlate perfectly. Furthermore, the Americans themselves sent a drone into the distorted space and instantly lost contact with it," the team leader placed a hand on his chin, pensive, "But the strangest thing to me is how so many people turned mad upon seeing the monster. There have been no traces of hypnotics or hallucinogens found, and so the experts are chalking it up to 'magic'."

"Since it's inexplicable, it might as well be."

Gui Bin nodded at the leader's words and asked, "Then, could it be that Cthulhu itself did not manifest. Rather some kind of shadow… or avatar, did? After all, there are many tales of gods having multiple incarnations. Perhaps what the crew saw was only a slice of the real thing."

"Are you implying there are parallel worlds?" The leader asked, falling deep into thought.

"I think it's very plausible. If not, then why haven't there been any real supernatural events for so many years? If those legends are partly true, then where did those creatures in legends go? They didn't even leave behind any fossils. The only explanation that could make sense is that they had gone to a different world. One which was close to but ultimately separate from this one. But now these entities are reappearing… Could this mark the return of the conditions they needed to thrive?"

Gui Bin began to think with all his might and squeezed out a potential explanation.

The leader thought for a moment and said, "That is also a possibility. If that's the case, there should be some kind of doorway connecting the two worlds in the Pacific Ocean as well as the Amazon jungle."

But he shook his head and thought about it again. There was simply too little information, so they could only make wild guesses at the moment. Everything was still pure speculation.

"Forget it. Let's not talk about this anymore. Look at this beautiful freighter. This is a gift given to us for free by our country, a super expensive cargo ship."

The leader jokes.

"Then we just need someone who still dares to use this freighter."

Gui Bin spat.

At this time, while Earth's nations were puzzling over the slew of mysterious events, their culprit was heading back to his city in San Soleil.

Chapter 60

After being summoned by the lord of Dragon City, Marches rushed to the church at the peak of the city. It had become the new city lord's palace.

Two days prior, he had been instructed by Dragon Lord Caracolon to create a scroll with the [Lightness] attribute. He had told several elven mages to do so as well.

Not daring to question his lord's orders, Marches quickly complied. After spending two sleepless nights, he had managed to meet Louie's required quota.

As for why he needed so many magic scrolls, Marches did not even hypothesize. In his opinion, the great demigod dragon might want convenient magic for some reason or the other.

As naturally lazy creatures, dragons rarely bothered to learn human spells. The focus, dedication, and effort required to piece together spells in the human magic system was something they could hardly spend effort on. They were much more at home relying on their innate racial abilities and bloodlines.

Of course, as they aged, their talent for magic would grow as well, and learning human spells would be a simple matter for them. It was for this reason that they deserved their reputations as one-man armies. They rolled up extreme physical prowess and magical competence into a single deadly package.

But because dragons often only used racial spells, the range of their magical abilities was quite narrow. The vast majority of these spells were more combat-oriented. Spells like [Lightness] were not things a dragon would deign to learn.

In Marches' opinion, the lord would be transporting a lot of heavy objects. That was the only reason why he would have them make so many [Lightness] spell scrolls. Although the lord was a demigod and could use divine power to do things more efficiently than using magic power, a demigod was quite different from a real god. For demigods, divine power was a treasure and was hard to replenish. That's why using divine power to simulate spells was too wasteful. If things could be solved with magic, then it would be better than wasting divine power.

As for why his lord didn't just ask them to cast the magic directly, he decided not to pry, since it should be his lord's secret.

Just as Marches guessed, Louie was troubled with moving 200,000 tons of food without any modern machinery. Even if he could just throw the bags into the gate, this was still a big job. Even if he summoned many earth elementals, it would still take a lot of time.

That's why he let the elven mages and his servant create magic scrolls with the effect of reducing an object's weight. Moreover, he had personally moved the objects as well in order to finish the process before the deadline he had set.

When Marches arrived near the doors, he saw the valiant yet cold elven general. He bowed and smiled, "General Sisna, have you also been called by Lord Caracolon?"

Marcher lowered his head and did not directly look at her face as she was too beautiful. Even as an old man he felt certain youthful impulses stir within him. But he quelled them instantly. This elf was a legendary rank ranger. Any small movements on his part would be easily detected. And if she found out that a certain part of his body had reacted, she might just cut him down in a fit of rage.

He did not feel that he was a match for this elf at all.

"Yes."

Sisna lightly glanced at Marches.

Elves were disposed to be cold towards foreign races, and Marches' obvious cajolery filled her with disgust. Had he not been appointed as Lord Caracolon's servant, she would barely have spared him a glance.

When Sisna walked forward, Marches straightened up and followed behind. He secretly spat, 'Peh, you're just a legendary rank ranger. You're not a big deal at all.'

Although he thought like this, Marches was still envious of legendary rank individuals. That was a necessary step to break away from mortality, after all. In all the realms, those that could reach the legendary rank were the ones favored by the gods. Reaching it was very difficult, and it was especially harder for mages.

"Humph. With your beautiful looks, it won't be long before the master takes a fancy to you and has his way. Hehehe."

Marches showed a lewd smile and imagined the dragon pressing the small elf below him and playing with her body.

He did not think that this was perverted. The common sense of the world was simply dragons being incredibly lascivious. From four-legged animals to two-legged humanoids, no race lay beyond the purview of their instincts. There were indeed no species that dragons would not dare to bang.

"I should find an opportunity to tell my master about this. Perhaps I can earn some points…".

Over the past few days, Sisna had been giving Marches the cold eye. It was impossible for Marches to not feel her disgust. Powerless, he could only nod at her treatment. However, this did not mean that he accepted it with a peace of mind. He was, after all, still a seven ring mage.

But in front of Louie, there was nothing to accept or deny. For someone who had signed the master-slave contract, he could die with just a thought from the other party. The only thing he could think of was how to win over his master who was a mighty demigod dragon.

In the midst of thinking, Marches walked into the palace, but when he walked in next to Sisna, neither of them saw traces of the city lord.

The two of them did not suspect anything, because Louie's aura was coming from outside the residence. The elf carefully dodged the gold coins and gems under her feet, afraid that she might be misunderstood. If the city lord assumed that she was trying to steal from him, the result would be disastrous.

Passing the magnificent and spectacular hall, the two of them reached the backside of the palace.

There, they saw the golden dragon and piles of bags behind him that were stacked into a small hill!

Their quantity was truly exaggerated. Both Marches and Sisna were dumbfounded.

The dragon looked at the two of them and slowly spoke, "You've come…"

Chapter 61

"Salutations, Lord Caracolon."

Sisna respectfully curtsied when she laid eyes on Louie.

Demigods were sacred beings, and before them, even legendary rank powerhouses needed to maintain an air of humility. In the many realms of San Soliel, very few divine entities existed. And most mortals could not even dream of attaining such an exalted status.

"Great Master, your humble servant answers your call. What is your order?"

In front of Louie, Marches remained demure and respectful. He put forth his most sincere expression.

Louie shot them a wordless glance. In truth, as he was a fake demigod, their respective auras put him under quite a bit of pressure. After all, one of them was a seven ring mage and the other a legendary ranked elf ranger. Nevertheless, due to his impressive showing from when he took the city, the two subordinates felt even greater pressure from him.

Louie didn't care much for the old mage. Aside from his knowledge and the fact that he had signed a binding contract with him, there really wasn't too much he could offer that the elves couldn't. Sisna on the other hand… Well, her elegant form filled his mind with thoughts of a carnal nature.

'Could it be that becoming a juvenile dragon has strengthened my instincts?' He pondered. and it was likely the main reason.

In a rare show of embarrassment, he shrunk his size in order to preserve some modesty. After all, he had not completely abandoned human norms. And standing stark naked in a huge form before two people was quite uncomfortable. Fortunately, he was lying on his stomach, so certain parts were out of view for them.

He took a deep breath, and his expression became stern.

"Marches, inspect these things for me and tell me if there are problems."

"Yes, great and supreme master."

Marches tried to remain as humble as possible. He carefully walked to the pile of sacks that occupied a large area and picked one up. He felt that these bags were similar to what the common people used in San Soleil. They were sturdy, cheaply built, and used by people who did manual work.

He thought for a bit and pulled out a dagger from his waist. Although it was relatively useless to mages, they would often keep one on them for some protection. Who knew if they would suddenly come in handy.

He cut open the sack, causing some kind of crop to flow out. When he looked at it closely, he was flabbergasted, then he kneeled down while cupping his hand to pick a handful up, "Lord God of Magic, these are… these are!"

Sisna, who had been maintaining her humility, heard his exclamation. She looked at Marches and saw what came out of the sack. She exclaimed, "Refined wheat!"

Although the sacks were piled up like a mountain, Marches did not dare continue using the dagger to open them and shuddered, "Master, could all of these be…"

"Yeah, most of this is refined wheat, about 200,000 tons of it."

Louie said calmly.

"200,000 tons!?"

Marches felt as if he was mishearing things, and said, "Twe-twenty tons of refined wheat?"

"I hope that I will not have to repeat what I said."

Marches played at his response.

'That's right, how could such a huge mountain only be twenty tons.'

Realizing the sheer scale of the crops, Marches almost fainted. Sisna on the other hand had an excited expression. Even a person of her status could not help but be stunned by the crop quantity.

"What's the problem?"

Louie was puzzled. He could not understand why the wheat left them awestruck.

200,000 tons might seem a lot, but this was probably only a fraction of America's annual exports. This was probably only one in two thousand of Earth's worldwide exports.

Moreover, this calculation was only limited to wheat. If other produce was included, this was only a single strand of hair on an ox.

"Master, these are refined wheat, refined wheat! It doesn't have any brand! Only the nobility can afford to eat this. This much refined wheat added together is enough for all nobles in the continent to eat for years!"

Marches was excited and gestured animatedly.

Although he could not say the words he was feeling clearly, he was subconsciously thinking that this was a mountain of gold.

"Oh. Well, this wheat should be enough for the people of my Dragon City to eat for three years, right?"

Louie did not know much about food or wheat. He only felt that these were processed flour that was used to make bread, noodles, and many things that he ate daily in the past.

"You… you actually want to give such good refined wheat to those untouchables to eat?"

Marches' knees almost gave in.

So much refined wheat was so hard to find even with all the amount every country on the continent has combined.

It was not that these countries did not have a reserve. According to calculation, human countries should have two tons of grain in reserve, but this was refined wheat. Refined wheat could make soft white bread that only nobility could enjoy. Grains in the granary could only make black bread to fill the stomach.

'Could it be that there is some hidden, grain-filled realm in this world? Could this demigod dragon have stolen from a grain-producing realm to obtain so much refined wheat?'

On the other hand, Sisna was also wide-eyed after hearing Louie's words.

'Oh, Lady Silver Moon. Even if we lived such a fine life, only a few people are able to eat such good refined wheat. Elves don't grow crops, which only makes them more precious!"

"O Goddess, how wealthy is this dragon to ignore this much refined wheat that could shake every kingdom?'

The basin of poverty really separates Louie from the masses.

Chapter 62

After asking March a few questions, Louie learnt a little more about the food situation in San Soleil.

When he had first seen the buildings of what was once Central City, as well as the manner in which its inhabitants were clothed, he estimated the cultural level of the place to be around the Medieval Era.

In the end he was absolutely right. It seemed that the average level of productivity here was quite poor. Marches and Sisna had reacted so strongly to his plans to share the wheat with the populace because it broke all norms of how the common peasantry was supposed to live.

Processing wheat, particularly in the Middle Ages, was an extremely labor intensive task. Scores of workers would often be required to strip the bran off of the wheat by hand, as against the mechanical techniques for doing so on Earth. Because of this, in San Soleil, refined wheat was a luxury only the nobility could afford. The majority of the populace had to make do with black bread.

How bad was black bread exactly? Taste – which was decidedly unpleasant – aside, it was extremely hard. So hard in fact, that numerous semi-plausible stories of homeowners using it to kill burglars often percolated through villages. It had the firmness of a brick!

Although black bread existed in modern society, it was definitely not the same as that of the Middle Ages.

The bran on the other hand, after being separated from the wheat was given to pigs on Earth. In a sense, even Earth's pigs are better than San Soliel's peasantry, as the leftovers they would be fed from time to time at least had greater nutritional value than the average San Soliel diet.

Naturally not all levels of nobility could enjoy refined wheat to the same degree. The lower caste would often consume black bread, but would use refined wheat to treat honorable guests.

As a result, the royal families nicknamed white bread as 'fine, sacred bread'. As for bread made with cream and other ingredients, only the most powerful of nobles and royalty could afford to eat it often, if at all.

With the constant wars and the variety of races as well as the lack of scientific advancement, people could only live at the mercy of the elements. Even if they had power, with the overall lack of resources, they were helpless to change anything.

Even so, the food that was cherished by royalty meant nothing to the urban and modernized people of Earth.

There was likely around one mage for every thousand regular people in San Soleil. Becoming that one required both significant resources in upbringing as well as talent. The first requirement automatically precluded the vast majority of the population, who simply couldn't afford it. And the latter, though possible for the landed elite, still prevented the majority of them from undertaking the training since the talent requirements were quite high.

Master mages were proud and scarce existences. Asking them to waste their energy and magic for the peasants would hardly work.

After thoroughly understanding the economic situation of San Soleil, Louie felt that it was reasonable for the Terran civilization to call them savages. Even in his eyes as a modern person, they were simply too primitive. Everything from their economic productivity to their cultural norms reeked of barbarism.

The world had developed for tens of thousands of years, but remained so backward all due to the Gods. Gods were powerful, but losing faith would make them weaker. So they wouldn't allow the world to have huge technological leaps.

Louie felt that living as an ordinary person in a world of technology was better. At the very least, he would have the resources to fulfill most of his needs.

Afterward, he glanced at Sisna, who was still stunned at the 'mountain', and wondered how many tons of wheat it would take to play with a beautiful elf.

"Marches and Sisna, go inspect the stuff over there. I do not know what humans can eat."

Louie lazily pointed at the various boxes on the side.

Compared to the 200,000 tons of wheat, the weight of these boxes seemed lesser, but there were still 10,000 tons.

Sisna and Marches looked at each other. At this moment, they had both lost their arrogance. The two of them obeyed Louie's instruction and began to check the next items.

Although 200,000 tons of refined wheat shook their minds and hearts, the next things that they saw still made their hearts beat wildly.

Frozen high-quality meat, unknown fruits, and various vegetables that would often only grace the tables of nobility.

At the place the two could not move and felt as if they had entered the Empire's largest granary.

No, even the imperial granary was only filled with unrefined wheat, let alone the rest of the items here.

Sisna and Marches bitterly smiled and looked at the disinterested dragon, as if it did not understand the value of its wealth. They sighed and thought that the creature was truly worthy of its status as a demigod.

Suddenly, the sharp-eyed Marches saw something. He quickly picked it up, smelled it and even tasted it. He was shocked and exclaimed, "This is a magic origin element!"

Chapter 63

"Magic origin element?" hearing these words, Louie opened his eyes wide. The name sounded quite lofty.

He looked towards Marches, whose excitement was yet to die down. The old fellow was holding one of the crops in his hands. At first, Louie thought it might be a yam. After all, in many Earthen legends, yams were auspicious crops with many magical features. He was wrong, however, as a second look confirmed it to be Japanese horseradish. In other words, wasabi.

On Earth, most exported wasabi was not 100% pure. Rather they consisted of horseradish or mustard mixed with some kind of neutral ingredient with food coloring added. The average person could not afford to eat pure wasabi as it was a very difficult plant to grow. It required careful control of the environment as well as a delicacy in cultivation. To top it off was the two-year growth period it needed to reach maturity. In the US, a pound of wasabi could go for between $50 to $150.

'So, it's not yams…'

Louie was a little disappointed but soon perked up. It did not really matter if it was yams or wasabi. Although wasabi was rarer and more expensive, it wasn't too hard to find. He could easily find dozens of it to eat if it improved his magic power.

"Magic origin element? What is that?" Louie gazed at Marches who looked excited and asked.

"You don't know?" said Marches before he instantly covered his mouth in fear. Redressing himself and speaking with a far more deferential tone, he continued, "Master, the magic origin element is a rare ingredient that can typically only be found in a plant called the 'Heart of Mismisella'. It is a rare and important ingredient that can help mages advance significantly. It can be said that all mages have a close relationship with the plant."

"You said that wasabi… I mean, the plant that you are holding has a substance that is only found in the Heart of Mismisella?"

"Yes, master. This plant contains the magic origin element. This is a great discovery for the magic community. Finally, there is an alternative to the Heart of Mismisella!" Marches said fervently.

"What is the use of the magic origin element then?" Louie was not in a hurry and carefully listened to Marches' explanation.

Marches was not surprised that Louie did not know what magic origin element was. Although every mage knew about it, his new master had likely slept for several millennia. The scholars of his time would likely have been completely ignorant of the plant.

"Let me explain further, master. Mismisella is the name of the God of magic. Legend has it that he was the first person to discover the magic origin element and the only plant that contains it was named after him! The magic origin element can be made into a foundational magic potion. Every mage is required to take it, as it can develop their physique and make their bodies more adaptable to magic!"

Marches continued, "If an ordinary person is forced to learn spells, their bodies will gradually be eroded by the magic power used and they will eventually die. Only one in a million people can do it without a foundational magic potion, but because of the plant's rarity, its price is quite steep, and there are also processing costs to consider. Even if you give ordinary people spell books, they won't be able to use them without drinking the magic potion. That's why the plant became vital to mages and was also named the magic origin element."

Hearing this, Louie was a bit disappointed. He thought that as long as he ate a lot of wasabi he would be able to become invulnerable. Novels were indeed just nonsense.

The name might have seemed profound, but the actual function was decidedly less so. Still, at least it was a fairly pertinent name.

Louie doubted that the God of magic was like Shennong, the Chinese Farmer God who tasted hundreds of herbs before finding the one he needed. He also doubted that the magic origin element was the sole reason behind Mismisella becoming a God.

"Then, other than creating the foundational magic potion, what other uses does it have?" Louie asked persistently.

"Master, the magic origin element is also very useful for high-ranked mages. It can create magic potions to speed up the recovery of magic power and spirit, which are critical to mages' abilities. That's why the Heart of Mismisella is also the basic currency in the magic community."

Marches said respectfully.

At this time, Louie understood why Marches was shocked. It was not because he was shocked about the quantity, but because he found the currency of mages in another plant.

This was indeed an unparalleled discovery.

Louie took a look at the wasabi that was probably a couple of pounds. It was probably brought by one of the ship's crew members to improve the taste of food. At that time, Louie brought all the edibles of the ship with him, but he did not notice the wasabi mixed in.

"How much magic potion can you make with this plant?" Louie suddenly asked.

Marches pondered for a bit and replied, "Probably sufficient for a low-rank mage's demands for more than a year.

Louie's eyes lit up.

Although wasabi was expensive on Earth, it did not mean it could not be grown. If he could bring more wasabi and manufacture magic potions, then wouldn't he be able to create his own legion of mages one day?

Even if they were only low ranked, with enough of them working in concert, any force would be wary of approaching the city. And the mages might eventually raise their ranks as well.

If Louie could properly harness the powers of many low-ranked mages, he would likely possess the means to make Dragon City far more developed than its surroundings.

Moreover, since this was also the mage's currency, perhaps it could also be used to recruit some powerful helpers. When the time came, he might even be able to establish his own magic council and become its first chairman.

With this thought, Louie felt that these wasabi were treasures!

He pointed at the wasabi and said, "From now on this will be called 'Heart of Louie'… no, wait, let's call it 'Louie's Essence'."

It was better to call it 'Louie's Essence' and make them into magic potions. This way the mages would be drinking his essence.

Chapter 64

Rome was not built in a day. Although Louie knew that it was impossible to raise an army of mages overnight, the discovery of the magic origin element gave him a bit of hope.

Frankly, he was not too interested in completely upheaving San Soliel's culture and structure. Not only would that be very difficult and expensive to implement, but it would likely cause all the Gods to become his enemies as well. Although none of them could descend at the moment for mysterious reasons, he had little doubt that if their interests were threatened enough, they'd come knocking on his door. He hadn't any plans to play the hero.

No, that wouldn't be a hero, but a martyr!

In any case, he had no personal interest in helping the people of San Soliel. He wasn't the kind of revolutionary figure determined to help the people awaken their class consciousness and charge against the elite. No no no no. In Marxist thought, rather than be a helper of the proletariat, he was the blood-sucking and greedy capitalist.

So, Louie only planned to change Dragon City. Mages and spells were the best tools for this job. With the use of spells, many things could be done in a similar manner to technological cities. The development of magic would not be contrary to the world's overall civilization.

Not only was the difficulty in raising mages high, but the resource consumption was also extreme. Even the strongest human empire would not be able to raise a team of mages. And creating a team of them was like creating a complete institution. Powerful mages would gather to form a group, and then they would integrate their resources and accept apprentices to create a new generation of magic users.

It could be said that raising mages was similar to the ancient Chinese style of raising disciples.

But Louie now had these wasabi… or, 'Louie's Essences'. With them, he could easily raise a large batch of law-ranked mages. Although they meant nothing to high-ranked mages, they could still be put to good use.

Because they were raised by him, he could control the resources that they used. Louie could even make high-ranked mages work for him. He could turn Dragon City into a city of magic.

If he succeeded and Dragon City became a far better place to live than the next best competitor, then he could have the inhabitants place their faith in him as a God. With that, he would have a base he could work from to gradually ascend to godhood. He would cover entire realms with his wings and have every dragon kneel in reverence to him.

The city would also provide the resources he could devote to his own protection. With an army, he'd be in a far better position than before.

Louie now had a clear goal he could work towards. Prior to this he had more or less been coasting about. But with the establishment of a long-term path, he could now clearly envision where his journey would take him.

"Not bad, Marches!"

Louie raised his wings and joyfully spoke.

Marches finding the wasabi as a magic origin element would become one of Louie's cornerstones.

"No, this is all because of the master's greatness! If you had not brought these mysterious plants, I would not have been able to do anything. All glory belongs to you. Your wisdom and farsightedness shall change the world of magic!"

Marches had clearly seen his chance to bootlick and had followed up.

Louie laughed out loud. Being flattered was indeed a pleasant affair. He could somewhat understand the ancient leaders who surrounded themselves with sycophants now.

"I am a dragon who rewards and punishes. I want to reward you, Marches!"

"As long as I can get your praise, I'll be satisfied!"

Marches once again humbled himself.

He was not excited by the dragon's reward at all, because he knew dragons all too well. Complete and utter misers, they were. Every last one of them.

"Don't compare me with those stupid dragons. Remember, I am a primordial dragon, not one of those idiotic lizards!"

At Louie's words, Marches held his breath and smiled ingratiatingly. He did not dare speak back.

Slightly pensive, Louie asked, "How long will it take to separate the magic origin element from Louie's Essence?"

"Replying back to master. Although I have not seen this mystical plant before, I should be able to perfectly separate them after a few experiments!"

Marches replied respectfully.

"Very good. Then I will give you another task. After doing the separation experiment, take a piece of land as a test field, try to see if you can cultivate this plant."

Louie said in a deep voice with a fixed gaze.

If wasabi could grow in this world, it would bode ill for his plans. He would have to use more effort in protecting it from spreading unchecked.

Although wasabi was hard to plant, it should be a lot easier to cultivate compared to the Heart of Mismisalla. If it spread unchecked, then his greatest asset would disappear. He would absolutely not allow this.

This time, Marches opened his mouth wide and looked at Louie incredulously.

'Was this really a dragon? This logic and meticulous thinking were not something a dragon should have. He would even go as far as to prevent leakage of the material so that he could have a monopoly on it.'

"As long as you can complete my task, I can promise you tons of Louie's Essence. You will turn them into magic potions, some of which I could reward you with. Since it is also the currency for mages, I'm sure you can also use them to exchange for materials."

Marches froze. What did he just hear? He actually heard a dragon, a supposedly hamfisted creature, offer him tons of Louie's Essence!

As long as he had it, he could definitely exchange them for materials and herbs. He could then refine a potion that he needed to increase his lifespan and advance towards the legendary rank!

"I admire you, my great master! You are the star of enlightenment in the sky, the sun king who illuminates the darkness in this world. Please be assured! Your loyal servant, Marches, will accomplish this task!"

Marches kneeled on the ground and bowed five times, crying and praising with all his heart.

He suddenly felt that becoming a slave of a dragon was not something to be sad about, but an opportunity for himself!

That said, he wondered if all dragons used tons as a unit of measurement. It was simply incomprehensible for him for a dragon to say that he would take out tons of the incredible plant!

Chapter 65

Louie and Marches continued to discuss the possibilities that the foundational magic potion could bring about. On the other hand, Sisna was more interested in the miscellaneous items Louie had brought from the ship.

Compared to humans, elves were born with a great affinity for magic. Thus the incidence of elven mages within the elven population was much higher than humans.

In the end, however, elven mages were not as valued within their indigenous territories as human ones were. In the first place, as they held an affinity for nature, most elves preferred to become rangers or druids. Second, in order to advance their knowledge and abilities, elven mages would rarely have any qualms about leaving their country and traveling the continent. This weakened the race's territory. Given the elves' naturally low population, this proved to be an especially painful form of brain drain.

It could not be helped as mages were more of the intellectual sort, in the end. Often their concerns transcended the idea of racial conflicts, and their minds were occupied with much more pressing personal matters.

Despite the potential groundbreaking nature of Louie and Marches' conversation, Sisna paid little attention. As she was a ranger, she did not really understand how dangerous it was.

Her focus was solely captured by the unknown fruits packed in crates. She could tell instinctively that they were edible.

She crouched down slightly and looked into one of the crates. She took care not to touch any of the items within them.

"Huh, what is this?"

Sisna picked up a multi-colored bag. It was light and smooth to the touch with images printed on it. As she pressed on it, she noticed how soft the thing inside the bag was.

As an elf in a world of magic, she had not seen a plastic bag before.

"That's bread."

Louie was aware of her curiosity and was kind enough to tell her.

"Ah!"

Sisna was startled. Despite her rank and status, she was quickly flustered. She dropped the bag back into the crate and immediately knelt down in apology.

"So-sorry, Lord Caracol! I didn't mean to touch your things…"

Sisna apologized sincerely. She was just curious about its contents and picked it up. At the time, she had momentarily forgotten that it was part of the dragon's wealth.

If this invoked the dragon's ire and caused its relationship with the elves to deteriorate, then she might just become the greatest sinner of her race.

"Little Elf, someone as great as me will not be angry because of a little mistake."

Louie's gentle words left Sisna in disbelief. Her emerald eyes repeatedly blinked in confusion.

But soon, she quickly stopped letting her imagination run wild.

'The great Caracolon is completely different from other miserly dragons. His wisdom is as profound as the sea and his heart is as broad as the sky.'

"I understand your curiosity, Sisna. This is a feeling that all races have towards the unknown. It is also the driving force for all races to move forward!"

Louie's philosophical words made Marches and Sisna admire him. This was especially so for a mage like Marches who moves forward in pursuit of the truth and curiosity of the unknown.

Tear the outer package, and you'll be able to see the bread inside."

Sisna listened to Louie's words. She carefully picked up the bag and tore open the plastic packaging with force.

She took out the exquisitely made bread from the bag. It was completely incomparable to the small white bread that she had eaten before.

She hesitated for a moment. She didn't know how it was baked, but it was extremely soft. With a bite, she instantly froze.

An indescribable taste permeated her mouth. There was sweetness and slight bitterness. The two flavors intermingled and melted inside her mouth. When she swallowed, her taste buds were still enjoying the supreme pleasure from the food.

At that moment, she even felt an impulse to cry.

Sisna lowered her head and saw that a brownish-black sauce was inside the bread. It might have been a little unpleasant to look at, but it was where the unique flavor had come from.

She had lived for a thousand years, but she had never eaten anything so delicious.

Unable to endure it, Sisna began to eat in big bites while feeling lament at not being able to present it to her queen. Although her mind was filled with the shadow of the elven queen, her body was out of control.

Marches stared at the elf's eating face. Her prior lady-like and graceful appearance had now devolved into the crude visage of a hungry beastman.

Louie watched as Sisna finished the bread and licked the sauce on her face. He had an evil thought.

'Isn't it just chocolate bread? Making such an expression is truly a waste of that pretty face. In the end, she's just a country bumpkin.'

That said, he had already understood this point about San Soliel. At most, the best dessert that the human imperial royal family could eat in this world was food made from dairy and honey. They would never be able to imagine how modern people had researched the taste of various foods to create true delicacies.

Moreover, humans were the richest race in terms of resources. It could be imagined how much worse it was for other races.

"Sisna, Marches just told me that you elves brought food into the city so that my subjects would be able to get through the most difficult of days. In order to thank your queen, I, Louie Caracolon, declare that you can take a few thousand tons of this wheat to help yourselves out.

Sisna, who was still relishing the taste of the chocolate sauce, froze when she heard those words. She trembled with excitement and said, "L-lord Caracolon, y-you are willing to give the elves a-a-f-few t-thousand tons of wheat to the elves?"

Sisna stuttered. She thought that she might have misheard it as a few tons. This kind of generous gift was simply unheard of before.

"This much wheat takes up a lot of space. For the sake of Dragon City and the Elven Kingdom's friendship, this generous dragon is willing to help you improve your diets."

Louie did not really care about it. In any case, he had stolen the wheat. If he did not have any more, he would just steal again in bigger quantities. It wouldn't take much effort anyway.

But what was a casual affair to him was a game-changer for the elves.

"L-lord, on behalf of Her Majesty, I would like to thank you for your generosity. The elves will forever remember your gift!"

Sisna fumbled with her salute.

At the same time, she suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said, "This time Her Majesty also told me to pass on some words. She was afraid that the rough-handed humans would not be able to clean your spectacular palace, and especially asked me to bring a team of maids, hoping that they would satisfy you."

After receiving Louie's consent, Sisna quickly left the palace. Without making Louie wait long, she returned with a group of elven beauties.

Looking at these beautiful elven girls, Louie suddenly realized –

'So, you can really exchange wheat for elven beauties!'

Chapter 66

More than ten female elves entered, following behind Sisna. They sauntered in silently, with the same graceful poise that cats had. Upon closer observation, Louie realized that everything from their posture to their appearances was standardized.

In contrast to the valiant Sisna who always wore leather armor as a ranger and a general, these elves wore the traditional elven attire of long skirts and fluttering sleeves. Their appearance gave off enchanting sexuality. Just like their queen, their faces were covered by a thin layer of muslin that added a bit of mystery.

Louie glanced past the thin muslin. Their slightly nervous yet delicate faces along with their trembling long ears made him exclaim in surprise.

The elves were truly abundant in beautiful people. Of the elves he had seen so far, regardless of male or female, they were all beautiful in human aesthetics. Moreover, the elves in front of him were the best of the best.

There was a difference in temperament. These elves carried a noble aura and some were quite intellectual. It gave him a strong amorous feeling.

'Just a single one of these elves would be a top international supermodel. No, even supermodels can't compare to them!'

Louie's gaze swept over the maids again. He recalled the photos of famous celebrities that he had seen on the internet and compared them.

No matter how beautiful humans were, there were still flaws in their body no matter how they maintained them. The biggest flaw was the skin that required skincare products to maintain, but doing so would make them lose their natural beauty.

These elves were different. With just a bit of face powder, their attractiveness burst out. Louie even suspected that these elves had incredibly small pores that no race could compare to. They were truly nature's favored race in the looks department.

In fact, the experts of this world, especially the women, would always use magic or fighting aura to maintain their beauty. Ordinary women could not compare to them at all.

Although San Soliel was not highly civilized, the existence of special professions that raised mortal limits increased the number of beautiful people. No matter how an ordinary person tormented themselves, they could only lose to those with supernatural powers.

Perhaps coming to San Soliel was worth it for the beauties alone, Louie thought.

The female elves could feel Louie's gaze on them. Although they were smiling calmly on the surface, their eyes carried apprehension and terror. It was impossible for Louie not to notice this.

The elves knew that they were actually goods given by the elven queen to Louie as greeting gifts. When they left the Silvermoon Kingdom to come to Dragon City, it meant that their entire persons already belonged to the lord of this place – the great demigod dragon.

No matter how much Louie mistreated them they could do nothing about it. Anything that they did was not related to the Silvermoon Kingdom anymore. In a way, they were now Louie's belongings!

In fact, this was not surprising. Elves were not above the common populace. They also knew how to take initiative to befriend the strong and send out attractive members of their race to win them over.

Their race was not much nobler than the beastmen or humans. Their pride mostly came from their ancient history and relatively civilized society. They had an internal class system, just not as obvious as the humans and beastmen. The Silvermoon Kingdom was not heaven. There were many poor elves on the brink of dying from starvation.

If not for the stubbornness of the elves, Louie would have suspected that many of them would have sold their bodies just to feed themselves. In that case, they would sell like hotcakes in the major realms!

Elves also needed to eat. They did not farm because of their love for the forest, but it was impossible for them to fill their stomachs with just fruits. To balance their diets, they needed to eat a small amount of meat and a large number of coarse grains to survive. Their main source of livelihood was their aesthetics and handicraft. They were the best among all the races and sold their works to nobles of other races every year. That way they could earn money and buy food to meet the needs of the entire race.

Even Louie felt lucky that their total population only reached around a million. If their numbers were significantly more than that, they wouldn't be able to feed their huge population without agriculture. This peace-loving race might suddenly become warmongers just to survive.

Louie watched the elves in front perform the ancient elven court salute.

Although he was now a dragon, he was still a man. Seeing that he could take these elves for himself, he was really excited.

Louie understood his own status and would act according to it. He was not someone who had a loser mentality. Not touching the beauties in front of him was simply a crime.

This was a war-ridden world where many races competed for supremacy. Talking about getting into romantic relationships, respecting the other person's dignity, or equal rights for men and women would simply make the Gods laugh their heads off.

Only strength was the truth in this world. The weak would have nothing, and the strong would have everything.

In the eyes of the people, Louie was a strong dragon, and probably the strongest creature below the Gods of this world. He was entitled to enjoy the privileges brought by his power.

For example, the ownership of these elves.

If he had no shame left from his human half, he would have already moved his claws to reach for them.

In the endless realm, even the succubi of the Abyss would need to concede in the face of a dragon.

He just needed to wait for Marches and Sisna to leave to get on with the show.

This was not the world of immortal cultivation, so he did not need to restrain himself. He just needed to do what he desired!

That said, he would still pretend when he needed to. He was now pretending to be a proud demigod dragon. After looking at the elves, he turned to Marches and Sisna while calmly taking out a huge drawing, "Sisna, I would like to thank Her Majesty's generosity. But before that, both of you should first come over and look at my city design!"

Chapter 67

Marches' eyes were fastened on the elves when they entered.

Their skin was like crystal jade. Their slender legs and proud bodies gave off a thought-provoking aura. They were the rarely seen elven nobles.

Marches did not dare look too long. He knew that these elves were his master's property, and hurriedly lowered his head to calm his mind.

After obtaining Louie's promise, Marches truly wanted to do his utmost to serve this dragon. Although dragons were greedy and petty, they were also quite proud and would generally keep their promises, especially those at the primordial level.

He now swore to remain respectful to his master as a servant and did not dare have any thoughts of coveting his Louie's belongings.

'My master is really divine and mighty. Even that beautiful elven queen who lives in the deepest part of the Silvermoon Kingdom personally sent beauties to serve him. Even the Pope and the Emperor would be jealous of this.'

Elves that could serve the elven queen were not from ordinary families but from elven noble estates. On this point, elves were the same as other races, those with power and resources were the nobles. If their offsprings were talented, they would have them take professions, while some of those that weren't would be sent to the royal palace to become servants.

In the human kingdoms, nobles would serve the prince and princess, but in the Silvermoon Kingdom, there was only the queen. These ladies were to serve the queen.

They were different from those kidnapped elves who were sold as slaves. Those who were sold as slaves were commoners. These elven noble maidens might not even be found outside of the Forest of the Moon. Although there were some bold people in history who tried their luck to capture one, those that actually succeeded could be counted on one's fingers.

Marches secretly sighed. These elven noble maidens were different from the commoners. They receive the highest level of education from birth and are taught elegant etiquette. Their every movement carried charms that far surpass the common elf and could compare against powerful elven professionals.

Elven nobility was rare. And these noble maidens could even be called princesses in some small countries!

But now, they were sent by the elven queen to be the dragon's servants. That elven queen's ability was quite frightening. It was no wonder that she was able to protect the entire race for thousands of years. Humans and beastmen would covet the elves, but they could only stand at the edge of the forest and look with desire.

Just when Marches was in admiration and envy, Louie spread out a map on the ground.

Marches and Sisna stared at it, perplexed.

"This is… a city design map?"

Marches' eyes widened. Although there were some lines that looked crooked and strange, the overall plan of the city was shown perfectly.

The two subordinates approached the map for a better look.

The maids on the other hand, upon seeing the revered General Sisna reveal a shocked expression, also felt a budding curiosity over its contents. A few tried to peek indiscreetly but soon found out that doing so was unnecessary. The map itself was large enough for them to see from where they stood.

The orderly if slightly unintelligible array of bold and light lines; and arcs and squares instilled within them a sense of direction for the city's future development. There was an almost mathematical beauty to its structure, and the plan outlined everything from an underground drainage facility to plans for accommodation.

In the world of San Soliel, this was a pioneering design.

"What do you think?"

Louie raised his head and asked.

When he had borrowed the professor's body, he had browsed the internet for model designs of medieval cities. It might have been hard for him to find a design for modern cities, but it was very easy for him to find one for a city where a few hundred thousand people could live in.

"So… so incredible."

Despite the elves' natural preference for harmony with nature, the complex design Louie had presented left her in awe.

"Lord, what is this area?" Sisna pointed in disbelief.

"Oh, I am going to plant trees on both sides of all the roads. At the place you pointed at, I plan to build a public garden for the citizens to rest and play," Louie explained casually.

Medieval cities were known for two things, poor planning and huge amounts of filth. Other than the area where the nobility lived, other areas especially the slums were unimaginably disgusting for the modern man. Moreover, people rarely bathed, making it easy to imagine how smelly these people were.

Louie did not demand the city to not have a single dark corner, but he needed it to be neat and clean overall. Luckily he had destroyed half of the dirt city in one breath before, giving him the opportunity to rebuild.

"Public garden? Planting trees?"

Sisna and the elven maids all lightly cried out at Louie's words. The idea was a bit ahead of its time for the inhabitants of this world. Generally speaking, gardens were nothing more than private properties owned by nobles and royalty for viewing and playing. Those nobles would not use their limited resources just to build some gardens for the peasants. As for the thought of planting trees, humans did not even think about such things. Living was already difficult for them. Who would think about beautifying the environment?

Sisna's eyes twinkled. She was astonished at the wisdom of the dragon in front of her. Every time she met him, he would bring her a different kind of shock and surprise. It was like facing her queen, who had acute foresight that was worthy of respect.

"Milord, if you are willing, I hope you can leave planting the trees and garden design to us elves. We will definitely create a satisfying environment for you," Sisna promptly asked for instructions.

The elven queen had asked them to station thousands of soldiers in Dragon City. This meant that thousands of elves were planning to live in this city, but they disliked dirty and human cities. They could only obey due to their queen's orders.

But now, things are different. The mighty dragon wanted to plant trees and build a garden. This would absolutely make the elves enthusiastic. Those elves stationed in the city would be able to live near the garden. Even if it was opened for humans, it could also make the elves' living environment more comfortable.

"Of course, in terms of the environment, I believe in your capabilities… Marches and Sisna, I will leave the supervision of the city's reconstruction to you. This food will be a reward for those who work!"

"For those who work seriously, I will reward them with delicious food and beautiful clothes. For those who commit crimes, I will let them suffer a fate worse than death!"

Louie raised his body and roared in a majestic tone.

He expanded his wings causing people to recall the great power that covered the skies. Sisna and marches quickly lowered their heads and inwardly marveled at how different Lord Caracolon was from other dragons. He was definitely a qualified lord for being able to reward the laborers and punish the criminals.

Seeing that their respected general was being so humble, the elven maids quickly kneeled down, but they could only tremble in fear at the sight of Louie's huge body.

Chapter 68

After making his declaration, Louie folded his wings and lay on the ground, basking in the sunlight.

After becoming a dragon he found that he had inherited part of their slothful disposition, but he found that he could overcome it through sheer force of will. Given that he planned on attaining godhood, he could not let himself slack off too much.

"Marches, is there a place to store the meat?"

On the Neversnar, the meat could be refrigerated over the months-long journey. In San Soleil, however, such technological conveniences did not exist. And if nothing was done, it would soon begin to rot.

"This… to preserve such a large amount of meat, normal basement temperatures won't be enough."

Marches looked at the pile of meat and said embarrassedly.

"Then think of a way to use magic."

Louie was slightly dissatisfied at Marches' answer. Nevertheless, he could try to count on magic to do things.

"Er… great master, preserving this much meat requires a large freezing magic circle, and in order to maintain such a large magic circle, you need to connect to a water element realm's magic source pool. Creating a magic source pool requires many precious materials. If you are willing, the magical materials kept in the city are barely enough. It's just…"

'It's just that I can't build one at all!'

Marches could only cry internally.

The magic source pool was equivalent to a generator in the technological world. It could connect to other realms and extract a constant source of magic power to serve as a permanent power source for a magic apparatus. It was mostly used as a core in mage towers.

But only mages at the ninth circle could create them. Moreover, not all ninth-ranked mages could. In fact, not even all legendary ranked mages could do so given the astronomical material costs.

Before Central City had been invaded by Louie, the members of the Theocracy had left a significant amount of magic material. It was enough to build the magic source pool but too little to construct a magic tower.

Additionally, Marches was only a seven ring mage who specialized in potions. Even if he had the required resources, he did not possess the requisite level of expertise in that area.

At the same time, he also lamented. Dragon's and human's views of wealth might be too far apart. His lord actually wanted to use a magic source pool to build a freezer. If some poor mages knew about this, they might just cry and kill themselves.

Just as Marches fumbled for a response, Sisna threw a lifeline, "Milord, if you need a mage to help you build a storage room, perhaps the elven mages can help you."

Marches was relieved to hear this. If he had to say that he could not do it, he would likely have appeared incompetent before his lord.

Although the majority of the legendary rank elven mages were living in seclusion in other realms, the Silver Moon Kingdom still had a few legendary rank elven mages who were loyal to the queen.

For example, the elven mages that Louie met on the platform at the beginning of his journey were all legendary rank powerhouses. They were the trump cards of the Silver Moon Kingdom and would not appear unless there was a crisis that threatened to destroy the country.

"In that case, I'll leave it to you Sisna! Convey my gratitude to Her Majesty. If there is an opportunity, I'll go visit her myself!" Louie spoke in a deep voice.

The elven queen was the founder of the Silvermoon Kingdom, which had existed for thousands of years and was a powerful demigod. Even if Louie was a true demigod, he still had to maintain enough respect for the queen.

What's more, from the beginning he felt that the queen seemed to be hiding some secrets and was a very dangerous figure.

That said, establishing a large freezer warehouse was still necessary. That way, he would have a place to store future supplies transported from Earth. That said, if he was given a choice between constructing a mage tower and a freezer, he would still choose the latter.

"Marches!"

"Here, my lord. What are your instructions."

"In the name of Dragon City, pass this message to all races and all nations. From today on, I will become the only lord of this city. This city will not belong to humans, nor orcs, nor elves. It will only belong to me! As a great dragon, I am willing to regard all races whether beastmen, humans, or elves. As long as they are willing to come to this city to settle and contribute to it, I am willing to accept them!"

"From now on, this city will become a free trade city. All races and merchants who are willing to come to this city and trade can do so as long as they abide by my laws. I will gladly welcome them!"

"Yes, master. I will spread your words to all races and all kingdoms!"

Louie's words made Sisna's expression change. With the meager political talent she had, she could perceive that there was some deeper meaning to his words, but before she could sort her thoughts, they were already sent off by him.

After Marches and Sisna left, Louie opened his eyes and looked at the elven maids who were kneeling on the ground.

"Raise your heads!"

With Louie's orders, those elves trembled and raised their heads.

Their charming pretty faces looked straight at Louie. Perhaps because of their nobility, or their purity, or their elegance… the air and beauty they emitted were enough to stoke the fires of desire in any human. And now, they were Louie's slaves!

These elven girls were young and had no magic aura or fighting aura coming from them. This was natural, as those with talents would not be allowed to simply enter the elven palace by their families. Moreover, even the elven queen would not let them serve Louie as it would be a waste of their abilities.

But Louie did not care whether they had combat power or not. Just being eye candy was enough to make him happy.

Looking at their appearance, they were roughly around 200-300 years old. For the long-lived elves that could not reach the legendary rank, this age was the prime of their youth.

Louie had initially thought about making the most beautiful one as the head maid, but in the end, he could not really rank them at all because of their many differences.

He extended his claws out, and the elven maids looked in fear but dared not resist. As the claw landed on one of them, Louie began to caress the elf's delicate face.

Perhaps he still couldn't turn into a human, but if anyone thought he'd hold himself back just because of that, they'd be mistaken.

Chapter 69

Dragons possessed a spell called 'Ultimate Transformation'. Using it, they could transform into any race they so desired. According to legend, this was created by the fallen Five-colored Dragon God and passed down to his progeny as a tradition.

In Louie's mind, the spell made no scientific sense at all. And in fact, it broke several fundamental scientific principles. He decided not to think too much about it, however. And he chalked it up to magic being incomprehensible.

Louie knew that this spell was very useful, but the only weakness it had was that it was not an innate skill. In other words, not every dragon knew of this spell, and it had to be learned.

Moreover, dragons were creatures with significant levels of pride. Even when it came to mating, a majority of them were unwilling to transform into a different creature. In their understanding, other than the Gods, dragons were the noblest race.

Thus dragons were still happy to maintain a chaotic relationship with any female creature they saw. Even with their large sizes, their ability to control the size of their genitals meant that no species were out of their strike zone. Truly such a skill was the envy of every man!

In Louie's opinion, dragons were definitely proud of their promiscuity thanks to this ability.

Because of it, dragons could do it with any creatures except for those significantly larger than themselves.

More surprising than their promiscuity, however, was their fecundity. Up until now, dragons had mated with many humanoid and non-humanoid races. As a result, countless draconic creatures had been born. There were those that soared in the skies, those that could run across the land at great speeds, and those that could swim through the great depths of the oceans. Even Louie was amazed at the diversity of draconic creatures.

But there was one thing strange about all of them. All the creatures born were non-humanoid draconic creatures. There were no humanoid draconic creatures among them at all.

Did that mean that dragons could not mate with humanoid races? That was absolutely wrong. Perhaps something prevented the two kinds of genes from mixing, but dragon-humanoid hybrids had never been successfully created.

There were indeed some dragon-blood warlocks among humans who could use draconic spells as they grew older, but they were not true descendants of dragons. Rather, their ancestors were powerful legendary rank mages who had mixed dragon blood into their bloodlines and passed them on to their descendants.

The Intelligent Brain had told Louie before that after his complete genetic overhaul, he had no need to worry about being unable to father children with any species. Louie realized he might be able to expand San Soliel's gene pool with this unique trait.

Driven by this noble objective, Louie turned to the elven beauties with a serious expression.

If the elves gave birth to a new species that possessed both elven and draconic forms, then what name would fit them?

'Elven Dragon should work,' he thought after a moment.

Still, the elves felt a little inadequate to bear his offspring. They were indeed beautiful, but they were also weaklings on average. Louie wanted his descendants to be born with the genetic equivalent of golden spoons.

The females that would birth his children needed to be both beautiful and strong. His genes were perfect already. All that was left was for the female side to have as few flaws as possible.

Perhaps mating with a goddess would be best? In any case, that was something for the future. He couldn't even find one right now, to talk less of breeding with her.

Right then, his goal was still self-preservation. If he were to have children at such a crucial moment, it would just make his life more difficult.

That said, such matters had no bearing on the moment. Even if he didn't have children now, what should be enjoyed needed to be enjoyed. There were many beautiful elves in front of him, and he had no intention of playing saint.

The elven noble maidens were also slightly shivering, especially the elf whose clothes had been torn by Louie's claw.

The cold wind blew at her delicate skin, giving her chills, but the elf stayed strong and endured the fear and cold. She had to restrain her emotions and not let herself lose her temper here.

They were now the dragon's possessions. Even if the dragon wanted to eat them, they could not dare resist. They knew that even if they resisted no one would avenge them, not even the elven queen. Some people might even pour their anger on them for opposing the dragon.

The elves did not hate their queen for sending them to the dragon. Other than the one true God of the elves, the Silver Moon Goddess Selune, the queen of the elves was said to be the most respected person of reverence. She was the founder of the nation and their patron saint. No one would dare question her order. Even if they were told to die, the elves would not hesitate to carry out her orders.

After being ordered to serve the dragon and become its plaything, these elven maidens were afraid, but also felt that it was their mission.

As elven nobles, they had lived a privileged materialistic life. They learned the ancient and complex ceremonies and were sent to the royal palace to aid the queen. For elven nobility, they were taught to give everything they had to the elven race.

Louie looked at the stubborn yet fearful elven maidens. The contradictory expressions on their faces felt interesting to him.

He looked at the elves and spoke with majesty and pride, "From this day on, you will be my servants, my maids, my slaves. You will serve me with your bodies, your mouths, your hands, your feet. Every inch of your skin and your hair will be used to my benefit. Do you understand, my servants?!"

"Of course as I am a great being, I will keep you sheltered under my wings and will not allow anyone to touch you."

"Yes! We will serve you, great and noble Lord Louis Marigoth Alexander Nozidom Icella Nesario Caracolon!"

The elves trembled and fell to their knees, humbly bowing their heads as they recited his long and awkward name in a voice that sounded like a choir.

Louie grinned and bared his teeth.

When he first crossed over, he did not know how to name himself. He thought that the more ancient and sacred an existence was, the name should be longer, so he came up with this nonsensical name. He did not expect them to remember at all which made him feel awkward.

Although he was annoyed, he still maintained the majesty and calmness of a dragon on the surface.

He pointed to the unclothed elf and revealed a nasty smile, "Then let's start with you. Give me everything you have and prove your determination!"

Chapter 70

Elven laughter rang out from the city lord's palace. It seemed as though the city lord and his consorts were enjoying themselves. The city lord's mirth boomed through the area in bursts as he savored his flowers.

Anyone who heard it might just take out a magical sword and strike at the evil dragon due to their jealousy. But in this empty location, there was no hero, nor was there anyone daring enough to challenge a primordial dragon.

…

Old John the farmer wasn't actually old at all. He had just turned 20 and had not yet even reached the prime of his life. Nevertheless, for some reason, the people of Dragon City gave him the moniker, and it stuck.

Like the majority of San Soliel's inhabitants, Old John belonged to the commoner class. Originally, he would rise early in the morning to plow the fields and tend the crops before returning by sunset each day. He did not have any lofty aspirations or ambitions and was more interested in getting by each day with a full stomach. And though he had no noble roots, he was a lot better off than those who lived in the slums.

Before the dragon arrived, the Theocracy had been in charge of what was once called Dragon City. Old John had gotten a lot of work from them and so was grateful, both to the Church and his ancestors for being in such a good situation. The Theocracy had treated Central City's inhabitants especially well compared to others, at the very least the commoners could survive.

Unfortunately, the peace did not last. It was to be understood. After all, Central City was desired by countless powers. But on that fateful day, Old John saw something he never thought he would live to tell the tale about.

He remembered clearly the terror he felt on that day. Soaring in the sky, thousands of meters above the city was a titanic dragon hellbent on breaching its defenses. Wielding an impossible level of power, it shattered through Central City's barriers and set half of the city aflame.

In the following chaos, the clergymen fled and the nobility did not even dare to pack their valuables before they escaped.

At the time, and indeed even now, Old John thought them foolish. The roads away from the city were filled with countless dangers: from bandits to monsters. By fleeing in such haste, they were making a perilous journey without adequate preparation. One didn't need to be a genius to know how the majority of them would end up.

If this world was really safe, there wouldn't be many people obtaining professions and becoming mercenaries. Merchants would traverse the continent without need for bodyguards, and travelers wouldn't have to take care to avoid monster nests.

Old John knew that he could not run far. If he left the city, he would just become another corpse. Thus, he, his wife, and their two children hid in the cellar and hugged each other while shivering, hoping the dragon would ignore them.

It didn't take long for the commotion to stop. Soldiers went from house to house to check on those who were alive. Old John and his family were lucky enough to survive with their house intact.

The soldiers who were searching the houses had bad attitudes. At first, old John inquired if the dragon had left, but he soon learned that the dragon had not left, but had in fact taken over the city and renamed it Dragon City, becoming its lord.

At that moment, old John and the citizens began to despair. The situation was as grim as could be, and survival was only a matter of days by this point. If they were unlucky, they would starve to death, and if they were lucky, they would be selected by the dragon to become its food, dying instantly.

No, a bulky man like him would definitely not be eaten by a dragon. According to the bards' tales, dragons loved to eat princesses of human countries. They indulged in the tender flesh of little girls…. He worried that his own little daughter would soon become the dragon's meal.

Suppressing this despair, he and his family stayed inside the house, waiting quietly for death to come. However, the outcome had exceeded everybody's imagination.

"Honey, I'm going out to work. Is this shirt okay? I hope it isn't too dirty."

Old John was glowing with health and was vaguely excited about the day's work.

He wore white handwoven clothes. He stretched out his arms and turned around to have his wife take a look.

His wife was a commoner like him, but to him she was as beautiful as a princess. She was hardworking, thrifty, and even bore him two children.

"Okay, let me see. It should be okay. John, you need to take care at work today. I and the kids will handle the chores today, so you should see us when you come back. I'll also be working on making some things we can sell once the economic restrictions are lifted," she patted his shoulders and added warily, "Also, make sure you don't associate with Old Bill. He's been cursing the lord ever since he lost his children in his flames. Make sure he doesn't affect our family."

"Don't worry dear, I won't have anything to do with him. That kind of person only eats wood chips and black bread. He doesn't understand the greatness of the city lord. He deserves to die!" John said contemptuously.

In this world where countries and races fought against each other often, the death of family members was common. Although the survivors would lament, they would soon return to a good mood and continue to live their days. Those wandering minstrels and bards would often spin tales of revenge, but only nobles and strong people appeared in them. For the commoners, their only goal was to allow themselves and their families to continue living.

Although John sympathized with old Bill whose children had died, he did not feel anything deeper. He would never get involved with him and even felt that old Bill was stupid. It would be almost impossible to find a lord that was as wise and generous as the current city lord. By cursing such an existence, he felt that Old Bill would clearly not live for much longer.

"Dad, dad. Can we still eat soft bread and delicious meat today?"

A boy and a girl in ragged clothing ran out, drooling and looking at their father hopefully.

"Of course we can. Today, we can also eat our fill… the lord has said before, as long as you work hard, you can have bread, butter, and even meat. So you two must also grow up fast and display your loyalty to the lord, okay?"

"Yes, Dad!"

The two children replied in a slightly confused manner.

John looked at the piece of meat they saved on the wooden table as well as the unbelievably refined wheat and gulped.

He simply could not forget those delicacies.

'Thank you, my lord, for allowing us commoners to live a life that is the envy of nobles!'

'Those nobles and lords that ran away… I wonder if they are now wallowing in regret!'

Chapter 71

Old John walked out of the house after saying goodbye to his wife and children.

The morning sun beat down the fragrant earth, and the chirping of birds gave the air a delicate vibrancy.

"Morning Old John."

"Hey, John. Heard you were transferred to the noble district to work? Is it true that the lord gives more flour and meat to those who work there?"

"I heard that the supervisors there are all elves. Hey, are they really as beautiful as the rumors say?"

"I've seen some elves before, and they are really indescribably beautiful regardless of their gender."

Old John's neighbors poured out in droves to meet him. Although their clothes were of poor quality and showed signs of obvious wear and tear, their faces glowed with radiance. And their expressions lacked the haggardness of most commoners.

Old John smiled as he greeted his neighbors.

Dragon City was indeed different from the past. The biggest impression that old John had was that it was a lot cleaner.

The streets used to be full of litter and smelled of rot and decay. This was the norm for most cities in San Soleil, and those who lived in the slums had it even worse. Comparatively speaking, nobles' estates were quite pleasant.

However, after the great Lord Caracolon became their city lord, his first order was for the citizens to clean up the area a hundred meters around their living spaces. He did not demand that there be no trash, but that it absolutely had to be tidy. He also placed a ban on public defecation and urination outside of assigned spaces. Violators of these laws would be charged light fines, and in more serious cases, would be whipped. The city lord also declared that all commoners must bathe at least once a week.

Although the people's daily habits had been restricted by these harsh laws, they were submissive in nature. As long as they could continue living, they would not find it difficult to comply. Moreover, they felt that their lord was quite generous. People who did not comply with his regulations were better off dead.

Dragon City did not lack water resources. It was located in the middle of the San Soleil Mountain Range with an underground river flowing through the city. This was enough to meet the needs of the city.

Given the medieval level of social development, frequent bathing was not a social norm. The vast majority of citizens failed to bathe even once a year. This wasn't because they disliked cleaning themselves, but because the rigors of their lives meant they could barely find the time for such luxuries.

But under the strict orders of their new lord, everyone began to clean up and organize the work. Some people even joked privately that the lord might be an elf due to his penchant for cleanliness.

At first, because they were already used to having filth in their environment, cleaning made little sense to the citizens. Nevertheless, they complied with their lord's instructions. Soon, Old John found that the cleanup seemed to have a positive effect on everyone's psyche. At the very least, everyone was in a happier mood when smelling the fresh air instead of feces.

During the day, men who could work were called in to do manual labor to rebuild the city, while the women were tasked with cleaning the environment. In other cities, this was an impossible way to divide labor as it would mean half of the population was not producing food. Given the low productivity of each farmer, it was easy to see why this was undesirable. If such a policy was implemented, not only would the population of the territory starve, but the lords would gradually become poorer and lose their territories.

But the sacred dragon thought differently. He did not care about the loss of labor, and he made sure that the citizens transformed the city in line with his grand design. He was liberal with the wheat and meat under his control. And for the residents who were mostly used to eating bitter black bread, their present circumstances were almost heavenly.

With such clear benefits for complying with his administration, only idiots would choose to slack off.

But there were always such people. In fact, Old John soon came across them on his way to work.

Walking through one of the city squares, he saw a dozen or so people surrounded by soldiers. The prisoners were naked and kneeling on the ground. They wailed and begged for mercy as the infantry cracked whips at them and drew blood with each strike.

The soldiers were the remnants of the forces that fled Central City when Louie had attacked. Most of the elite forces had been wiped out by Louie's flames, but a few divisions managed to escape total annihilation. Unfortunately, they were fairly weak compared to their martyred counterparts. Nevertheless, they were familiar with the city. And while they would no longer have any place in the new army, they functioned well enough as overseers of internal order. The current whipping was merely an extension of their duties.

Though such means were crass and perhaps even immoral when judged with a 21st Century mindset, Louie was not about to change his mind on their use.

This was a completely different place and time. If someone tried to explain the concept of human rights to even the lowliest commoner who stood to gain the most from them, they would simply be laughed off like fools. While Louie could be just, stern, and munificent, those were simply traits he adopted for his own ends. He did not govern for the sake of the city's residents, but for his and his alone. He would not hesitate to kill those who threatened the order of his territory. And he claimed the right to personally decide on the life and death of each and every citizen.

Those saintly protagonists from web novels shouldn't even be alive if their situation was more realistic. They would simply be killed off before their stories got anywhere!

"Look at them, it's no wonder that they are poor. The lord is so generous and great. By just investing in labor, we get to enjoy food that only nobles could eat and fill our stomachs. These people actually dared resort to theft and trickery to pretend to work; all in the name of cheating food and drinks out of the lord."

"For sure. I used to pity one of them when I saw him in the slums, but now, it seems that such people do not deserve even the slightest bit of it."

"It's a waste of food to keep them alive. They might as well be killed."

Under the curses and malice of the nearby onlookers, the slackers were gradually beaten to death. A soldier walked over to check the slacker's breathing, and seeing that the person was dead, he waved his hands to beckon the other soldiers. They carried the body of the dead slackers outside the city and burned it in a great fire.

In this chaotic age, the lands were filled with numerous instances of great warmth and cruelty.

The crowd quickly dispersed as they headed to tend to their responsibilities.

The entire Dragon City was now buzzing with activity. Major construction sites were set up, and infrastructure was rapidly established.

As a transmigrator from Earth, Louie felt that his subjects were easy to dupe. Simply by feeding them some white bread and meat he could gain their devotion and utmost loyalty. It was a perfect source of free labor.

Moreover, while they were working, they kept saying praises to Louie. This was simply unimaginable in modern society.

Louie clearly knew that the economic foundation was determined by the construction of infrastructure. As long as there was a good foundation, the future of the city would be able to take off like a dragon!

He would transform Dragon City into something he was proud of!

Chapter 72

Dragon City bustle with activity as construction workers dug foundations and laid masonry under the guidance of the elves.

In many ways, medieval construction was much simpler than its modern counterpart. For instance, the towers of steel and concrete that stood tall over modern cities would make no appearance here. The highest the artisans of San Soliel could do for ordinary residences were 2 – 3 stories. And as the resource requirements were fairly basic – wood and stone – it wasn't difficult to get the ball rolling on simple buildings.

Louie had played with the idea of using cement, but ultimately he decided against it. It was revolutionary technology to be sure and would give him an immediate short-term advantage against his competitors, but it was too easy to steal the method for creating it if he didn't do it all by himself.

With their larger populations, nations which used cement in their construction would be able to eclipse Dragon City's industrial output. For now, San Soliel would have to make do with the magical equivalent of cement that was already in use.

Louie's intention was to train a group of low-ranked mages and have them use the spell [Create Cement] to manufacture batches of the substance. He would then use it to pave the roads and build better walls and houses. As other countries would be unable to copy it, he could form a monopoly on it.

The layout for the residential area was thus fairly basic for now. As he knew that many more people would join the city later on, he made sure to leave a lot of space for future expansion

As for the area closest to his nest, in other words, the noble district, Louie had carefully planned it out. It needed to be built following the exact details of his plan, so he sent his most efficient people there. Under Marches' instruction, he began to rebuild the area.

All the houses in this city were rebuilt to be two to three stories tall in order to raise the population density. In a few years, after the population rose and Dragon City became the most yearned for on the continent, he would be able to grant accommodations to talented individuals. This way he could buy their goodwill and service.

The supervisors of the noble district were all elves. These elves were not as strict as human supervisors, but they cared more about the details. But the people who came to work here had been specially chosen from the populace. The elves were not worried that they would slack off. As long as they carefully monitored their work and did not create any hazards, it was enough.

As for the people working there, they could also see that large forces of elves had been coming and going. They had ridden horse-like animals to pull carts carrying transport supplies. Even the elven army's hippogryphs were being used to transport supplies. The scene looked extremely busy. Moreover, let alone seeing so many elves, this was the first time many people had ever seen any.

These supplies were food that the great dragon promised to give the elves. But due to the lack of manpower in Dragon City, the elves had to transport the goods by themselves.

There was indeed space-type equipment in this world, but those were mostly legendary rank items, and most of them could only store a small number of items. Furthermore, they were extremely rare and only possessed by powerful mages. On the other hand, those with large storage spaces were classified as divine weapons. Those things were rare to the point of unattainable.

If this world was flooded with space-type equipment, then caravans wouldn't be needed anymore. Trade between countries would be much more frequent and developed, preventing the economy of the world from being so backward.

So for all races and countries, the delivery of goods still relied on caravans.

Rome was not built in a day. It was impossible to finish all construction in Dragon City within a short time period especially when Louie was trying to change the entire city's design. However, he was not in a hurry. Dragons were creatures that could sleep for years let alone a few months.

Louie was finally getting used to the fact that his own life expectancy now far exceeded that of humans, and might even become infinite someday. He had to stop himself from using a human perspective to look at time, else he would just be making things painful for himself. Humans were always in a hurry due to their relatively short lifespans, but long-lived races and Gods would even use hundreds and thousands of years just to finish one task. Louie was also learning how to spend his time doing worthless activities.

There was no eternity in kingship, only Gods were immortal!

Everything he did right now was for the sake of his future ascension to godhood. All the wealth and power he could accumulate along the way was simply illusory compared to that.

As the sun set, the day's work was over. The workers were now sitting on the ground panting, resting, and laughing among themselves. Although the work was exhausting, excitement remained in their expressions. This was because happiness was about to come. Their lord was going to distribute the day's pay – refined wheat and some meat!

Louie understood human nature quite well. If you helped people too much, they would become dependent on your aid. And if you then took it away, then they would definitely hate you.

So the food Louie distributed to each family was counted by head. This way, they could eat their fill but not have much food left over. He could increase the reward by a little for those who worked harder, as this was the best way to spur them into action.

Even if the food Louie had was blown in by a storm and there were no problems giving everyone a ton of goods, once he did so, other than gaining the gratitude of these commoners, he wouldn't gain anything else. It would not take long for them to become greedier and lazier.

So, giving them proper rewards and decreasing the pay was important.

"Everyone line up for your pay!" an elf shouted.

People began to quietly and neatly arrange themselves in a queue. Those who cut in line to disrupt the previous days had been brought to the square and whipped. As a result, no one dared to make trouble this time.

"John!"

Old John heard someone call him, and it was an elven soldier. He hastily bent over and let out his best smile while feeling apprehensive at the approaching elf.

This male elf frowned at the human in front of him but soon relaxed. The humans were now not as smelly as before. Although they were still a little dirty, the elves could accept this level of cleanliness when he compared it with other cities out there.

"You have been working very hard recently and even relied on your own knowledge to lead others to do a better job. The Great Lord Caracol knows how to punish and reward people. Under his instructions, this will be the reward for your contribution!"

Saying so, the elf handed over a wooden box, but he was showing off an envious look.

Old John was apprehensive and afraid that he had done something wrong, but after hearing the elf's words, his expression changed to happiness. He kneeled down as if he was receiving the emperor's edict and carefully accepted the wooden box.

He glanced at the elf and opened it at the other party's gesture.

"Oh God…"

Old John exclaimed. He stared incredulously at the item inside the box. It was a fork! Ornate and gleaming with a metallic sheen, it seemed to be a work of art!

It had an exquisite appearance, smooth without any rough edges, and precise to the millimeter. No one doubted that it was an item that could only be made by a dwarven master craftsman!

Of course, modern assembly line production could easily reach such levels of accuracy…

Louie had taken the fork when he looted the freighter. Perhaps its original owner was one of the crew members. Louie, however, had no use for it and felt disgusted at the thought that it might have been used before, so he simply used it as a reward for excellent behavior.

The elven soldier also looked at the fork with envy. Although the pattern was not in line with the elves' sense of beauty, the sophisticated square arrangements on it implied that they were crafted with great skill. Only the elven nobles would have access to such a fine piece of art!

Now, this fork was given to a human commoner. This made the elves on site extremely jealous to the point that they wanted to roll up their sleeves and go move some bricks!

"The lord has said that the fork is endowed with magic. It will not rust, so you must keep it well!"

"Please rest assured that I will love it like my child and treat it as a family heirloom so that my descendants will never forget the gift of the great lord!"

'Oh God, it's an enchanted cutlery fork, and it won't rust!'

Old John almost fainted in excitement. If Louie was in front of him, he might just kneel down in worship!

The fork would indeed not rust, because it was made of stainless steel…

Chapter 73

Old John was extremely elated. In this age of scarcity, cutlery was a pointless luxury for most.

Their use was restricted to the tables of nobles and royalty. And even in those cases, some of their poorer members would share their silverware. For the commoners, however, their hands would more than suffice for their meals.

Although black bread was coarse, difficult to eat, and at times mixed with sawdust, it was quite nutritious. And people could rely on it to fill the bulk of their dietary needs. Moreover, for some strange reason, the inhabitants of San Soliel could generally expect to live to 60 years old if they didn't pass away violently.

The dwarves of San Soliel possessed impressive skills when it came to crafting metal equipment. But even among them, only the most talented would pay attention to the aesthetics of their creations. Most focused on enhancing the quality of the materials they worked with and bestowing magical attributes to the end results.

Thus, delicate tableware of the kind that Old John received was something that few would bother to spend time crafting. Consequently, fine cutlery was worth more than its weight in gold.

Earth's industrialized economies, however, had mastered the art of mass production. By standardizing production, they could match the skill of the dwarves on a consistent basis.

By giving away the fork, Louie was basically throwing away a luxury that only the highest class of nobles could enjoy.

"My dears, look at what I have brought back!"

Old John returned home and first put the bags of flour and meat on the table. Then he called over his wife and children. He carefully put the wooden box on the table and opened it.

"Oh… Gods… this is a dinner fork?! Such a fine dinner fork. John, tell me honestly, where did you get it?"

John's wife covered his mouth. She was excited at first but soon revealed a frightened look. She was afraid that John had gone through illegal means to get it.

Although their new lord was extremely generous, his punishments were equally harsh. In Dragon City, any crime was subject to severe punishment. These were often corporal in nature and involved some element of torture. In fact, as the level of medical knowledge was quite low, a good whipping could often be the death of an unlucky convict.

"Don't get too excited, dear! This is a special reward from the lord for all my hard work. It is an item enchanted by a great mage, and it will not rust!" Old John said smugly.

"Lord God above! The lord actually granted such a precious item to us?"

John's wife's eyes were red. She trembled and caressed the stainless steel fork, which was worth more than her own family in her opinion, with her rough fingers.

"Shhh! Silence!" Old John spoke with a stern expression.

"Although the lord did not explicitly say it, many of us have held private discussions. This territory formerly belonged to the Theocracy, but now it's already in the hands of the honorable city lord. In the future, do not recklessly speak of 'God'."

For unknown reasons, the Gods had not shown their miracles for a long time. Although devout priests were still able to obtain their blessings, most humans could no longer communicate with them. Therefore not everyone had faith in the Gods.

Perhaps when the Gods were able to finally influence the continent again, a new battle of faith will occur.

John's wife quickly covered her mouth and whispered, "Then what should I say?"

"Say, 'The Great Dragon watches'!"

John said seriously.

"Yes, the Great Dragon watches!"

The couple bowed their heads in reverence. Recently, the people of Dragon City felt as though they were in heaven. Their hard work was properly rewarded and they went to sleep with full stomachs. For the ordinary people of this era, this was simply a luxury, their greatest desire!

Their impression of the dragon had slowly turned from fear to respect and allegiance. If the Theocracy were to take back the city at this moment, these commoners would resist with all their might.

"Dad, dad. Let us touch it too. Can we?"

Old John saw the look of longing in the eyes of his son and daughter. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "Okay. I'll let you touch it. From now on, this is our family heirloom. You must always remember the greatness and generosity of the lord and preserve this fork, okay?"

"We understand, dad!"

Old John was very happy to see his children behaving so well.

At dinner time, old John and his family sat around an old wooden table. Good quality white bread and a few thin slices of meat were served. Old John carefully tore the bread and held onto the stainless steel fork. With a clumsy reverence, he picked up the bread with the fork and placed it into his mouth.

He handed the fork to his wife who did the same before passing it on to their children.

Old John had seen the nobles eat like this. The only difference was that they had dinner plates and other items, but the forks they had used were definitely not as exquisite and beautiful as the ones given to them by the lord!

At this moment, Old John truly felt that life was worth living. He could actually experience what it was like to be a nobleman!

The dinner was interrupted by a series of loud knocks from the front door. Old John stood at alert, and his wife put away the fork. The couple feared that someone coveting the tableware had come to steal it from them.

He carefully picked up a loaf of black bread from the table and crept towards the door. If the person in front was a suspicious character, he would instantly bonk them on the head with it.

Reaching the door, he opened it with a single violent motion but was stunned when he saw all of his neighbors waiting outside.

"Hey, Old John? I heard you got a reward from the great lord?"

"They say that the hardest workers were given gifts today."

"The boy two blocks away who used to work with me got a dinner plate from the lord. It's really enviable."

"My brother's wife's cousin…."

"The second aunt of my great-uncle's next-door neighbor…."

"…."

His front porch was alive with all sorts of conversations. Old John finally understood that he was not the only person who had been rewarded. Other residents were also rewarded with a variety of things, and not just dinner forks.

He immediately became more enthusiastic and motivated. If he worked hard and showed more of his hard work, maybe one day, they could be rewarded with a full set of tableware.

"That… Old John, can you let us touch it… the fork?"

Someone rubbed his hands and asked carefully. All of them looked at him hopefully.

Such a scene happened in many corners of Dragon City.

…

At the capital of the Silver Moon Kingdom, Sisna and a large number of elves had finally arrived. After a long journey, they had finally delivered the food safely.

Chapter 74

Thousands of hippogryphs soared through the sky, the flap of their wings kicking up strong winds in their wake. Beneath them, horse-like beasts of burden dragged carriages laden with rations to the forest. As they neared the woods, the trees seemed to part slightly, as though making a pathway for them.

After the caravan passed by, the trees moved back into their original positions, closing the path and erecting a barrier for the Silver Moon Kingdom

The Silver Moon Kingdom had about a million elves, and practically no elves on the main continent lived outside its fold. It was as large as the largest human empire.

These treant protectors had been guarding the front lines of the Silver Moon Kingdom for thousands of years. With their forest network, they could create the most suitable environment for elves to fight in. Even if tens of thousands of troops were to invade, the labyrinth they built would cull them in droves.

In addition to the huge magic barrier that protected the elven city for thousands of years, the queen of the elves was also a demigod. Even if other demigods were to invade, they would only be able to take a single step forward before falling into danger.

The current state of affairs took millennia of effort given their birth rate challenges.

After entering the Silver Moon Kingdom's borders, Sisna saw a bird fly through the fragrant air. Before her lay a dense network of tree branches that hoisted greenwood houses.

Palm-sized fairies flew among the flowers. Fauns looked curiously at the large contingent of elves without saying a word and rushed towards the center of the kingdom. On top of the tall trees in the distance, a group of druids who had transformed into moonkins bowed towards Sisna and then continued to inspect the magical barriers of the kingdom.

The sprites and dryads seemed to be startled. They timidly looked at the happy expressions on the elves driving the carriage.

The Silver Moon Kingdom was not only the land of the elves but also a gathering of many races that loved nature and freedom. They had also been living here in peace for many years.

The blue sky and white clouds, the clear streams and springs, the towering trees and vibrant flora, the rainbow and treehouses might make the Silver Moon Kingdom look like it came out of a fairy tale, but it was not as beautiful as it seemed. Poverty and hunger were also existent in this place and were difficult to solve.

Even some countries in the 1960s still experienced famine. For an unproductive race like the elves, it was already incredible that they hadn't gone extinct.

Sisna took a deep breath. She felt the natural and peaceful atmosphere of the Silver Moon Kingdom quickly calm her mind. She then urged the hippogryph beneath her to fly towards the royal palace.

When she arrived at the Ancient Tree of Life, Sisna's expression became humble. She walked up the rainbow bridge leading to the palace. Under the lead of the maids, she entered the palace and once again had an audience with the elven queen.

"I know the purpose of your arrival. You've done well, Sisna… You have brought enough rations for us to get through the winter."

Carandia's voice rang out. Despite her praise, however, there was a slight edge of helplessness to her tone.

The Forest of the Moon was located in the south of the continent. While it could avoid the worst of the winter cold, food was still difficult to find during this period, and starvation was rampant. With the dragon's boon, this year would definitely be a comparatively better one.

The elves could not increase their population easily. And although they had many strengths as a race, they had just as many weaknesses. And so they had not been that successful in the recent wars against humans.

This time, the queen was pleasantly surprised yet anxious at the refined wheat that Sisna brought. Because elves lived long lives, even the most common elf occasionally indulge in pleasures as human nobles did. However, when there was nothing else to eat and they were starving, they would have to eat black bread like everyone else. But if they were allowed to eat the white bread baked from this refined wheat, then the next time, they might rather starve to death than go back to eating black bread.

Elves were a hard-to-please race, so the queen decided to use the refined wheat to exchange for more coarse grains from human society. It was better to use quantity to meet the needs of the races.

"This is what I should do, Your Majesty! As a member of the elves, I should give my efforts for the growth of the race!"

Sisna kneeled down on one knee and performed the ancient elven salute. She lowered her head as much as possible to not meet the gaze of the queen. Because of the queen's immeasurable transcendent charm, even a legendary rank ranger like her would sometimes be captivated even if she had been with the queen since childhood. Her mind would fall into a trance and feel ecstasy.

The queen's beauty had already reached the level of a curse!

"Are our people getting used to life in Dragon City?"

She had sent thousands of elven soldiers and even noble elven maidens to Dragon City. Even if she understood that this was the right thing to do politically, she still felt guilt at such 'betrayal' to her fellow elves.

"That…" Sisna was hesitant.

"Are they not having trouble living there?"

The queen sighed softly. The nearby trees and flowers seemed to wither with her mood.

She knew that elves were uncomfortable with life outside the forest.

"No, our people are not too resistant to living in Dragon City. The city is now neat and clean under the lead of Lord Caracolon. Although it's not as good as Silver Moon City, the people have already adapted."

Sisna could only say it like this, and it wasn't really a lie.

She could not just say everything to the honorable queen. It was impossible for her to tell her that her people were now happily eating and drinking in Dragon City as compared to the Silver Moon Kingdom!

The dragon lord disliked keeping fruits as they went bad easily. Other than leaving some of them, the rest was rewarded to the elves. Although the fruits had some differences from the fruits inside the Forest of the Moon, they were indeed fruits – sweet, delicious, fresh, and juicy.

They were also able to enjoy white bread and exquisite meat, which was unlike the chaff and water in SilverMoon City.

Other than elven officers, who got to enjoy white bread from time to time, ordinary soldiers never even had the chance to taste such fluffy divine cuisine.

The elves were not a productive race, and even among humans, only great nobles were able to enjoy such food at all times. It was simply impossible for ordinary soldiers to enjoy it.

If the queen were to visit Dragon City now, she might just faint. Those handsome male elven soldiers had lifted up their sleeves and were laying bricks. A few druids had even changed into their bear forms and were moving heavy slabs of stone. The city lord was very pleased with all this and rewarded them with gourmet food that Sisna had never seen or heard before, as well as exquisite and delicate utensils.

Metal was not rare, and the pattern was barely accepted by them, but the light and smooth beauty that could not be made by an ordinary craftsman was simply a work of art to them!

Now, bricklaying was the most sought-after job in the entire Dragon City. There had even been conflicts between humans and elves, as the humans felt that the elves had stolen their bricklaying work!

Chapter 75

"Your Highness, Lord Caracolon…"

Sisna told the elven queen everything that happened in Dragon City. She even told her the declaration that Louie told Marches to make on behalf of him.

"Up to 200,000 tons of refined wheat?!"

Although the elven queen's face was covered in perpetual fog, Sisna could also guess that her queen was very astonished.

"That's 200,000 tons of refined wheat! Even if all the human kingdoms banded together, they would not be able to produce that much. If he can freely let his citizens enjoy such grains and give them to us in such large quantities, then perhaps it's not that he doesn't know their value, but that he can easily obtain as much as he wants."

"Can we obtain more of it? Where did lord Caracolon get it?" Sisna asked in shock.

"Perhaps he found a realm that can produce food in abundance…"

"No, that shouldn't be. If there really was such a realm, then why don't others know about it?"

Sisna stammered and asked. She had this kind of speculation before but felt that it was a bit illogical, so she did not dare make such a judgment.

If there really was a realm full of food, then the entire world would undergo a huge change.

"The sea of stars is so vast. Even the Gods cannot fully understand it. In addition to the famous realms, there are countless unknown realms that haven't been discovered. Even those well-known ones haven't been fully explored… Moreover, outside the Crystal Wall System, there are extraterrestrial organisms that exist. And those existences…"

As she continued, Carandia suddenly became silent, as if she finally noticed that she could not just blurt these words out and closed her mouth.

Although Sisna was still somewhat curious about the so-called Crystal Wall System, she knew that she should not ask since the queen had fallen silent.

"No matter what happens, whether Lord Caracolon found a realm that produced food or other reasons, as a demigod, no one can peer into his secrets, not even the Gods. If a demigod was unwilling, their secrets would forever remain a secret. But the strange items described by Sisna's words make the possibility of him finding an unknown realm very high. Moreover, that realm has a fairly developed civilization."

After saying this, Carandia hesitated. This was because the main continent was already the center of the multiverse. The upper realm was where Gods were located, while the lower realm, known as Abyss, was where demons were located. Although civilization in the main continent seemed to be underdeveloped, it was in fact the most developed in accordance with the theory of civilization!

Under normal circumstances, there should be no other realm that was more developed than the main continent!

But Carandia would never imagine that Earth was not in their Crystal Wall System at all, but a different universe altogether. This world's Gods did not have the ability to travel to another universe, and Louie didn't rely on magic to do so.

Realizing that it was an unsolvable mystery, Carandia chose to stop thinking about it. As she had said, if a demigod wanted to hide a secret, even true Gods would not be able to find out. Their prestige was nothing to scoff at.

"As for Lord Caracolon transforming Dragon City into a trade center… It seems his political acumen is quite impressive. By doing so he can diffuse any hostility with the humans and beastmen and warn us not to try using him."

Carandia laughed helplessly and sighed again.

"How could that be?"

Sisna whispered. She had always felt that the elves and the mighty dragon had a good relationship. If they didn't then why would he give the elves so much food?

The elven queen gently patted Sisna's shoulder and said in a warm voice, "Elves are too arrogant. Sisna, you are also quite arrogant. You respect Lord Caracolon's power, but you don't respect his identity as a dragon. You and many people still carry disdain within you and think that dragons don't understand politics. You don't even care about the favorite means used by humans."

"Your Majesty, I…"

Sisna bowed her head deeply. A touch of shame flashed across her tough and stubborn yet pretty face.

"You need to exhibit the proper attitude, Sisna Susiril. Remember that your surname is the same as mine, which in the old Elvish language means 'favorite of the moon'. Lady Silver Moon will always be watching you…"

She continued, "I raised you from childhood and treated you as my own daughter. You are now my other half and have not failed me. Four hundred years ago, you also stepped into the legendary rank. Although you are a ranger general, the elves have always treated you as their princess, and you cannot fail them."

"Put down your arrogance. You have to treat Lord Caracolon as one of those conniving human politicians. You should also be careful of him and not be deceived by his flowery words. His wisdom is as deep as the abyss. He is not someone who would be impressed by words alone."

Carandia's words made Sisna feel ashamed. Her delicate pretty face reddened like a bashful flower. The queen's words made her realize that she had really thought of Lord Caracolon as an ordinary dragon, thought that the elves could easily influence the thoughts of the dragon by just following the normal routine, and thought that they could easily turn the dragon to become their gatekeeper.

It seemed that she made things too simple. In fact, the elves and the lord dragon were more like allies, providing assistance to each other. If one side lost their eligibility to be allies, then the relationship would change immediately.

"Lord Caracolon is also considered as an outlier among dragons. His political awareness reminds me of the queen of the Dragon Kingdom."

Carandia shook her head slightly.

"The queen of the Dragon Kingdom? Isn't that a human?"

Sisna asked in confusion.

This was the common knowledge of the main continent. The Dragon Kingdom signed a covenant with the dragon race. The dragon became the protectors and nominal owners of the kingdom, while the royal family of the country only had the right to manage the humans and other races within the kingdom.

"This is one of the secrets of the main continent. Only a few people know that there is no such thing as a royal family in the Dragon Kingdom. From its establishment, the Dragon Kingdom has been ruled by a silver dragon known as the Mythril King. She is also an ancient dragon, and one of the few in their race that could be called a 'Dragon King'. She has been ruling the kingdom as a human, and she serves as the queen of each generation!"

Sisna opened her mouth wide. She did not expect that there was such a secret in the far northeast Dragon Kingdom.

These dragons were really outliers. One of them actually learned to be the ruler of a kingdom for thousands of years and actually governed it well!

Carandia chuckled at Sisna's surprised astonishment and said, "Go check the storage for the food, Sisna… Those foods are important to us elves. Let some of the people bring a portion to the human kingdom and replace them with more common wheat."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Sisna respectfully saluted and left the royal palace.

When Sisna went away, Carandia sat down on her wooden throne woven with rattan wood and picked up a strange bag on the table. Inside it was the bread filled with chocolate sauce that Sisna had gotten from Louie.

The queen's jade-like fingers easily tore open the bag and tore a piece of the bread. She gazed down at the brownish-black chocolate sauce and brought it to her lips.

Only after a long time did she let out what seemed to be a moving sigh, "… Thirty thousand years. It's already been thirty thousand years since I've enjoyed such delicious food."

Behind Carandia, a silver moon rose. At the center of the silver moon, what seemed like a faraway kingdom could be seen.

"Thirty thousand years, and you are also about to open your eyes…

Chapter 76

Dragon City, The Dragon's Nest—

Louie lay in the center of a blooming garden, enjoying the warm sunlight.

A dozen beautiful elven maids were diligently tending to his needs. Some sprayed his scales with sparkling water and rubbed them with soft cloths. Others stayed by his mouth and cleaned his teeth with large brushes.

At present, he was focusing on a small book in front of him.

This was a book of spells that Marches had lent him. Within it was the details of spellcasting, from the level of parlor tricks to 6th rank magic. After learning of its convenience on Earth, Louie was determined to raise his skill. It would make fooling Earthlings a lot easier in the future.

However, magic was really obscure and difficult to understand. Learning magic from scratch made Louie feel a headache. It wasn't difficult for him to learn spells from the 1st rank to the 3rd rank. By virtue, dragons had a high affinity for magic and learned quickly. But starting from the 4th rank spells, there were many requirements to cast them. They were so complex that Louie felt like he was looking at advanced mathematics.

He now realized why there were so few mages in this world. This was not something normal humans could learn!

"Forget it. I shouldn't be too anxious, Let's take this slowly."

Louie shook his head and was not too worried about the situation.

Magic was only a stop-gap measure in the end. If he really wanted to become stronger, he needed to find the energy sources on Earth and bring them back to San Soleil so that he could evolve. His road to greater strength was not that difficult.

But convincing the people of Earth to believe in the supernatural would greatly help him find the energy sources. This was why learning magic became fairly important.

"This is so troublesome. It's like I've become a student again."

Louie had found three paths that he had to progress along at the same time. The first path was to find the energy sources on Earth. As long as he brought them back to San Soleil, he could quickly reach his perfect form and gain the divine power of the Gods. He wouldn't even need to fear Earth's military anymore.

The second path was to master a divine domain, understand the secrets of the Gods, and use faith to make himself a God of this world. As long as he could become a God, then he could stand on the same stage as them. At that time, with the power of a God combined with the power of his evolution, he wouldn't need to fear them.

As long as he reached the ends of these two roads, he would become the strongest on Earth and in San Soleil. As for what happened after, there was no point in making predictions.

Finally, Louie needed to master the power of magic. It was, after all, more convenient than divine power.

The path to becoming a God was not really restricted to learning spells. Gods and job-holders are two entirely different systems. Some Gods may be warriors, thieves, or rangers by profession. Not all Gods were mages and could use magic.

Unless…

"Unless I obtain a divine authority related to magic… It doesn't have to be a full authority. Even a small fragment would help me learn spells."

Louie felt a headache. Wanting to obtain a specific divine authority was too hard, but not impossible.

For example, the godhood inside his soul was from the Dragon God. The godhood had already lost the concept of domain formerly held by the Dragon God, but if Louie used it well, he might be able to perform many miracles.

"I should find some time to test godhood. I should also learn how to use my treasures. There isn't much divine power remaining in the godhood, but it is still very useful. If my own guess about the Gods is correct, then I might be able to quickly learn magic."

Louie pondered.

These past few days, Louie had been able to feel the beliefs of the residents of the city. He had not created his own religion, but the people of the city had already taken the initiative to pray to him. Although these beliefs were not as firm as general faith, with a bit more guidance, he could cultivate them into true believers.

This was the power of the sugar-coated shells of capitalism, and his intended method from the beginning.

It was a pity that he was a dragon with just a godhood, but not a real God, so he couldn't efficiently convert the faith into divine power. The road to becoming a God was already difficult. Countless blessed children in this world used up to thousands of years, yet were unable to succeed. Those that had tried to reach the Gods were countless. Louie already had the godhood of one of the former highest Gods. His path to becoming a God was already a lot easier compared to normal people.

After learning for an entire afternoon, he felt quite tired and looked to the side.

The elven noble maiden standing at the side blushed. In an instant, she knew what Louie was intending to do.

With an embarrassed face, she lowered her head and lightly pinched her clothes. Her heart thumped loudly and complained in her heart that the dragon was always bullying her.

But in the recent period of time, Louie's teaching already made her able to endure it. Two other maids quickly poured some kind of juice that was a mix of honey and herbs on her body.

The honey and herbs were the specialties of the elves. For the human nobility, these were luxury goods that elves used to exchange with the humans.

It didn't take long for the elf's body to be coated with honey and herbs, emitting a sweet fragrance, as if she was a human-shaped candy.

This was the dragon's afternoon dessert.

Louie felt that being a lord of a city in another world was truly great, especially in one as racially colorful as this world!

Chapter 77

A babbling stream coursed through the palace garden. Within it, the noble elven maidens washed their bodies; they lifted water from the stream up with wooden ladles before dousing themselves with the clear liquid. Each drop carried within it flecks of their aromatic essence.

Prior to this, their entire bodies had been covered with honey, and so they needed to cleanse themselves to feel comfortable once more.

They whispered among themselves, occasionally casting glances in Louie's direction. None dared to meet his gaze, however. And soon, their voices rose in volume as a playful atmosphere overtook them.

Initially, some had thought to refuse Louie's orders if they went too far. But none of them truly had the guts to do so. After all, they hadn't the right to refuse his orders given their statuses. That said, Louie did not go out of his way to scare them in any way. And so all their fear was self-generated.

Louie rose up and stretched his neck. He spread his wings and took to the skies in a tour of his territory.

Recently he would do this on occasion to manifest his presence.

He couldn't do it every day as it would form a pattern. Once he left for Earth for a longer period of time, his enemies would be able to tell when he wasn't present. At that time, disaster would strike Dragon City.

The time interval between his patrols also couldn't be too long either. Otherwise, it would make the residents forget that he, the city lord, existed and become detrimental to his rule.

His giant body flew to the skies. Compared to his initial identity as an enemy of the city, his current body was now a lot smaller. At that time, he was a demigod with a body over 300 meters long.

Another change was that the people of the city no longer feared him. When they saw him in the skies, they would salute him from the bottom of their hearts, some would even kneel down and pray to his figure

By satisfying their materialistic desire, Louie had obtained their reverence. He believed that over time, he would also be able to obtain their heartfelt admiration. That would prove to be a source of substantial faith.

These 100,000 people were the foundation of his believers!

Dragon City was not large. It was equivalent to a small country town. In truth, there weren't many especially large cities in the world of San Soleil. The largest on the continent was the capital of the Empire with an estimated population of one million. This was the limit of the era.

Cities with populations of more than ten million did not exist in San Soleil. A city of ten million would consume an astronomical amount of resources every day, and no force would be able to support that high a population. Even cities in Northern China would require the entire country to supply it. Given their relatively low level of logistical development, such megacities were infeasible for all.

Louie's goal was to keep Dragon City's population below 500,000. If it exceeded that, Dragon City could actually weaken as internal forces vied for power.

Under the eyes of the people, Louie quickly finished his patrol.

The buildings in the city had mostly been built. With the resources and food that Louie provided, everyone worked together to build a normal residential district.

The once dirty streets had become much cleaner. At the very least, they had fulfilled Louie's minimum requirements. New houses had also been erected for those who had lost them in the fire.

The noble district was a bit slower because of its more detailed requirements. But Louie was not in a hurry, because the first people living there were elves and humans who had major contributions to the project. There weren't many of them.

"Dragon City is backed by the San Soleil Mountain Range. It's rich in minerals, forests, water sources, and fertile arable land. These are enough to meet the needs of the city, but because it is inland instead of by the sea, salt is a bigger necessity."

Louie was now more and more like a lord. He even treated this as a simulation game. It's just that there was no system to tell him what to do like a game and had to think of everything himself.

"Salt shouldn't be a problem. Earth's salt reserves are enough to meet the needs of billions of people. I should find some way to bring some salt over next time."

Earth never lacked natural resources. But because salt was a necessity, the ruling class used to control it in their hands as a means of domination.

"Marches' research is almost done. Based on his research, I have to decide if I will bring more wasabi or not…"

"But I can't leave Dragon City before it stabilizes. I also have to find a way to get stronger. Looking for wasabi and salt is not as easy as randomly looting a cargo ship, since cargo ships would only carry a small amount of these items. I may need to find a representative on Earth to help me do these things, but that means I also have to move on land."

Louie leaked out a human-like expression. How was he going to move on land without being noticed by anyone? How was he going to be able to control more of Earth's resources? These were tests for him.

Since he created 'Cthulhu' on Earth, he had to double down on his deceit. He needed to make the people of Earth believe that Earth was dangerous and that many terrible monsters and evil gods exist. Only when his strength truly reached the level of the 'Great Old Ones' would he be able to turn the lie into a reality.

"I also have to plan how to develop Dragon City. Since I'm limiting the population inside the city to 500,000, the food there should be enough to satisfy 500,000 people. It seems that I have to let the residents raise cattle and sheep instead of farming. That way I can have them make more cows, milk, meat, wool, nectar, and other luxuries of the era. Only in this way can my city become the morning star of civilization. I should also establish my own financial system."

"Moreover, as long as I have a monopoly on food channels, no one in Dragon City would betray me. Betraying me would simply mean the demise of the entire city!"

Louie let out a pleasant laugh. He found himself thinking of ways to centralize his authority.

"Ah, there's still a lot of work to be done. Dragon City should also have its own army. Well, let's just take it step by step. I should first enjoy my time more."

Thinking of those beautiful elven maids, Louie was reluctant to leave.

He originally thought that anime and cartoons were just lies, but when he became a dragon, he found that he was not deceived. There were some things that humans simply could not do, but a dragon can.

The strongest people in the world would often have their nicknames. And so he decided to call himself the Black Beast King.

Chapter 78

The great dragon city lord, the self-proclaimed Black Beast King Louie, had returned to his lair at the peak of Dragon City.

The city itself was constructed upon a mountain, with the center of the city at its peak and the remainder built upon the downward slopes.

At the peak was naturally the lord's residence, which was now Louie's lair. His residence was the palatial church that the Theocracy had constructed over its 300-year administration of the territory.

Below the lord's residence was the noble district, but it was largely devoid of any of the original nobles as most of them had run away during the siege. A small part of those that remained had been killed under Louie's orders. They had irritated him with their clamor over their heritage and history within the city. He had promptly declared all of their past accomplishments and rights as moot within his new administration.

According to his plans, the future nobles' district would be populated by talented individuals as well as their families. Although he would not confer upon them de jure nobility, in the future, they would certainly form a new caste of aristocrats.

As he had never been oppressed by nobility before, he held no strong feelings about their past actions. Nevertheless, he despised the cycle of oppression such a system generated. Even commoners who had once suffered under the yoke of aristocrats would become torturers themselves after being granted superior positions.

Well, that would be a matter for the future, and he might not be around to witness it anyways. It was very possible that he would have ascended by then. It was not like he could convince them about the merits of democracy anyways. In this world, the average level of intelligence was quite low, and they wouldn't understand why it was a better system.

Below the noble district was the largest district, the civilian district. Gazing upon the neatly organized rows of buildings, the squarish area contained residences, market spaces, town squares, and offices. In the future, it would contain entertainment hubs. It was a far cry from its initial filthy and chaotic state.

Now that the construction had finished, all Louie had left to do was wait. It would not be long before the city would truly begin to thrive.

Louie landed in front of the church and stepped through its gates. In order to show the greatness of the Gods, the Theocracy had crafted large and magnificent doors. This was quite convenient for Louie given his size.

Hanging over the wide hallways within were multicolored beads and golden strips. The path was illuminated by soft candlelight, and various oil paintings decorated the walls.

Each depicted some mythical story or legend. In time Louie would replace them with renditions of his own great undertakings.

In the chapel, many human girls, diligent and nimble, were busying themselves. They were originally commoners' daughters. As the church was too big for just a dozen elven maids to clean, they assigned the elves to the inner chambers while the humans worked in the outer ones.

Because they were only commoners, their etiquette and skills were mediocre. After being intimately familiar with the beautiful elven maids, Louie didn't find them particularly interesting. Anyways, they only needed to work diligently.

In the vicinity of these maids were some members of the church. These people were captives that were originally members of the Theocracy's priests. Louie captured them and did not kill them. That was because they knew how to use holy magic to heal ordinary injuries and illnesses. They were a lot better than doctors who did not know much. As a result, they were kept to render their services to Dragon City.

Additionally, because they were members of the church, they knew how to maintain the luxurious buildings and interior. Keeping them to command the maids would increase the efficiency.

It was also fortunate that the Gods hadn't revealed themselves for a long time. Otherwise, a few might have declared a crusade against him for daring to use their captured priests.

In some ways, it was the Theocracy's fault. Their administration had a dislike for mages, who believed in the God of Magic, and so had discriminated against them. Thus very few mages lived in Central City to start with. And when Louie burnt half of the city to ashes, most of them were killed.

Perhaps it would have been better to capture them and have them serve the city.

Seeing that the great lord had arrived, the priests cowered and hurriedly saluted. The maids who were working were at a loss and they just followed their motions

Louie was lucky that the remaining priests were of insignificant rank. Had they been prominent and well-regarded clergymen, catching them would have been useless, as none would serve him. That would, after all, be a betrayal of their covenant with their God. So even if Louie tried to force them, it would be pointless.

The closer a priest was to their Gods, the stronger they would become. Furthermore, they could not allow their faith to waiver. The stronger priests would receive much harsher backlashes for breaking their covenants than the weaker ones.

With a magnanimous air, Louie nodded at the servants and turned to his heap of gold coins.

The priests were quite relieved. At first, they felt trepidation over serving the dragon, fearing that it would cook them one day. Fortunately, it seemed much more intelligent than its kin. Furthermore, it was much more involved and effective than most human rulers. Even they could not help but doubt its race.

Louie lay on the gold mountain with nothing behind him. Louie was thinking of building a huge statue of himself there in the future. It would replace one of the goddesses that the Intelligent brain had used for the permanent positioning device.

"Master! Master! Good news! Good news!"

Just as he was formulating his next plans for Earth, Marches' joyful shouts interrupted him.

Chapter 79

"Master, master! Good news! Good news!"

Marches stumbled into the hall in an excited mess. He quickly straightened his disordered robes before continuing towards Louie

Louie eyed the panting mage curiously, "Why the excitement, Marches?"

Mages were traditionally quite level-headed. And even when Louie had caught him filling his pockets with valuables, the old sorcerer had managed to come up with a suitable response on the spot, preserving his own life.

Marches hurriedly walked up to his lord while keeping his gaze towards the ground. He began "Master, I have finished refining 'Louie's Essence' and have obtained the magic origin element inside."

Saying so, he pulled out a small crystal vial.

At this, Louie was shown another instance of the heavy expenses associated with magecraft. For just a simple magic potion they would need to use expensive crystal bottles. He thought about it briefly, but could not come up with any reason why the container needed to be crystal. Was it its transparency? Or perhaps it was its ability to contain volatile substances? If it was the former then he might have another leg up over the inhabitants of San Soliel.

The inhabitants of San Soliel had invented glass long ago. However, the finished product was often very cloudy and couldn't match the clarity of modern glassware. Its use was often restricted to crafting stained glass windows.

Louie looked at the crystal bottle in Marches' hands. It was small, about as large as a small perfume bottle. Within it lay a dark green-colored liquid reminiscent of wasabi.

If it was actually wasabi flavored, it would be very difficult to drink.

"Is this the magic origin element?" Louie asked in a deep voice.

"Yes, master! This is the magic origin element that I extracted from the plant you provided. Save those with innate racial magic abilities and freak geniuses, most people need to drink this potion to be able to use magic. Until one reaches the fourth rank and fully adapts to magic, they will need to drink this on occasion."

Marches was ecstatic, "The experiment was a success. The refining process is not difficult. As long as there is a large number of raw materials, I can produce it at a constant pace."

Louie gazed at the small crystal bottle. He knew that the liquid inside was also the so-called 'mage's currency'. It was much more expensive than gold and was something that mages would need to use throughout their lives.

"Is refining the magic potion the good news that you are talking about?"

"No, great master. Other than successfully refining the medicine, I have also performed some large magical experiments on 'Louie's Essence'. Praise the great and supreme dragon. Those plants… those plants can't be grown on the main continent at all!"

Marches' next sentences were a little incoherent, but his enthusiasm was clear for all to see.

Louie was also excited and unconsciously revealed a touch of joy.

This was indeed good news. If wasabi could not grow in this world, Louie would not have to worry about it propagating across the world.

Perhaps because of special energy fluctuations, some of Earth's plants could not grow in San Soleil. By and large earth's botanical composition was radically different from this world's.

But no matter what the reason was, this was amazingly good news for Louie.

The obvious benefit to him was that he would have a complete monopoly on the magic origin element. With Earth's abundant resources, he would be able to gain a steady supply of it to raise a large number of mages. His dream was slowly inching towards reality.

With enough magic users, his city would transform significantly.

'When I return to Earth, I should bring back more wasabi!'

"Well done, Marches!"

Louie raised his head and complimented the old mage.

Marches suppressed the excitement and joy in his heart and tried to act humble by saying, "This is all due to master's grace! It has nothing to do with me."

"Hahaha! I am just a lord. Since you have made a contribution, I will naturally reward you."

"Marches!"

"Yes, my great master!"

"Next, I will provide you with a large number of raw materials. You need to turn them into magic potions. A portion of it would be yours to keep. Then I want you to use the magic potions to train enough mages so that they can become your assistants. Have them assist you in manufacturing magic potions. Of course, you can still enjoy a portion of their labor. Do you understand?"

This was equivalent to him opening a company. Louie would become the largest stockholder and the main financier, while Marches, who would own a smaller portion, would be in charge of day-to-day operations and management.

As long as Louie provided enough raw materials, he could stay completely hands-off. He was the only one who could procure the raw materials, and he could just leave everything else to others.

Marches were not stupid. With just a bit of thinking, he could tell that this would bring great benefits to him in the future. Although he would be tired at first from manufacturing potions and training mages, as long as he finished training the first batch of mages, he could just let them do all the work later while he supervised the line. He would then be able to obtain the magic element without doing much.

With wealth, Marches would be able to exchange a large number of magical materials for his own needs. With such a large amount of money, Marches felt that even pigs could become mages, let alone a talented person like him. Moreover, the path to reaching legendary rank would no longer be a dead end, but a spacious road!

"O great and supreme lord, I, Marches, swear that I would be your eternal humble servant. Let me be in your service forever!"

Although he had already signed a master-slave contract, he still swore an oath to display his loyalty. Marches kneeled on the ground and prostrated in admiration. He was so excited that he almost shed tears as though his very body and soul were subservient.

Louis nodded with satisfaction.

He was now the founder of the exploiting class. Later, he would become a capitalist who would squeeze every drop that he could from others while lying down on his gold mountain and watching his wealth grow!

Just then, a female elf guarding the palace came running. She called out urgently in Elvish, "Lord, there is an emergency!"

Louie looked at the female ranger and his expression sank, "Speak!"

His words were brief and concise.

"Lord, a group of beastmen have suddenly appeared outside Dragon City. They are currently being confronted by the elven guards!"

"Beastmen?"

Louie's first thought was that some beastmen had come to attack the city.

Chapter 80

Above the desert hung a clear sweltering sky as the sun beat down on the earth with all of its heat. The horizon shimmered in all directions, and save for short cacti which had sprung up from the shifting sands, the land showed no signs of life.

Beneath the shadow of one of these cacti crawled a scorpion. It had dug its way out from the sand below and had just begun its day.

Unfortunately, its day was cut horribly short as a heavy boot crushed it into the earth. The scorpion squirmed under the deadly burden but soon came to a standstill. A sharp dagger reached down and sliced off its stinger and head. Two bony fingers grabbed its corpse.

"Just remove the head and tail, and it's ready to eat."

The voice was high but husky. Undeniably female.

The woman was tall for this era. About 5 foot 10. Her skin tone was a healthy wheaten color, and shone with an unbelievable gloss. On her torso was a breastplate that exposed her flat belly.

Her physique showed all the signs of vigorous exercise and training. And though she did not quite cut the bulky figure many male warriors did, she was clearly quite toned.

The most unbelievable thing was the beautiful wolf ears growing on top of reddish silver hair. As long as one had a bit of knowledge of San Soliel's races, one would know that this woman was a beastman, or to be precise, a member of the beastmen's wolfman race,

She was Lysed Blood Blade, a member of the Blood Blade Clan and the daughter of its previous chief.

She flung the dead scorpion into her mouth and began to chew.

"It tastes really bad… Almost like rotten meat. Still, it's enough to fill up my stomach."

The wolf girl revealed an unsightly yet brash smile.

"Your Highness, you should drink some water!"

At this time, a beastman who was two meters tall and wide came over to meet her. His head was ursine, and he carried a soft leather pouch in his hand. It was dried up, and not much water remained in it.

"No, try to leave as much water for the clansmen. As for me…"

Lysfer rejected the soft pouch. She picked up a sharp dagger and cut off a part of the cactus-like plant. Then she used her dagger to dig out the ooze inside the barbed plant. She licked her dry lips and placed the ooze into her mouth.

It packed a very astringent punch, but she had to make do. She waited for the water content inside the ooze to flow down her throat before spitting out the rest of it.

The bearman looked at Lysfer's dry lips and tightly squeezed the pouch in his hands. A trace of heartache flowed from his eyes.

'Her Highness grew up to live such a hard life. When we lived in the clan city before, her highness was still able to eat meat with her strength and identity. She could even eat white bread made from refined wheat. There were also water resources everywhere unlike now where water has become a luxury.'

"Do not pity me. As one of the heirs of the previous chief of the Blood Blade Clan and as your chief, the last thing I need is sympathy and pity. That will make me look weak. My greatest wish is to lead you all to survival."

Saying so, Lucifer looked behind herself. There were probably about a thousand beastmen sitting under the blazing desert, taking small sips of water from their leather pouches or carefully chewing on dried meat.

This was the reason why Lucifer refused to drink water. She wanted to leave the limited amount of water behind for these followers who had followed her out of the city but suffered so much.

These beastmen were all different. There were humanoids with wolf heads, bear heads, tiger heads, leopard heads, and even dog heads. There were also some who only had animal-like ears and tails.

They were an extremely diverse race. No one knew whether males or females had evolved more completely from animals, but they both had human characteristics. Their hands had completely evolved, and they walked on two legs instead of four. In some ways, males were largely different from females.

The males still maintained the appearance of animals above the neck. Humans would definitely be unable to distinguish whether they were ugly or not. On the other hand, females were no different above the neck, making it easy for humans to appreciate their looks. The only difference was that they grew animal ears or tails.

"Your Highness, you are still our leader and one of the heirs of the Blood Blade Clan!"

The bearman heard Lysfer's words and quickly spoke in a low muffled voice.

"Hahahaha! Stop trying to comfort me. I have already lost the duel for the clan chief and my inheritance. Now, I only have my own strength and you people. Other than that, I have nothing."

Lysfer laughed out loud, full of vigor, like a wild older sister. Towards her current dire situation, she did not feel pained but instead felt acceptance at her own insignificance.

"My only responsibility right now is to protect you and find you a new place to live… before you all lose your lives."

Lucifer looked at the people behind her. Other than the warriors who had retained their strength, the other civilians already looked weak, as if they could collapse at any moment.

Seeing this, the wolf girl who was completely unconcerned with herself, felt grief.

She was now just a stray dog. How could so many clansmen choose to follow her nonetheless…

Chapter 81

"If it wasn't for His Highness Wardec choosing your weakest moment to challenge you, how could you have been expelled from the clan! How could he become chief of the Blood Blade Clan! If not… if not… he would still just be your elder brother!"

The expression of anger and grief appeared on the bearman's face. He roared, "His Highness Wardec is too despicable and shameless. Acting so like a human is a disgrace to us beastmen!"

"Hahaha! I thank you for giving me your approval. Perhaps my elder brother, Wardec Blood Blade, had some slight inclinations towards humans, but his actions were still in line with the beastmen traditions, were they not?"

Lysfer laughed as if she did not care about the injustice done to her.

The bearman's face twisted. He opened his mouth to retort, but in the end, he just sighed helplessly and nodded, "Yes, Your Highness. You are right. Even if His Highness Wardec's methods were a bit shameless, he still followed beastmen traditions. His chieftainship is going to be recognized by the ancestral spirits."

The composition of the beastman country was completely different from humans. Although the beastman country was unified as a whole like human empires, their rule was much closer to separate kingdoms.

There were countless large and small clans in the Beastman Empire. Their ruling class wasn't like the humans' where royal families existed. The Beastman Empire's great chieftain was equivalent to a human emperor, but the position was not based on inheritance. They followed an extremely fair and ancient way of deciding it – through duels!

If the beastman country was compared to the human empire, then the leaders of each clan were the lords of a territory. The leader of each clan was called a chief, and the combination of the clans was the complete beastmen tribal group.

The ancient beastmen were purely nomadic. With their clans as the foundation, they wandered the fertile grasslands, raising large numbers of cattle and sheep.

Now, they are different from the past. The small clans still lived a nomadic life, but the larger clans built their own cities, and a portion of them even learned to plant, but because of the lands they occupied as well as their lack of technical know-how, their farming productivity was even lower than humans'.

A new great chieftain for the beastman country would be selected once the previous one grew too old. At that point, the chiefs of the big clans would gather at the beastman nation of 'Aldore'. In the presence of the ancestor of the beastmen, they would carry out a collision of flesh and bone to decide the next chief.

This was the most sacred and most undefilable battle of the beastmen race. It represented the glory of the beastmen. If anyone dared to use petty tricks in this sacred battle, they would immediately be scorned by the entire race.

When every clan chose a chief, they also used dueling to decide. The only thing different from choosing a great chieftain was a right of inheritance. In other words, only the children of the previous chief had the right to succeed the clan. Only when the heir was too useless and could not gain the recognition of the clansmen, then it would be possible to change the chief.

The Blood Blade Clan which Lysfer belonged to was a relatively large clan. It had its own city at the east of the country. Each clan was composed of many races. Very few clans preserved the ancient tradition of having only one race.

The chief of the Blood Blade Clan belonged to the wolfman race. Lucifer and his brother were the only heirs with the qualification to become the chief. In noble and royal families, having a lack of excellent heirs was a headache, but in this generation of the Blood Blade Clan, they had two good heirs, which presented their own problems.

Lysfer and her brother were famous in the entire beastman tribe. They were both young for beastmen and had already reached the ninth rank. With their age and the talent that they displayed, the wide road to becoming legendary rank powerhouses was in front of them.

But just a short while ago, the Blood Blade Clan suffered a terrifying disaster. The original chief, Lucifer's father, died in the calamity, and she was also lightly wounded.

The clan could not remain without a chief, so after the crisis was over, a duel would be held between Lysfer and her brother to choose the new chief.

But no one expected that after the disaster ended, Lucifer's brother initiated a duel to elect the chief before Lysfer's wound had fully healed.

Although many people were suspicious of her brother taking advantage of the situation, it wasn't completely out of line with their tradition, in which an heir could initiate a duel at any time as long as the chief was killed in action. There was no requirement for both sides to be at peak strength.

That was because, in their dictionary, injuries were not an excuse to escape a fight, only death was!

As a result, Lucifer had to fight. She could have chosen to surrender and be the loser, but that was a great shame to their race.

The two siblings were equally talented and understood each other's skills. With Lysfer's injuries, she rightfully lost the right to inherit the clan. She was the complete loser and would become a slave.

But perhaps because the siblings were related by blood, or perhaps because Wardec was a little ashamed of his own methods, Wardec gave Lysfer freedom and exempted her from the identity of a slave.

Although the beastmen were more civilized now than before, they still practiced slavery. The defeated would become the victor's slaves and would follow the victor's every command. Lysfer obtaining freedom was a blessing amidst misfortune. Otherwise, with her beauty and strength, it wouldn't have been strange for her to be sold as a sex slave.

This way, Lucifer was driven out of the clan, but no one expected that a small number of people who once followed her were willing to continue following her. Thus the current scene.

They crossed deadly deserts, walked through dangerous jungles, surmounted poisonous swamps, and finally arrived here.

They were a group of homeless wanderers; losers who had lost their homes.

Lysfer felt sorry for her own clansmen who followed her. So, she tried as hard as possible to look for a new home for them, but doing so was far easier said than done. Countless of her clansmen had died on the way.

As the defeated, there was no place for them in the beastman country. Lysfer knew that if they wanted to join a different clan, they could only join as slaves. For her, this was absolutely unacceptable. It was fine if she was alone, but she could not let these people who trusted her lose their freedom.

It was also impossible for them to join the human countries. The insidious and cunning humans were in a war with the beastmen. Going to them was the same as betraying the beastmen.

Lysfer also thought about grabbing a territory in the war but with only a few hundred warriors, who were hungry and weakened, they would not be able to do so. Even in the off chance that they could, they would not be able to defend it and everyone would just die.

So, Lucifer was thinking if maybe they could live deep in the mountains, swamps, or forests just like those weaker races and monsters, to find a piece of land that could allow them to survive.

"Your Highness, do you remember the information from the caravan we met earlier?"

The bearman looked at Lysfer's wild yet despondent look and couldn't help but speak.

Lucifer was moved and raised her head, "Are you talking about Central City? The demigod dragon's new territory?"

She understood what the bearman was implying.

It might indeed be a way to solve their crisis. If they could not survive in the territories of humans and beastmen, then maybe joining a dragon was a good choice.

Lysfer thought so as well.

Chapter 82

While the idea of going to Dragon City was good, it was quite hard to execute in practice.

Dragons had long been associated with slaughter, madness, arrogance, and moodiness. They were extremely temperamental.

As a beastman who had reached the pinnacle of the ninth rank, Lysfer knew more about these things than most.

She was also aware of the way their temperaments matured as they grew older. Adult and prime dragons often fit the mold of the stereotypical dragon. Many times a country was destroyed overnight due to falling afoul of one's temper.

On the other hand, the older members of their race were a lot more sensible and affable. They were practically polar extremes compared to their younger selves, and as long as they were not provoked, they had no problem with extending goodwill to others.

'Primordial dragons should be far older than ancient dragons. So the dragon that has occupied Central City should not be too brutal…'

Lysfer thought this way, but she was still worried.

Beastmen were not brainless creatures, but they preferred to use their muscles to solve problems. As a beastman that had reached the ninth rank, it was impossible for her to be too dull.

"If only I had reached legendary rank…" Lysfer sighed.

Anyone at the legendary rank would be respected wherever they were. As the title itself implied, they would be venerated in their eras and be the principal protagonists of whatever age they lived in.

If Lucifer was really of legendary rank, then even if she had lost, she would not have found it difficult to gain significant status under another power.

Though the ninth rank and legendary rank were but one rank apart, the distance between them was immense. And if one managed to traverse it, their entire being would change.

"But becoming a legendary rank is even harder than what it takes to become all of the ranks before it combined."

Lysfer sighed but cheered up again. Ninth rank going to legendary rank was not the same as legendary rank to demigod rank. Going from legendary rank to demigod rank not only relied on resources and aptitude but also unreal amounts of luck. Personal efforts and struggle still formed a major part of transitioning from the ninth rank to legendary.

Lysfer felt confident that she would take this step in her lifetime.

"Your Highness, big bro! The clan has finished eating. Let's take a short break and continue our journey."

At this time, another bearman walked over from those who were resting. As far as any could tell, he was almost indistinguishable from the bearman next to Lysfer. This was because they were twins.

"Thanks for your hard work. Let's move after a short break. The desert is too dangerous, and they say that a large number of scorpions live underground. After the fight with the sludge monster in the swamp, it's best we avoid unnecessary battles. As a beastman, I had never been afraid of fighting, but now, we are not allowed to fight!" said Lysfer.

The bearman brothers nodded their heads in agreement.

"Your Highness, have you decided our next destination?"

The bearman's brother could not help but ask.

"Central City… No, according to those people from the caravan, the city is now called Dragon City. We will go to Dragon City!"

Lysfer stood up. Her gaze was cold and ruthless, like a lone wolf walking on the prairie.

"We are not yet close to Dragon City, and we don't know how much danger we will encounter on the way there. I just hope that our clansmen can hold out and that the lord there accepts us…" Lucifer fell silent before continuing once more, "The caravan also said that the dragon announced that he was willing to accept the allegiance of any race. Heh heh, let's just hope that isn't a fabrication."

"We will likely lose some more clansmen. Nevertheless, we need to make the journey. After we cross this desert, we might find some prey that can give us enough rations to reach Dragon City. Even if I have to die, I will make sure you guys get there"

Lysfer spoke with a cold solemnity.

In this journey, she did as she said. Every time they encountered an enemy, she would rush to the forefront. With her powerful strength, she exchanged her wounds for the survival of more of her clansmen. This was something that clan chiefs needed to do.

Unlike human generals and lords, beastmen chiefs rushed to the forefront. It was only then that other beastmen would grant their allegiance.

"Inform the clan to set out. Our destination – Dragon City!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

…

Dragon City was a strategic force surrounded by many powerful adversaries.

On a mountain ten kilometers away, a guard post had been set up there with two elven guards watching over it.

The San Soleil Mountains were covered with snow, but the view at the top of the guard post was wide, capable of seeing tens of kilometers to the east. As long as a group of more than a hundred people moved together, it was impossible to hide from this post unless powerful magic was used.

The two elves wore thick cotton robes. They chatted while gazing at the distance.

In fact, elves were not suitable for guarding in a cold place, but the two elves were willing to do this difficult task.

They only needed to keep watch for a week and then rotate with someone else. Thinking about the rewards that they would receive for their performance, they had no complaints about the poor condition.

"Eh? Do you see something there?"

One of the elves suddenly pointed to the distance. The elves had excellent eyesight, allowing him to see dense black dots in the distance slowly advancing towards the city.

"Those are… beastmen? Could it be that the beastmen had sent some troops to attack Dragon City?"

"No, those don't look like soldiers. Unless they've gone crazy, they wouldn't dare send such a small army against Lord Galakrond… Moreover, you should take a look at them. Most of them don't even look like soldiers."

"Go ahead and inform the guards protecting the city. You should also inform the lord of what is happening here."

One of the elves spoke, but he was not afraid of these beastmen. Let alone the mighty Lord Galakrond, just a few elven soldiers sent out from Dragon City was enough to get rid of this force. That said, he still maintained a militant wariness.

The other elf nodded, "Then I'll go ahead and inform them first. You should be careful not to be discovered by them. Try to follow these beastmen to see what they are planning to do."

The elf blew a whistle, and a snow leopard ran from the distance. He mounted it and after saluting to his companion, soon disappeared into the snowy distance.

Soon, Louie and the elves received the news, causing an army of a thousand strong to assemble and await the arriving group of beastmen.

Chapter 83

Lucifer looked at the clansmen walking through the San Soleil Mountain Range. The cold air from the mountains blew on their bodies and sent shivers through their bones. Still, they managed to hold on thanks to their thick fur.

"We are almost there. Just ten more kilometers!"

Lyser shouted loudly to cheer up her people.

Although they could not see it clearly, they could faintly make out the outline of the city in the distance.

The original Central City, now named Dragon City, was built in an admirable location. Its back was against the mountains, allowing it to block the cold winds coming from the north. At the same time, it received the warm winds of the southern plains. The two sides formed a delicate balance that allowed the city to experience the pleasures of the four seasons.

The beastmen were in turmoil. Lysfer clearly sensed the joy emanating from the hearts of her people. They had never once thought that Lucifer was deceiving them. They believed in her words, and they believed that as long as they could reach Dragon City, they would have a place to stay, that they would no longer need to wander.

Lysfer still wore her trademark smile, but in places where others could not see, her eyes would flash with gloom.

Would the lord of Dragon City accept them? Would they be treated as its citizens? She had heard that the main race living in Dragon City was humans and some elves. Would they fit in?

As various thoughts plagued Lysfer's mind, she kept a stoic expression. She could not show any sign of unease, as it would only bring anxiety to her people.

If the dragon was not willing to accept them, then other than powerful warriors like her, the fate of the rest of her clansmen would be death.

They were already quite far from the beastmen country. They were now in human and elven territory, and in most cases, they could not hope for any kind of preferential or egalitarian treatment.

'Even if I die, even if I have to give my everything, I must make the dragon accept these people who voluntarily followed me!'

Lysfer vowed secretly. Even if she had to sacrifice everything, sacrifice all her dignity as a beastman, she would beg the primordial dragon to save her people. This was her last role as the heir of the former chief and a person close to the legendary rank.

Lucifer took a deep breath and continued on. Her footprints and her clansmen's footprints left a long track on the pure white snow.

When they first left the city of the Blood Blade Clan, there were more than 2000 people, but along the way, more than a thousand had died. Now, only about half of them are left. This was partially thanks to them being beastmen. Even the untrained women and children were able to fight like soldiers as long as they picked up weapons. This was perhaps power that came from their beastly instincts.

But these people were not recognized as soldiers within the tribe. They still belonged to the civilian class. Those that could truly be called warriors numbered about 400-500. Over half of both the warriors and civilians had died when they crossed the swamp.

"We must succeed!"

This high and proud lone wolf girl swore once again.

As a self-proclaimed assassin of the ninth rank, and as a member of the wolfman clan, Lysfer's five senses were very keen. She was able to detect someone spying on them. She didn't need to think about it to know that it was a sentry from Dragon City.

'We are just seeking shelter… and do not have any malicious intent.'

Lysfer murmured. She had countless ways to uncover this sentry and kill him, but as she said, they were here to seek shelter and not attack the city.

If she wanted to take down a city protected by a primordial demigod dragon, Lysfer knew that even if the people behind her were replaced by elite soldiers and multiplied by a hundred, it would still be insufficient. They would definitely be eradicated with a wisp of the dragon's flames.

Any powerhouse, even a ninth rank powerhouse would still be exhausted to death if they were surrounded by an endless stream of enemy soldiers, but after immortal transcension to legendary rank, there was little significance in the number of enemies. Even if they were to be surrounded by tens of thousands of soldiers, they would still have ways to escape. Moreover, powerful legendary rank mages had powerful spells that could wipe out legions of soldiers.

To surround a legendary rank powerhouse, you would need to surround them with powerhouses at the seventh rank or higher or a single legendary rank powerhouse of the same rank.

On the other hand, against demigod rank powerhouses, you would need to exhaust their divine power before you would have any chance of killing them. This was because demigods and true Gods had essentially the same power. The difference between the two was only the usage efficiency and their understanding of divine authority, divinity, divine power, and godhood.

Leading her people, Lysfer continued to move forward. After an hour or so, they were finally able to see Dragon City.

After seeing the huge city that was built against the mountain and composed of continuous buildings, Lucifer was stunned.

This was because the scene was completely different from what she imagined. She was surprised to not see the huge ramparts that should have surrounded the territory. There were only low walls that served no true defensive purpose.

'I heard that a large part of Central City was destroyed by the dragon. I'm guessing the walls fell then, but why haven't they been rebuilt? And there aren't any barriers either.'

Lucifer was curious. The cities in this world were different from Earth. Every single city no matter what size would have moats and walls as well as barriers to protect the city.

'A city guarded by a demigod dragon… I guess no one would dare to invade it…'

Lysfer could only come up with this explanation.

…

Dragon City, Dragon's Lair

Louie had just received the information about the incoming beastmen and immediately focused his attention on the [Protective Detection] spell. Since this was not a high-ranked spell, Louie was able to learn it quickly and placed them in all corners of the city as a surveillance tool. They served as his surveillance cameras.

"These are beastmen?! Isn't that an animal-eared woman?!"

After seeing the beastmen for the first time, Louie's eyes opened wide and he raised his head.

When he first heard about beastmen, he thought that they were all hairy creatures, but he never imagined them to look like this.

That said, they were not all animal-eared women. The males of the species seemed to be closer to the beastmen he imagined.

'There are also some that look like mutts… err, no, that should be a wolf…'

'That said, all the girls are animal-eared girls!'

"Hmph, what a bunch of pathetic-looking beastmen! Just look at the rags you are wearing and look at your spirit with such hunger and exhaustion. You are all one step away from death and no one could save you! But if you are willing to drop everything and serve this great dragon, the merciful I will give you hope to live!"

Louie was originally unconcerned, but his attitude immediately changes. He then practiced what he was going to say while looking for the right tone of voice and let out a laugh of pleasure.

Chapter 84

Lysfer led her people carefully and anxiously to the plains in front of Dragon City. After reaching the foot of the mountain it was built on, the temperature began to warm up. The humidity of the south mixed with the dryness of the north, resulting in a comfortable ambient temperature.

There was a piece of farmland outside the city, but to her astonishment, there was no one working on it.

Save for winter and war, there was no reason for citizens to stop working the fields especially with how important food was for their civilization.

'Could it be that they've treated our arrival as militaristic?'

Lysfer immediately shut down her idea.

They only numbered a paltry thousand, and it was clear that more than half of them were civilians. They might have been able to plunder a few small villages but attacking something the size of Dragon City was simply hitting stone with an egg.

In the past, every time there was a war to take over Central City, the scale would always reach at least 10,000 soldiers while the highest record was 300,000 soldiers.

With the number of her clansmen, the people of the city could easily kill them from a few kilometers away. And the dragon could probably do so even more easily.

An eagle in the sky let out a loud screech. The bear brothers approached Lysfer and whispered, "That is a sentry."

Lysfer nodded slightly. She knew that elves and beastmen were similar, with many people having the 'Hunter' profession. These eagles were their tamed beast and had a functional role in many places.

"Stay alert. Tell the warriors not to act impulsively. As long as the other side does not attack, we cannot make the first move!"

Lucifer said in a deep voice. The bear brothers nodded and each retreated to relay her orders.

The closer they approached Dragon City, the tighter the beastman soldiers gripped their crude weapons. Although the arms were not as excellent as those used by humans and elves, they suited their powerful physiques.

"Oooooooooooooo—-"

Suddenly, there was a whistling sound from Dragon City. Lucifer's blade-like eyebrows wrinkled in a frown. From her experience, she could tell that it was the light and sonorous sound of the elves' war horn.

With the sound of the horn, hundreds of hippogryphs with elves riding on them flew up from the city. These riders hovered in the skies on their mounts and bow and arrow in hand. At this, the beastmen felt great pressure at the possibility of dealing with aerial enemies.

At the same time, lightly armored elven soldiers holding long swords reached the low city walls and bent their waists as they prepared for their assault.

Behind these armored eleven soldiers were teams of elven archers who moved neatly like machinery. Each of them pulled out three arrows and knocked one of them on the bow while holding the other two to the side for easy access.

Judging from their posture and movements, Lysfer knew that this was a well-trained troop from the Silver Moon Kingdom. Although they might not be as good as the Queen's Guards, who were defending the royal capital, they were considered elite. Although there weren't many of them, they were quite orderly and fully capable of fighting a small-scale war.

If the walls of Dragon City were still in place, Lucifer was convinced that these troops would be enough to stop a 10,000 strong siege.

She looked at the elven soldiers holding bows and arrows and gritted her teeth. The majority of elves were rangers. Their archery skills were high, and shooting three rounds at this distance was not difficult for them at all. The beastmen were now trapped with no way to escape.

Humans, elves, and beastmen were the most dominant racial forces on this continent. They had been at war for thousands of years. In the year when the Silver Moon Kingdom was established, beastmen and human civilizations were relatively backward. At that time, the elves called themselves high elves. It could be said that they were nobler existences and also the rulers of the continent.

With the development of human and beastmen civilizations, however, and the population issues the elves faced, the elves were pushed back into the Forest of the Moon, completely taking the defensive.

Although the three races were not irreconcilable adversaries, the relationship between each other was definitely not peaceful.

At the corner of her eye, Lysfer could see some special elves wearing leaves and barks. She knew that these people were druids, who could transform into terrifying beasts on the battlefield. When they transformed, they were closer to beastmen in power.

'Surprisingly, there are even druids.'

Lysfer sighed. Druids, who rarely left the Forest of the Moon, could actually be seen in Dragon City.

"Beastmen, put down your weapons and state your business!"

The elven troops stayed silent for a while after finishing their battle preparations. The elven soldiers in the middle suddenly put away their weapons and stood to the side, creating a long path. At the far end of the pathway, a beautiful elf wearing light armor and draped in a green robe slowly strode forward. She had a longbow behind her back and a sword hanging from her waist. From the subtle patterns and faint fluctuations coming from them, Lysfer could tell that they weren't ordinary objects.

At the same time she saw the elf, Lysfer's pupils shrunk and let out a sucking sound, "Legendary…?!"

She did not expect to see a legendary rank elven powerhouse in Dragon City. She wondered why an elven powerhouse that should be staying in the Forest of the Moon was suddenly here in Dragon City. And the elves even stationed a portion of their valuable army here to guard the city. She imagined that the relationship between the dragon and the elves was quite good.

Lucifer was shaken. If it was just the elven soldiers, she and her clansmen would be able to take down a portion of them if they fought to the death. After all, she was a ninth rank powerhouse. But the appearance of the legendary rank ranger in front of her made her instantly despair. Just that alone was enough to wipe them all out.

"Sisna Susril!"

Other than some reclusive legendary rankers, the vast majority of legendary rankers were well known. Lucifer was able to guess the identity of the elf in an instant.

She was the elven queen's imperial bodyguard, a ranger general stationed in the Silver Moon Kingdom. In private, some people even called her the princess of the elves.

Sisna was not surprised that she was recognized. Her emerald green pupils calmly gazed at the thousand-strong beastmen, or mainly at Lysfer. As a general of the elven race, she was still aware of famous people and the state of the continent, so she was able to recognize this wolf girl.

"Bloodthirsty Hunter Lysfer Blood Blade. Aren't you a successor of the Blood Blade Clan's chief? Why are you in such dire straits? Could it be that you lost the chieftaincy duel?"

Sisna's playful words caused the beastmen to become restless. Many beastmen angrily looked at her. They could not hold back their anger even if they were in front of a legendary rank powerhouse.

Before Lysfer could speak, Sisna's long ears suddenly trembled. She showed a listening expression and smiled after a while, "I had intended to wipe you all out here. You should count your lucky stars. Lord Garaklond is very interested in you. Put down your weapons and surrender. Then follow me to have an audience with the lord, and he will decide your fate!"

Sisna paused. She took a deep look at the group of beastmen that were leaning back and continued, "Of course you can also choose to resist if you are willing to let these civilians meet death!"

Her tone was high and overbearing as she released a powerful aura.

Although Sisna acted humbly in front of Louie, as a powerhouse of the elven race and a warrior known as the Ranger General, Sisna was not a pushover.

After a moment of silence, Lysfer took out the two sharp longswords that she was carrying and threw them to the ground.

"A wise choice!" Sisna said.

Chapter 85

"Everyone, put down your weapons!"

Throwing her twin blades to the ground, Lysfer ordered her followers to drop their weapons.

The beastmen warriors behind her hesitated slightly, but soon their stone axes and hammers fell to the ground in a cascade of dull thuds.

For the beastmen, weapons were an integral part of their lives, and throwing them away was equivalent to giving themselves up. That said, although most of them were muscle heads, they were not complete fools.

They knew that they had no chance of winning against thousands of elven soldiers and a legendary rank powerhouse.

If Lysfer ordered them to fight, even at the expense of their lives, even if they already knew the results, these beastmen would dare fight to the death. But since they were given an order by their chief, they would choose to throw away their weapons for the sake of the civilians behind them, who were not strong enough to fight.

Since throwing away their weapons was tantamount to death, they were now considered to have chosen to sacrifice themselves.

"Very well! I hope you won't be impulsive. Elves are a peace-loving race. We don't want to swing our swords at unarmed soldiers and civilians.

Sisna was calm. This had surprised Louie who was watching everything through [Protective Detection]. Previously, Sisna had been acting like a cute and ignorant little girl in front of him. Other than her beauty, Louie did not pay much attention to her identity and strength.

And today, seeing Sisna's steady orders to the army and confidence in the face of the enemy, he understood that the so-called ranger general was not simple.

It made perfect sense once he thought more deeply about it. She was already close to a thousand years old. Though she could maintain a fairly youthful persona, that was not a young age, even for elves.

Seeing this, his arrogance as a demigod dragon and transmigrator subsided.

He knew that once the divine power in his godhood ran out, he would not be able to compare to Sisna in power, even with his 'railgun'. She might even off him in a few slashes.

Normal people in this world would start from the first rank. After the ninth rank, they could try to step into the legendary rank. After the legendary rank was the demigod rank.

In other words, real demigods possessed abundant combat experience. Even if their divine power was exhausted, they were still considered to be at the pinnacle of legendary rank.

But Louie was different. He was using a cheat to skip every rank and become a demigod. He was definitely not as strong as those who climbed up with sheer effort.

That said, Louie was now a dragon and had already been so for three to four months. So he was not at all unsatisfied.

Besides, no one knew about the truth that he was hiding. As long as he continued his Oscar-level acting performance, he would be able to survive until he finally mastered the power of the godhood. At that point, he could be called a true God.

The elven soldiers cautiously approached the beastmen with their swords pointed at them. Warrior beastmen were still very dangerous, even without their weapons. Aside from high-ranking elves, most of the elven race tended towards skill rather than power.

"Your position will be determined by the lord later. For now, you are not captives, so I will not chain you."

Sisna said this, causing Lysfer to nod gratefully. At the very least, this was a sign of respect for these beastmen.

"Lysfer Blood Blade, follow me!"

Sisna instructed the soldiers to keep an eye on these beastmen, and at the same time instructed Lysfer to follow her.

"Your Highness!"

The bear brothers shouted anxiously.

"You two, protect the clan."

Lysfer glared at them, causing them to lower their heads and stand back down.

The wolf girl crossed the crowd and approached Sisna. The other elven soldiers remained tense while following her movements with their eyes.

Although the wolf girl was not as strong as Sisna, this was only because Sisna was a legendary rank powerhouse. The aura that came out of the wolf girl was filled with bloodshed and death. How could elven rangers who were closely related to nature compare to a genius beastman who grew up from killing?

"Sorry, I know this request may be a little too much, but my people have been hungry for a long time. Can you give them something to eat first? You don't need to give them anything good as long as you can fill up their stomachs a little."

Lysfer lowered her posture and begged Sisna.

Sisna wanted to refuse, but when her eyes swept over the group of ragged beastmen. She saw the pitiful expressions on the dirty faces of the children and the adults who were only skin and bones. She hesitated and said, "Give them some water and black bread."

"Thank you!" Lysfer said gratefully.

Sisna remained unconcerned with her gratitude. Accompanied by a few elven soldiers, they got on the carriage and rode from the foot of Dragon City to the huge palace at the top.

Because Dragon City had been transformed under Louie's hands, the main road was very wide. The civilians on the road were able to easily dodge, allowing the carriage to move extremely fast. It didn't take long for them to reach the palace entrance.

"Maintain humility and silence. Do not talk too much. Lighten your footsteps. And don't make the palace dirty… the lord likes it clean and tidy. I was going to have you bathe first, but I cannot keep him waiting for too long."

Sisna whispered to her as a warning as they walked into the spectacular and gorgeous palace.

Lysfer nodded her head and tried to put away her arrogance. They passed through a hallway with many stone pillars and a colorful domed roof. It brought heavy pressure to her as she could clearly hear her heart thumping. A sense of awe rose up from the depths of her heart.

It was a kind of tension that she had not felt before. Even if she had fought countless life and death battles, she had never been so nervous before.

'I am about to meet the one strongest after the Gods, a demigod. Moreover, it is a primordial dragon of legends. Feeling nervous is normal, right?'

Lysfer could only reassure herself this way.

It didn't take long for the two of them to arrive at the hall where Louie waited.

The glorious hall was inlaid with onyx and precious stones. Gold coins were scattered on the floor and stacked on the golden mountain. On top of the gold mountain was a dragon that let off a dangerous aura.

Although the dragon did not exhibit a terrifying demigod aura, the oppressive atmosphere, the psychological effect brought by the empty hall, and the dragon's condescending gaze mixed together, left Lysfer frightened.

If the dragon in front of her was an enemy, Lysfer believed that she could still raise her sword to attack even in fear, but when begging for something in front of this dragon, she could feel the gap in status suffocate her.

Sisna tightened the grip on her sword, causing Lysfer to quickly kneel down. She would immediately cut down the wolf girl if she dared to show any sign of disrespect.

It was not that Sisna thought that Lysfer could harm Louie, but because she felt that if Lysfer could launch an attack here, then she would have failed her job as a bodyguard. If Lysfer were to accidentally bump into Louie, then the elves might receive his wrath.

Although Louie was acting sensible and easy-going, Sisna would never forget that he was a dragon. An inherently moody creature.

The experiences of the elven maids were sufficient for Sisna to conclude that though Louie was different from other dragons, he ultimately was quite similar in many ways. In just a few days' time, He had almost broken them after rapaciously plundering their innocence. That was a true blue dragon's trademark.

Louie was very satisfied with Sisna's vigilance. In all honesty, if not for his demigod powers, he would not be able to beat Lucifer in combat unless he ambushed her with the railgun. After all, Lucifer was a ninth rank warrior who possessed a wealth of combat experience.

He was just a juvenile dragon at the moment. If he were to confront her head-on, he would have to first become an adult dragon.

The ninth rank might not seem great compared to legendaries, but this was the pinnacle for the mortals!

"Lysfer Blood Blade!"

Only after confirming his safety, did Louie speak in a majestic voice, "Now tell me, why have you come to my Dragon City?!"

Chapter 86

"Become my slave!"

The [Black Beast King] made that declaration to all those he defeated in the mortal world.

However, an unknown researcher believed that the [Black Beast King], who possessed many other titles, did not make such a declaration to all those he defeated, but only to females. Particularly, to beautiful ones.

(Note: This unknown researcher has been so afraid of returning to the main continent for fear of being hunted down by the Dragon Overlord's followers.)

—《The General History of San Soleil. The Divine Chapter》

—–

"Tell me, why have you come to my Dragon City!"

Louie got up, casting a tall shadow down on Lyster. The light coming down from the dome shone on his golden body, making him look like a God descending from above.

Lysfer's body trembled slightly, but the wolf girl managed to keep thinking straight. She immediately knelt on the ground and lowered her proud head, saying, "I ask for asylum, great dragon lord!"

Lucifer had never bowed her head or kneeled before. For beastmen, this was a shameful act. Even in front of their parents, they would never kneel and instead use force to show that they were right. This was their tradition.

But Lysfer couldn't care less. Her heart faltered as she thought about the hungry and thirsty clansmen who had followed her. Thought about their fate while being guarded outside the city, and thought about how they prayed to live in peace and have a place of shelter.

She needed to remain humble. She had to let go of her pride as a member of the Blood Blade Clan and let go of her pride as a genius of the beastmen tribe. Right now, she was like an insect begging for mercy from a great being.

Lysfer knelt on the ground. Her nails fiercely dug into her palms. She lowered her head to prevent the dragon from seeing her expression. Her lone-wolf-like stubborn eyes flashed with pain as she bit her dry lips, causing blood to flow. Her trembling body told others how much courage and price she had actually paid to be able to say such words.

"Raise your head and look at me!"

The dragon's words caused a flash of panic on Lucifer's face. She thought that Louie had seen through her heart that did not want to give in and was giving her a warning.

She quickly collected her spirit and made an effort to appear supplicant and grieved, but it was too against her true nature. Her actual facial expression ended up quite distorted instead.

Lucifer's heart sank. The dragon could now clearly see her reluctance, and she worried that that might have incited its anger.

'Yup, this face is quite beautiful. With this aggressive and wild aura and power, you can't simply find such a girl on Earth… Ah, her body is also quite amazing, this is really too good.'

Lysfer apprehensively looked at the dragon's inverted pupils that were staring at her. The corners of her mouth let out a bitter smile. She felt that she was too stupid to actually show such resistance in front of a demigod dragon.

But, she didn't know that the dragon did not see her will to resist at all and was actually appraising her appearance.

Her silver hair with traces of red as well as her ears emitted a blood-like glow. This might have been the reason why they were called the Blood Blade Clan.

Lucifer had two red stripes painted under her eyes. There was also a rune painted on her forehead that let out a ruby-like glow. It split into two lines that ran down her neck and branched off at her shoulders.

Louie remembered what he saw from [Protective Detection]. It seemed that many members of the beastmen had these painted on their bodies. Perhaps this was a tradition similar to how some human tribes on Earth painted tattoos on their bodies.

There weren't that many tattoos on their bodies, and not only did they not destroy Lucifer's beauty, it even brought out a wilder and savage look, making her look like a lonely wolf king of the savannah.

This queen of a wolf girl aroused his desire to conquer!

"Sisna, you seem to know of this beastman… What is the Blood Blade Clan?"

Fortunately, Louie, being a dragon, could not express a lot of emotions on his face. He thus looked at the elven ranger and asked.

Sisna quickly began, "The Blood Blade Clan is one of the largest clans in the beastman empire. Its chief has the ability to participate in the 'Sakrama' ceremony.'

Louie knew what the Sakrama ceremony was. It was the dueling ceremony of the beastmen to elect their great chieftain.

Louie nodded his head and motioned for Sisna to continue.

"Lysfer Blood Blade and her brother Wardec Blood Blade are the two candidates for the chief of the Blood Blade Clan. They were not only famous in the beastman empire but were also famous among humans and elves. They also have a high reputation for being able to reach the ninth rank at such a young age. They are the most promising beastmen to reach the legendary rank."

"But for the beastman powerhouse known as the 'Bloodthirsty Hunter' to wander and seek refuge can only mean that she lost to her brother in the duel to become the clan chief. I'm afraid it will be difficult for her to reach the legendary rank."

Lysfer did not refute Sisna's words and remained silent. Louie understood that this was her form of acquiescence.

At the same time, Sisna's words allowed Louie to understand many things.

The ninth rank was the limit for mortals. Even demons of the Abyss reaching this level would become famous and be known as a great demon.

The reason why Sisna said that it would be difficult for her to reach the legendary rank involved one of the secrets to reaching that rank. That was something that Louie could not believe when he first heard it.

The word 'legend' was rich in meaning. To become a legendary powerhouse, one needed to establish an actual legend. In other words, to transcend to immortality, they would not only need power but also a 'legendary degree' or 'fame'.

They needed to be known to the world and must have done something that would make everyone remember them forever.

For example, defeating an abyssal demon that wanted to invade the main continent, or killing a powerful monster that was about to resurrect, or leading armies to conquer countries, etc. As long as it was able to spread their name and increase their 'legendary degree', they would get feedback from the world and obtain an opportunity to ascend.

It didn't matter whether the actions were good or bad as long as the things they did were known to the world.

If it followed the logic of 'xianxia' novels, then you would need to train to the appropriate level and reach a certain level of karma. The combination of the two would allow you to advance.

Lysfer losing the duel would probably leave a dark shadow in her heart. Without her identity as the chief of the Blood Blade Clan, it would be hard for her to increase her legendary degree, after all being the leader of a race was the easiest way to obtain this.

As for those legends who have disappeared in seclusion, they all reached the legendary rank before they became low-profile. The actions that they did to get promoted were great things that belonged to them.

Louie was thinking while looking at Lysfer's silent expression.

He suddenly opened his mouth and roared, "Become my slave, Lysfer Blood Blade!"

Chapter 87

"Become my slave, Lysfer Blood Blade!"

The dragon's words struck deep into Lucifer's heart, causing her face to pale. Her muscles tensed up, and her nails dug deeper into her palms, causing blood to flow and drip to the floor.

Sisna's face tensed up. She once again tightened her hand on her sword. Her emerald green eyes were locked onto Lyster. If she made any rash movements, Sisna would immediately cut her down.

Although the wolf girl was closer to an assassin than a brute warrior, and despite having the innate speed of the wolf clan, Sisna was a legendary rank ranger. She was confident that she could cut off Sister's head before she could attack, especially now that Lucifer was in a kneeling position and had no weapons on hand.

But Lysfer did not make such a foolish move. She did not speak out nor did she launch an attack.

She just lowered her head. Her expression changed from anger to pain to helplessness as countless thoughts flooded her head.

If she knew that becoming a slave was a foregone conclusion, she would not have led her people across mountains, deserts, and swamps in the first place. She might as well have submitted to a large clan of the beastman empire.

The beastman empire also had slaves. Lysfer knew the consequences of becoming one. For strong people with noble bloodlines like her, she would be expected to become their master's bodyguard by the day and serve their master at night. The only way she would be completely free was to one day reach the legendary rank. Only then would the slave contract be broken.

Although beastmen formed clans, they recognized themselves as members of the same race. People who lost their freedom and became slaves would still have a chance to live. Generally speaking, after serving as slaves for a duration, they could be released from slavery and join the clan.

And if beastmen became slaves for humans or other races, the results would be terrible. Lysfer understood that those slaves would have a miserable life. They would be forced to work their entire lives and even be whipped until the day their lives come to an end.

Lysfer felt regret. She should have known that becoming a slave was the end result even if she came here. Now that she was far away and had refused to become a slave in the beastman empire, she no longer had the qualifications to refuse.

She believed that if she refused, then those elves and the terrible dragon in front of her would not hesitate to kill her and her people.

It would be her arrogance if she made a choice that made her and her clansmen become slaves forever. Even if they resisted here, they would not have lost glory as beastmen.

Lysfer noticed that this might be the most painful and craziest choice in her entire life.

Louie saw the twisted expression on the wolf girl's face. Although he did not have the ability to read minds, he could tell what Lysfer was thinking. According to what he observed before, Louie knew that the wolf girl was a good chief that thought of her own people, but this was also her weakness.

"Lysfer Blood Blade, as long as you are willing to become my slave, I will allow your people to live in Dragon City as citizens. As long as they abide by my laws and perform their duty as citizens, then they can obtain rights as citizens!"

One of Louie's claws rummaged through the mountain of gold coins below him. He took out a magic scroll and threw it over.

Louie had asked Marches to prepare several copies of master-slave contracts. As the master, he had already written his long name on them. This contract would take effect the moment someone signed their names on the slave line.

"After becoming my slave, everything that is yours will be mine. From your body to your soul, from your will to your mind: all will become my possession! But if you reach the legendary rank one day, the contract will expire and you can choose how to live your life!"

Louie's inverted pupils gazed at Lysfer, putting her under great pressure.

The spell created by the master-slave contract was only effective against those below legendary rank. Even if those above legendary rank signed it, it wouldn't go into effect. Probably only Gods could make those legendary rank powerhouses into slaves.

So this was not a complete dead end for Lysfer. Louie was giving her a bit of sunshine and a bit of hope.

Seeing Lysfer's struggling expression and intent, Louie's mouth smiled like the devil.

Lu Xun once said, when you try to tell people to open their windows, they would not agree, but when you propose to tear down their walls, they would suggest opening their windows first.

In the same way, Louie first laid out harsh conditions that would have a high chance of being refused, then he followed up by lowering the conditions. Sure enough, the wolf girl would waiver and agree.

As for whether she would go crazy and attack him when she reaches legendary rank, Louie only snickered.

With her character, she placed priority on her clansmen. When her clansmen had been subdued by everything the city had to offer, she would also be the same. At that time, it would be impossible to leave this paradise.

Whether it was material satisfaction or spiritual needs, she would become a plaything in his hands!

That's right. From the beginning, Louie only cared for this beautiful wild girl that was like the queen of the wolf clan. As for the other beastmen, they were simply add-ons.

Lysfer gritted her teeth. She felt that this proposal was acceptable. If she had to choose between her entire clan being slaves or death, she would choose to die with her clan, but if only she was turned into a slave and the clan could be saved, she would resolutely choose the latter.

However, there was something else that she needed to clarify, "As citizens of Dragon City, what obligations do my people need to fulfill?"

"As the lord, I will give them housing, fields to cultivate, and cattle and sheep to raise. If they are not willing to do these, I can also give them jobs so that they can support themselves… They will not suffer any discrimination in Dragon City. If there are humans or elves who discriminate against them, then I will treat them equally according to my law and punish those who have done so!"

After saying so, Louie looked at Sisna. The elven ranger bowed slightly to him, indicating that the elven clan would definitely follow the laws of the lord.

"This will be the treatment for the civilians. As for the beastmen warriors you brought, they need to join the army of Dragon City. In addition to those received by civilians, they would also receive enough money and material subsidies. Naturally, they must also receive my military training with the elves and humans!"

Louie laid down his requirements. Before all this, he reluctantly became the lord due to the permanent positioning device, but now, he was serious about being a lord. He would the city the way he wanted just like in those simulation games.

Lysfer exhaled and did not hesitate. She said, "As long as these agreements are written into the contract, I am willing to sign it!"

She did not ask the price she needed to pay, because the word 'slave' already said it all.

Even if the dragon brought her to the square and had the rest of the city watch as they copulated, or if it ordered everybody to have sex with her, she could not resist and could only suffer in silence as a slave.

"No problem!"

Louie used his claws to flip the contract and added more terms.

As a magical creature, Louie had a high degree of compatibility with magic. It was easy for him to change the contents of the contract as long as it wasn't yet signed by both sides.

Louie wrote the contract in the common language of the continent. After carefully reading the contract's terms, Lysfer bit her finger and signed it with blood.

As her name was written, the magic scroll suddenly ignited with a blue flame. At the same time, Lysfer felt a part of her soul was sacrificed to the dragon in front of her. The dragon could now use her soul to ask her to do anything. This was the power of the contact!

At the same time, Lysfer found bizarre symbols appear on the back of her hand, like a seal that had been engraved on her body. If there were people on Earth there, they might recognize the symbols as words – [Louie Black Beast]!

To normal people of this world, they might look like magic runes with mysterious power, but they didn't know that this was just Louie trying to put a mark on his belongings!

Chapter 88

To Louie, the characters were little more than writing, but in the eyes of other worlders, they appeared to be beautiful but mysterious magic symbols.

Lucifer looked at the back of her hand with slight curiosity. She could not tell what these runes were and could only guess that this was a unique crest of the primordial dragon or a mark of slavery.

In fact, Louie could make these words appear anywhere on Lucifer's body such as her face, her chest, her legs, etc. In short, this was just purely Louie's bad taste in hobbies.

"Sisna, have someone confiscate the beastmen's weapons and bring them to the junction of the civilian district and the noble district. Find some uninhabited houses there and let them rest for the time being. Give them food and water in accordance with Dragon City's civilian treatment."

Louie's instructions made Lysfer sign in relief. Her heart finally settled down when she heard the words 'Dragon City's civilian treatment'.

The great dragon was acting according to the contract and did not lie to her, but Lysfer didn't know if the contract could bind demigods.

After a slight pause, Louie spoke to Lysfer again, "For now, you shouldn't go see your people. Write something to reassure them. Tell them that you are safe and warn them not to make trouble in Dragon City. From now on, they are my people. While sheltering them, they must also follow my laws."

"Someone will tell them the laws of Dragon City later. I don't care if they might go against your traditions or customs, you must still follow them. Remember, what I seek is order where everything is in its place!"

"Yes, Master Galakrond!"

Lysfer displayed her full respect as a slave, trying her hardest to suppress her wild nature.

An elven maid handed over animal skin and placed a pen dipped in ink to one side.

Seeing this, Louie's eyebrows raised and finally noticed that there was no such thing as cheap paper. All writings in this world were written on animal skin.

Ordinary documents were written on normal animal skins, while magic scrolls were written on magical creature skins.

But no matter what kind of skin it was, the costs were significantly high. This might also be one of the reasons why there weren't many mages in the world. Mages would need to learn many things. And to learn things, they would need to record down what they learned, but they only had animal skins to write on. The cost of recording things alone would increase exponentially as they continued on their path.

'I don't know how to make paper, but luckily, I can go back to Earth. When the time comes, I can just Google it and then experiment on it when I come back.'

While thinking of this, he also considered if it would cause trouble in the long run. Other powers, after all, could copy it.

But after thinking briefly, he felt that papermaking was ultimately not like cement. The pros outweigh the cons. It would bring great convenience, especially when he trained a large number of low-ranked mages.

In an instant, Louie made his decision.

Lysfer wrote down what she had to say on the sheepskin in the language of the beastmen and handed it to Sisna. After checking that nothing was wrong with what was written on it, she handed it to an elven maid who ran out of the palace and asked the guards to bring it to the beastmen outside the city.

"I like neatness and cleanliness… Take her to the fountain in the back garden and clean her body. Have her change into new clothes, but don't give her your elven robes. I'm afraid that she wouldn't like them."

Louie ordered the elven maids.

Lysfer did not retort nor ask any questions. She just shot a glance of gratitude to him. For a slave like her to be treated with such dignity was already very incredible.

Of course, Lysfer didn't know that in a short time, she would lose all her dignity…

The elven maids performed the ancient elven salute and took her to the garden behind the palace.

Soon, only Louie and Sisna were left in the hall.

Louie gazed at Sisna for a long time, while Sisna kept her head lowered and did not dare meet his eyes.

"Sisna, right now, who do the elves inside Dragon City take their orders from?

Louie's voice was melodious yet calm. It was just a short question, but it carried a compelling aura that made a legendary powerhouse like Sisna tremble.

Thinking back to what the queen had confided in her, Sisna took a deep breath and said, "The elven soldiers inside Dragon City are now the people of Dragon City. When they came here, they lost any connection with the Silver Moon Kingdom."

Sisna and the elven queen had long expected this question. If the primordial dragon was just an ordinary dragon, he would not think about this issue, but the primordial dragon in front of her had lived for an unknown amount of time and possessed an extremely frightening political mind.

"Very well, I am satisfied with your answer.

Louie nodded his head. He slowly plopped down on the gold coins and gems beneath him.

Although Sisna said this, Louie knew that if he really ordered the elves to attack the Silver Moon Kingdom, they would never obey his orders, but as long as his orders were not harmful to the Silver Moon Kingdom, they would completely obey his orders. At the very least, they were not living in the camp of Cao with their hearts longing for the camp of Han.

'That said, the elf queen named Carandia has too many secrets. It's better to be careful with her.'

Thinking about her full name that was blurred out in the contract, Louie was quite wary of her.

'Sisna is the strongest person who is willing to obey me at the moment. I have to make good use of her, but her relationship with the elven queen is too deep. If I want to make her serve me wholeheartedly, I would have to make the elven queen submit as well.'

Louie felt that this would be his mega project in the long run. If the elven queen submitted, then it would be the same as the entire elven race's submission. He might even gain the title of 'elven king'.

'It's fine for Marches to do some auxiliary and internal affairs, but not enough as combat power. I need someone strong enough who will obey my orders… Lyster Blood Blade should be a good choice. The combat power of a beastman should be high, moreover, she's a ninth rank warrior.'

'When she accumulates enough fame, I should find a way to help her reach the legendary rank, but I cannot be too hasty in this matter. I should first let her and her clansmen feel a sense of belonging to Dragon City before I do it.'

'When she finally reaches legendary rank, she will be quite strong. With her excellent bloodline, I can have her give birth to my offspring. I should be able to believe in my descendants born from my bloodline… yup, I should carefully train her later.'

Louie thought so.

'If one day I could become the Dragon God, my descendants would also be called the descendants of the Dragon God. With my exuberant energy, perhaps I can spread them throughout the entire continent!'

Louie thought about many things in this short timeframe, and his eyes shone with light.

After a long time, he finally faced Sisna, "Sisna, I need to build an army for Dragon City, an army involving multiple races and multiple professions! I would also need your elves to join it!"

Chapter 89

"An army for Dragon City?"

Sisna asked gently. She was not surprised by this request. With the wisdom he had shown so far, it was only natural for Lord Galakrond to want to shore up his forces. Building a powerful country would match his grand status.

If Louie knew Sisna's thoughts, his back would be drenched in cold sweat. Naturally, he could manage to govern a city with general knowledge from the present day. But he was far from wise enough to govern a country. Sisna was overestimating his capabilities.

Even in modern society, many poor people still exist, let alone this backward world. Even if Louie started an industrial revolution, it would be beyond his ability to manage it.

"I need a sufficient army to protect the city. After I attacked Central City, many forces must have begun to move. They likely thought that you elves would take control of the city, and prepared to launch an invasion after I left."

"But they never imagined that I, a dragon, would become the lord. Those forces must have been surprised. They can only wait and see. If my expectations are correct, they must be waiting for chaos to erupt from the city due to my inadequacies as its lord, and then they would be able to obtain the city without much effort. In any case, those people only care for the city as a strategic location, not its inhabitants."

"Once they find out that the city is being governed well, the Theocracy and the human empire will probably contact me. At that time, I will also become a thorn to their side, but even they would not dare strike me easily.

Louie slowly lied back down the gold mountain and revealed a cold smile.

Hearing his words, Sisna could not refute. She felt that his words were indeed what the human nations are thinking about at the moment and felt that it was lucky that the elves were not ruling the city. Otherwise, they would be facing tremendous pressure from the human nations.

Now, the pressure was all on the city lord's shoulders.

Sisna finally understood why the queen supported Lord Galakrond to such an extent. This was because the dragon's presence decreased the pressure on the elves, allowing them to have a higher chance of survival.

"Therefore, I would need an army to solve some problems for me. Gods to Gods, mortals to mortals, dust to dust, ashes to ashes. Those who are superior don't need to do everything by themselves."

Louie's philosophical words made Sisna admire him. She hurriedly said, "Milord, the elves of Dragon City will fulfill their obligations as citizens and keep the city safe for you!"

"Of course, I believe in you elves and am willing to maintain a long-lasting friendship with you. After all, it was the elves who helped me in times of difficulty when my city lacked manpower."

Louie slowly raised his head and moved closer to the ranger in front of him, "But compared to those amazing soldiers, what I need more is your dedication, Sisna. I need you, the noble one who came from the Silver Moon Kingdom, the patron of the Silver Moon!"

"I am honored to serve you, Lord Galakrond!"

Sisna bowed her head slightly. Her pretty white face was slightly flushed. It was an honor for her to be praised by an ancient demigod dragon who had survived for millennia.

"You are truly a beautiful elf. I have seen your bravery and wisdom. Your beauty will definitely bloom in Dragon City. I believe your name will also be etched in the history of this continent forever."

Louie's head closed in on Sisna, allowing him to smell the tulip-like fragrance from the elf's body.

However, Sisna's expression that contained a bit of fear had no emotion at all, which disappointed Louie.

He thought that the elf would be embarrassed, but it was his own overthinking. With his current body, no other creature would be able to feel his 'handsomeness' other than female dragons and chimeras.

After all, not all races had the ability to see through the beauty in all creatures like dragons. Perhaps they would only be able to appreciate his handsomeness after he became more humanoid.

"I have a dream; to build a city where all races can live together without hatred. I have a dream where my subjects will say, 'I am a citizen of Dragon City', not 'I am a human, beastman, or elf'. Do you think I will succeed?"

Louie's words were suddenly full of a young man's dreams. The kind that had the pure feelings of a person.

At that moment, Sisna suddenly felt that the dragon in front of her was like one of those minstrels playing romantic poetry, and deceiving a young girl's mind and body.

She froze for a moment. She suddenly blushed and said, "You are a great demigod dragon. Your dream will surely come true. The city will become one longed for and aspired towards by many realms."

"That is also why I let the beastmen live in the junction of the noble district and the civilian district. It's because you elves and some humans live in that area. As long as you all follow my laws, your life habits will gradually change to the point where you can accept each other."

This was indeed Louie's idea. He wanted to integrate the three largest races of this continent together. Louie would require to create a multi-cultural city to accommodate them and have them adopt his culture. When all their habits began to align, their racial differences would grow smaller.

It finally dawned on Sisna that the dragon had such far-sightedness, worthy of being recognized even by her queen. He was truly the great wiseman among dragons!

"Go, Sisna. I have asked Marches to recruit some physically strong humans to train the beastmen as soldiers. When they are used to it, they will also join the army. You should also tell the elves so that they can prepare."

Louie said slowly.

"Yes. I will tell the elves of your wishes."

Sisna bowed and prepared to leave.

"Wait a minute."

Louie called out to her, causing Sisna to stop in her tracks in doubt. He continued, "When you return to the Silver Moon Kingdom, pass a word to Her Majesty that my Dragon City is willing to accept 10,000 of the poorest elves to stay. As long as they follow my laws, they will be given the standard citizen's treatment."

Louie's words stunned Sisna. She responded ecstatically, "Thank you for your generosity, milord! Her majesty will also be delighted by your generosity. Please rest assured. The elves are a civilized race where even the poorest will maintain manners and etiquette!"

Sisna was practically jumping up and down at this point.

10,000 people might not seem much, but for the elves with only a million or so population, 200,000 to 300,000 people were so poor that they did not have enough to eat. Letting 10,000 people out of poverty at once was already a large ratio. If this world had a promotion system, Sisna's performance would already guarantee her promotion!

She believed that Louie had the ability to make such promises. That was mainly because of the 200,000 tons of refined wheat that she had witnessed!

'Praise be to the Goddess! Lord Galakrond is truly the greatest dragon in the world!'

'I also want to praise the Dragon God… but, the Dragon God seems to have fallen…'

Sisna left the dragon's lair with joy.

Seeing the elf leave with light feet, Louie just shook his head and laughed. He slowly stood up and walked towards the garden where the lovely wolf girl was waiting to be trained.

Chapter 90

Lysfer followed the elven attendants to the back of the city lord's house. There she saw a beautiful garden.

It was the zenith of summer, and the garden's flowers were in full bloom. At the center of the garden was a pool built from white marble. Leading into it was a rivulet that trickled down from the mountain's peak.

There were no pathways or walkways within the garden. Its owner was a dragon after all, and it needed the space.

Lysfer's ears twitched instinctively. She looked around the surroundings and briefly guessed her new master's hobbies.

An elven maid walked up behind her and explained, "The water is melted from the whitest snow in the San Soleil Mountain Range. It is a little cold, but very clear and perfectly suited for direct drinking. The flowers here as well as those in the public parks are tended to by druids who cast preservation spells every three days."

The maid continued, "The lord has laid down many laws. The flowers in the park cannot be picked by anyone except the druids. The trees planted in the city can also not be cut down by anyone. Punishments for violators range from light fines to heavy flogging. Although the law is a bit hard, the elves, especially the druids, have great respect for the lord. They even think that other city lords should learn from him."

Lysfer calmly listened to the maid's explanation and quickly surmised her identity, 'How naive. This girl is probably one of those sheltered elven nobles.'

As a former chief candidate of the Blood Blade Clan, Lucifer was one of the smarter people among the beastmen. She had clear managerial talents at her disposal. And if she had become the chief of the Blood Blade Clan, she would have rivaled any human lord in status. Had she gone on to become a great chieftain, then she would match a human emperor.

'What kind of city is Dragon City,'" she wondered aloud. The corners of her mouth rose as she released a bit of bloodthirst. In front of Sisna, she wouldn't have been able to do anything, but these maids would be much easier to probe for information.

As it would be her and her people's new area of residence, she needed to learn as much about it as she could.

"What kind of city is this, you ask? I… I'm also not sure how to explain it…"

The elf girl hesitated for a moment before answering awkwardly, "Th-this place is not as beautiful as the Silver Moon Kingdom. It doesn't have endless woods and flowers, but… but there is a kind of indescribable beauty to it… Moreover, the food here is very good. In any case, I don't really know much. I haven't been to the city that much. You should go take a look for yourself."

Saying this, the beautiful elf's face was filled with embarrassment as her pointed ears went red.

Lysfer sighed lightly. She found that these elves were young girls who did not know much about the real world. They were probably taking care of the lord's everyday needs and didn't think of anything else. This was indeed in accordance with people's impression of them. They were happy and laid-back people who only focused on their duties.

"Then, what is Lord Galakrond like?"

Lysfer changed the subject, thinking that the elves should know a lot since they spent every day with the dragon.

She clearly understood her current identity. She was now the dragon's slave. No matter how noble her previous identity was, she had to throw it all away and serve the dragon, whether it was for her own sake or for her people's.

So, Lucifer had to lower herself, suppress her wild nature, and ask as gently as possible.

If it was before, she would never have any interest in these noble maidens. Their bodies were too thin and possessed little strength. Even the fox girls who were known for their beauty were much more powerful than them. To the beastmen, they were very unlikable.

If they were caught by the beastmen, they would either be sold to humans or be ransomed for money from the elves. That way, the beastmen could gain useful resources.

The elves had probably never seen such a wild and aggressive woman, so they looked a little red and bowed their heads, "Initially we were afraid of the lord, but after spending time together, we found out that the lord is an extremely wise, far-sighted, and powerful demigod primordial dragon with big dreams to match."

"His knowledge is as vast as the endless seas in the south. No matter what doubts we have, he can answer them. He is completely different from the dragons described in the books of the Silver Moon Kingdom, and also… the lord is very wealthy."

The elf's tone was full of worship. Lysfer also agreed to the elf's praises. Based on the calmness and wisdom that the dragon displayed before her, she understood how terrifying the demigod dragon was.

"But…"

The elves suddenly squirmed. They looked around the surroundings in a flustered and shyly said, "The lord is a bit… a bit bad… this thing is too vigorous; to the point that we are overwhelmed sometimes…"

After saying this, the elves acted like startled deers and almost ran away.

They were a group of unmarried elven girls, but now they had to serve a terrifying dragon. They also understood that they have to meet their master's needs as maids.

Lysfer did not think much of this. Even she had already prepared herself to be the target of his venting.

Dragons were obscene in nature. The females of the race were better as they would only go into heat when they encountered beings stronger than them, but males were different. They would go into heat against all female creatures.

Let alone dragons, even powerful human nobles and strong beastmen had the qualifications to enjoy themselves. Some powerful females would also raise a bunch of handsome men to vent their sexual frustrations. This was very normal.

The only thing she had in common with female dragons was their disinterest in weak male creatures.

Lysfer felt that the dragon loving her was good news. She recalled the gold and jewels she saw in the hall and understood that the great demigod dragon was similar to other dragons in terms of hobbies. It also liked treasures and beautiful female creatures. That meant that she could adapt to his tastes.

Lysfer knew that fox girls, cat girls, and even wolf girls were sought after as slaves in human countries, let alone those with noble bloodlines.

Perhaps she could capture women of these clans as slaves when she got an opportunity in the future, and give them to the dragon, so as to bring better treatment to her own people.

Although the beastmen had set up a country, their own clans were still much more important to them. They would conquer other clans and turn them into slaves. Some would even sell those slaves to human countries to gain important supplies. This was the normal behavior of the beastmen. Humans were also the same in that matter. They would also catch other humans, turn them into slaves, and sell them to others.

The only time the beastmen would unite was the time their great chieftain called for them to fight together against other races.

"Miss Lysfer, please take a bath first. Lord Galakrond likes cleanliness."

An elf suggested while looking at the bloodstained body of the wolf girl.

Lysfer readily agreed. She was quite fond of bathing. Even if she was a beastman, she treasured hygiene.

Chapter 91

The cold spring water trickled down Lysfer's firm skin, causing her to tremble for a moment, but soon she adapted and sank into the soothing bath.

"Lady Lysfer, your body is beautiful," The elf who was cleaning her body spoke with unconcealed envy.

Although these elven maids also had excellent bodies, their slender forms had a marked contrast to Lysfer's vigorous and toned physique much like the difference between thin ladies and those who worked out at the gym.

Although the elven maids were envious, they knew that they could not be the same. A ninth rank powerhouse was close to legendary rank in power. Among the million-strong elven population, there weren't many like them.

The corner of Lucifer's mouth raised up, revealing a mouth full of white teeth. Keeping silent, she allowed the elven maids to take off her ragged clothes for her and rinse off the dust from her body.

She was not a mage who could clean their body with a single spell, so she had to rely on water.

Although the relationship between elves and beastmen wasn't very good, it was the instinct of all creatures to revere those that were strong. So, these elven maids were willing to help Lysfer.

"Rumble, rumble…"

Suddenly, Lysfer's stomach growled loudly. Her confident smile broke into an embarrassed one, and she sheepishly asked, "Umm… I haven't eaten a full meal for several days. Can I have something to eat first?"

The elven maids were stunned, but then they broke into laughter, "Lady Lysfer, please come with us."

Embarrassed, Lysfer followed her guides. She did not bother to put on any clothes, and soon they arrived at another open space. A grill had been prepared.

"The great Lord Galakrond is a demigod. He does not need to eat, but he occasionally asks us to cook some meat for him."

An elf explained to which Lysfer nodded.

The elves divided up the work. After lighting up the grill, they placed the prepared meat on the griller. From their skilled movements, it was clear that they had done this many times.

An aroma filled the air as the fat on the meat crackled and popped. Afterward, Lysfer saw an elf carefully take out a small delicate jar with some kind of powder inside.

"What is that?"

Lysfer looked at it carefully and determined that she had not seen it before.

"The lord said that this thing is called black pepper. Sprinkling them on roasted meat would enhance the flavor…"

The elf who said this couldn't help but gulp while her eyes revealed her longing.

'Is it really that amazing?'

Lucifer was surprised. Although she knew that elves eat meat, they only did it to maintain a proper nutritional balance. Elves themselves did not like greasy meat. These elves should have been elven nobles who get to eat well and drink well, but now, her eager expression was too strange in her eyes.

She watched the elves roast back and forth and recalled the past.

Beastmen loved meat. When they lived nomadic lives, they hunted to survive, but they couldn't guarantee a stable supply of it. If the clan was small, then it was possible to do so, but once the population of the clan reached the tens of thousands, then relying solely on hunting and breeding livestock to meet their daily needs was absolutely impossible.

This was the same as the elves not being able to completely live only on fruit. The amount available simply could not meet all of their requirements, and so they had to supplement their diets with wheat and other grains. In this medieval world, filling every people's stomach was a pipe dream.

While Lysfer was daydreaming, the meat was almost done. The elf carefully sprinkled black pepper on the meat, afraid that even the tiniest bit would fall on the ground.

The rich aroma filled the air, pulling back Lyster. She couldn't resist anymore. Once the meat was placed in front of her, she didn't even care if it was still hot and picked it up with her hands before stuffing it into her mouth.

"Wooo"

At that moment, her eyes widened, as if she could not believe the taste coming from her taste buds.

She turned her head and wiped the corner of her eyes, afraid that she would cry. This was different from the roasted meat cooked back in the clan. That meat had a strong stench and was only able to fill their satiety. It wasn't any kind of first-class good at all. After eating the meat, she began to doubt if what she ate before was meat at all.

The elves did not laugh at her, because they also bore the same reactions when they first tasted it. Moreover, because they served Lord Galakrond, they were always given a variety of indescribably delicious foods.

Now, they were quite willing to be Louie's maids, even if he would make strange requests every now and then. They simply did not care anymore, and even their faith in the Goddess wavered from the bombardment of sugar-coated treats.

"Can I… can I have some of these things called black pepper?"

Lysfer's tone carried anxiousness and she stammered. It was so delicious that she wanted to share the taste with her people.

"Sorry, there isn't much black pepper."

Hearing the elf's words, Lysfer was not disappointed and just sighed, "That's right. Such a magical and delicious thing is only something that an existence like Lord Galakrond can enjoy, right?"

"If you perform well, I won't hesitate to reward you with it!"

Suddenly, a shadow loomed overhead. The low male voice was like a teenager but carried the greatness of a towering figure.

Lysfer and the elves were startled before seeing Louie come up from behind them. They hurriedly stood up and lined up before him.

Louie took the small jar of black pepper. It was one of the things that were brought back from the freighter. It had been used by the Neversnar's chef and so wasn't present in the same quantity as other foodstuffs. Because of the limited amount, the elves believed that it was scarce and precious.

But Louie knew that as long as he wanted to, he could easily get a few tons of it!

'This world is really miserable. They haven't even had black pepper before. It's said that some seasonings were more precious than gold in the medieval ages. Only nobles and royalty would get to enjoy them on occasion. The most the public could do at that time was to add salt which was a human necessity and often controlled by the state.'

Louie felt a sense of superiority as a modern person for no reason. He looked at the wolf girl in front of him and told the elves, "It's time for some afternoon dessert. Today's snack is honeyed beastman!"

Chapter 92

Hearing Louie's orders, the elves quickly dispersed to get the required items.

"Yes… Rather than honey, chocolate suits you far better!" Louis looked at Lyster while sighing internally.

He, unfortunately, did not have much chocolate sauce now…

He gazed at the wolf girl and asked leisurely, "You should know what's going to happen next."

"Of course, Lord Galakrond. I have already prepared myself for that."

Lysfer raised her head without hesitation. She had the resolute bearing of a brave warrior currently in captivity. Torture might await her but she was prepared to face it head on.

Louie felt that this mix of stubbornness and trepidation was quite to his liking. If the other party was too submissive, it wouldn't be as interesting to him. But if they resisted too much, then it would distract him. This seemingly willing yet hesitant contradiction was a pleasant mix of both.

"Do you have experience with these matters?" Louie asked once more. His eyes ran over her toned naked form.

"I have no interest in weak people. I am only willing to submit to strong people like Lord Galakrond. In the past, I was addicted to killing and never found someone to my liking…" Lysfer coldly frowned.

"Very well, Lysfer. Remember this. I am a greedy dragon. I will not allow my things to be touched by anyone. While you are here, everything of yours belongs to me. No one else can touch you, do you understand?"

Louie slightly blushed with shame. Beastmen truly lived up to their name with their way of thinking.

"Understood, milord! I have already prepared myself!"

Lysfer, who had already been engraved with a magical imprint, did not refuse him. It wasn't that she had never felt excited in the past, but that she quelled those feelings with slaughter. Now, she could still do so. Of course, if the great Lord Galakrond was willing to settle it for her, she was certainly willing to acquiesce.

Lysfer let out a wild smile as she thought of this.

Louie was undeniably a demigod. Being able to be together with a demigod should mean that she had benefited while the dragon had suffered a loss.

"Go wash her with honey, and then you know what to do, elves!"

Louie moved his claws. The elves who already had a tacit understanding quickly came and took Lysfer away.

'This is authority! This is power! What an addicting thing!'

Louie watched the wolf girl go away.

He suddenly felt glad that he came to a world of swords and magic. If he was sent to a world of immortal cultivation, then people like himself would not be able to cultivate immortality. Perhaps it would suit him better to be born as a devil in that kind of world.

—-

Outside the city, an elf jogged over to the elven army guarding the beastmen.

"The lord said to bring these beastmen to the junction between the noble and civilian districts and assign them houses to live in. And this is a handwritten letter from their chief!"

He read Louie's orders while handing the parchment to the bear brothers.

The leader of the elves had a solemn face and shouted to the other guards, "Split up into a few teams and bring these beastmen over. The rest of you, return to your stations!"

"Yes, captain!"

The elven guards quickly reacted.

The captain frowned at the smell of these long-distance travelers. He did not know how long they hadn't bathed for and thought about how they are about to live close to the elves. He continued, "When you reach the place, make sure they take a good shower. Do not let them defile the lord's city!"

On the other side, the bear brothers looked at the words in beastmen language on the parchment and nodded to each other, "These are indeed Her Highness' words. She said that we should listen to their orders and they would have a place for us."

The bear brothers discussed. Other than Lysfer, these two were the strongest among them. They had both reached the seventh rank. When Lysfer wasn't present, they were naturally in command.

After obtaining Lysfer's instruction, the bear brothers did not resist. Under the vigilant watch of the elves, they walked through the gates of the city and on the spacious road towards the place they would settle.

Thousands of beastmen walking through the city became a magnificent sight. Many people who were working put down their work and came to watch by the roadside. They watched the beastmen walk towards the upper end of the city under the watch of the elven guards.

"This is the first time I'm seeing so many beastmen. I heard that the only time you could see so many is in battlefields where hundreds and thousands of them charge at you."

"Why are these beastmen here? Could it be that they wanted to invade Dragon City?"

Someone raised a question with a voice full of anger. They worked so hard to achieve their current life of being able to eat as long as they worked. They were not willing to go to the past when they had to calculate how much of a black bread they should eat per day.

If these beastmen were not being watched by the elven guards, some people would perhaps be throwing stones already.

"That shouldn't be the case. It's impossible for so few of them to attack Dragon City. Based on the rags that they are wearing, they should be refugees."

"Wow, look at those cat girls and those fox girls. So pretty. I hear that nobles like them."

"But, I don't think they are as pretty as elves…"

The commoners of Dragon City stood on the roadside and pointed as if they were watching circus animals. They didn't fear the beastmen and even inwardly developed a sense of pride that they were citizens of Dragon City.

"But these beastmen really stink. I hope they don't make the city dirty again."

Someone covered their nose and muttered, then with the shout of a supervisor, everyone slowly dispersed and went back to work.

The beastmen only apathetically followed behind the elves. They did not care about being pointed at by the humans. At this moment, they just wanted a place to take a good sleep to the point that even a stable was good enough. If they could eat some food and drink a mouthful of water, it would be even better.

Right now at the city lord's house, their chief's face was slightly pale. Her eyelashes trembled due to pain, and her eyes rolled back showing only their whites.

Chapter 93

"Clean this place up and take her down to rest. After that, let her visit her own people. She likely needs to see them with her own eyes before she can feel at ease."

After he had 'finished', Louie currently bore the air of an enlightened sage. He looked at Lysfer who lay on the garden floor, gasping for breath. He slowly stood up and made for the main hall. After taking two steps away he stopped and spoke, "Have Clooney come here."

"Yes, milord!"

The elven maids knelt on the ground as they responded. Some followed Louie to the main hall, some carried Lysfer and took her to the bedroom in the side hall to rest, some quickly brought mops and other items to clean up the traces of the act, and the remainder went to convey Louie's instructions.

These elves had been in Louie's service for more than a month now and had already divided their duties. Although Louie did not know their specific names, he felt it was enough for him to know their faces and that they belonged to him.

Louie continued lying on the gold mountain. Not long after, the sound of footsteps echoed in the empty hall. A young man was led in by the elves and somewhat cautiously arrived at the center of the hall. He immediately kneeled down.

The young man was wearing simple clerical robes. But the strange thing about them was how he lacked any insignia belonging to any God.

This young man was the young priest who had warned the archbishop when Louie attacked the city. The higher-ups of the Theocracy in this city had run away while some of the priests were unlucky and captured. Louie allowed them to live and serve him as slaves in order to atone for their 'sins'.

Louie did not care about this young man's loyalty. It was enough that he could work. Absolute unconditional loyalty was a myth anyway and any appearance of it simply had to be matched with the right price. Louie believed that as long as he maintained absolute power, absolute majesty, and absolute justice, no one would dare betray him.

"Clooney, what is the progress on the task I gave you?" Louie's eyes bore through the young man, filling him with a sense of dread.

At Louie's side, were several elven noble maidens kneeling on the ground. Despite their beauty, Clooney did not dare raise his head to peek at them. Drenched in sweat he began, with a quavering voice, "Milord, the task you assigned me is almost completed."

"In accordance with your instructions, I have taught all the citizens of Dragon City, whether humans or elves, that they must chant your name before every meal. I also taught them that they must stop their work at regular time intervals every morning to thank you for your gifts."

Louie listened to Clooney's words and nodded with satisfaction.

You might ask what was the best thing about church priests? In Louie's opinion, it was neither the holy spells nor other random things, but – their ability to preach!

For priests and pastors, the main qualifications for joining the church wasn't how strong they were, but how effective they were at proselytizing.

In the past, Dragon City had belonged to the Theocracy, causing most of their inhabitants to take on the same faith. Louie would not allow this, and so after capturing Theocracy's priests, he gave them strict orders to convert the residents of Dragon City into his believers.

If he succeeded, then Louie would let him live. If he failed, then the consequences were easy to imagine. Since the young priest's faith was not that strong and he was quite talented, he became a qualified missionary and did his task well.

Seeing Louie's satisfaction, Clooney was able to relax. After a pause, he continued, "Some people are still stubbornly sticking to their faiths. I have given the list of them to the elven guards to let them secretly deal with it."

Central City had been one of the important cities of the Theocracy. There were definitely some families with extremely strong faith. Louie was not interested in slowly convincing them, nor did he want to waste resources on them, so directly disposing of them was the easiest way.

Dragons could be generous and kind, but that was only limited to their own people and believers, and they were cruel and bloody to their enemies.

"You did a good job, Clooney…" Louie slowly spoke.

The young priest quickly lowered his head and said repeatedly, "It is all because of your generosity and greatness that my work was done so easily."

He was speaking the truth. In the world of scarce resources, the reason why most people believe in God was to fulfill a goal, which was to have food to eat. With Louie fulfilling their wishes, their faith would naturally waver.

Naturally, there were also those stubborn fools who would stay unwaveringly firm to their faith even if they starved to death among the followers of the Theocracy. These people had already been disposed of.

Louie was not a true God yet, so he was unable to bless anyone. Moreover, the conversion of the people's faith into divine power was relatively slow, so he did not let the people of Dragon City directly pray to him, but only subtly influenced them. When he finally understood the godhood and divine authority, then he would be able to turn these people into believers and establish his own religion.

By letting the elves and humans thank him before every meal, he was silently influencing them. This was also a way to prevent the elves from causing a disturbance. If he tried to destroy their faith in the Silver Moon Goddess, then they would begin to distrust him. So Louie simply had them appreciate his grace.

But over time, the faith of the elves in the Silver Moon Goddess would grow weaker until one day, they would become his followers!

This was a simple form of ideological indoctrination. Just like doing morning ceremonies and raising flags every day you go to school, the ritual would subconsciously affect you, so that your own country, your own land, and your own ruler will unconsciously become a firm part of your heart.

'The next step is to carry out basic education. He would print loyalty and belief to him in textbooks to make them start believing in him from when they were born.'

Louie was thinking about the next step to develop the city.

"Clooney, I will give you one more task."

Louie's low voice echoed in Clooney's ears.

He leaned down his body, making a gesture of listening.

"Next, the city's army will be re-established. The beastmen will also join it. You should tell your subordinates to have the beastmen thank me as well. As for you, you will be temporarily stationed in the army, teaching all the soldiers every day and spreading my thoughts!"

Chapter 94

As the sun set in the west, an orange haze spilled onto the streets of Dragon City's noble district, casting long shadows onto the ground.

When Louie attacked the city two months prior, most of the nobles fled in the ensuing panic. Now there were only a few people living here compared to the lively civilian district. Neither the gold-adorned nobles nor their luxurious carriages could be seen anymore.

Louie had also tried to be careful of the upper parts of the mountain where the palace was located. As a result, the damage close to the top was relatively small. Most of the houses still retained their former appearances. Some of the magnificent mansions had also been reserved. They had once served as residences for preeminent earls or viscounts, but they were empty now.

Louie chose not to tear the buildings down. In the future, he would use them as rewards for his followers.

Lysfer Blood Blade walked with a limp. For a warrior maiden who should have been used to injuries on the battlefield, she cut a fragile figure.

Lysfer understood that she was now Lord Galakrond's thing: his possession. Even in the future, she could only go to him, and his strong combat power perfectly met her requirements.

This was the beastman's way of thinking. Other than the humiliation she felt when serving others, she did not reject her own pleasure. She even felt that having a demigod satisfy her was already a huge benefit.

The only problem was that Lord Galakrond was a dragon.

Lucifer looked at the slim figure walking ahead of her and let out a provocative smile, "Elf, how long until we arrive?"

Without the dragon in front of her, Lysfer's fearless attitude once again returned. Although the elf in front of her was a legendary rank powerhouse, she also had the urge to jump forward and challenge her. A true beastman would never easily submit or admit defeat. If not for the sake of her own people, Lucifer would not surrender to the dragon's authority even upon the pain of death.

She did not care about her chastity. It was simply the honor of the beastmen that would have kept her from submitting.

"Almost there. The border between the noble and civilian districts is just ahead. Your people are assigned to live there."

Walking in front of Lucifer was none other than Sisna. When she heard the wolf girl's question from behind, her expression didn't change, and she continued, "We elves also live there. I hope you can control your clan to not cause trouble for us."

"As long as you elves don't come provoking us first, we beastmen are not willing to come in contact with you."

Lysfer and Sisna opposed each other with equal harshness.

The beastmen and elves disliked each other. The elves thought that the beastmen were rude, while the beastmen thought that the elves were effeminate. If the two met elsewhere, it was very likely that they would have fought.

Sisna went silent for a while before speaking in a cold harsh voice, "I don't care how you beastmen regard the elves. This place is Dragon City, and we must follow the lord's laws. The lord also wishes for our races to get along well. Although I find it difficult, I'll try my hardest to comply."

Lysfer put away her wild aura and said in a deep voice, "I don't need you to remind me, elf! We beastmen are a race that keeps our promises. We will definitely comply with what we promised!"

As she said this, she looked at the human noble's mansions and laughed contemptuously, "We are different from those sinister and cunning human nobles."

Hearing her words, Sisna's expression also relaxed, and she nodded in agreement.

The friendship between beastmen and elves would probably depend on humans…

Afterward, the two people didn't know what to talk about and only continued walking forward. They gradually arrived at the junction between the two districts. The houses there seemed to be newly built and were those exquisite houses that were two to three floors. There were also many plots that only had foundations constructed.

Lysfer observed the living environment and felt very satisfied. Although she didn't like humans and elves, she had to admit that their construction skills were much better than the beastmen. Just the common residences here alone were better than the Blood Blade Clan.

Soon, Surfer's ear twitched as she heard the lively laughter coming ahead. She could see spirals of smoke rise up.

Her sensitive nose sniffed and exclaimed, "So fragrant!"

Although she had previously eaten the most delicious roast meat in her entire life, she did not eat much at that time. Afterward the dragon had arrived and had an extreme battle of endurance with her. Now, she was already hungry.

"Your people are over there. Go there by yourself."

Sisna did not pay attention to her anymore after saying her piece and turned to another direction. Lysfer followed her line of sight and saw many trees in the distance. She understood that that place must be the elves' neighborhood.

Lucifer walked in the direction of her people and arrived at an empty lot. The beastmen were crowded together, singing and dancing. There were grills on the lot with meat on them. The fragrance had come from the meat.

Lysfer carefully observed her people. Their bodies were washed clean since the dragon hated dirt. The beastmen had also put on new clothes made with ordinary linen. Some of them were wearing animal skin that they brought with them. Although Dragon City wasn't short on food, it was still short on clothing and other materials. Finding some linen for these beastmen had not been easy.

"Your Highness!"

When the beastmen saw Lysfer, the place went silent and then followed by loud cheers.

The bear brothers excitedly came to her side and handed Lysfer a piece of white bread, "Your Highness, you're back! Take a look. This is too incredible. That dragon lord is really generous. He… he actually gave us this to eat, this white bread!"

Lucifer was dumbfounded at the white bread handed to her by the bear man. She slowly raised her hand and tore off a piece with her mouth.

'It's so soft!'

Feeling the chewy texture, she looked at her people. Though they were once full of despair, their faces now bore smiles and hopes.

'Finally, finally. I have given them hope to live on again…'

However, she also felt a bit aggrieved. She had sold her body and dignity, but here they were eating, drinking, and having fun without waiting for her. It was like they were taking advantage of her misfortune!

Lysfer swallowed the white bread and shouted in a loud voice under the gazes of the beastmen, "My people! From now on I am both your chief and no longer your chief. From now on, we will live under the shelter of the dragon lord. You are now citizens of Dragon City. For the honor of the beastmen, you must follow the laws of the lord, but also dedicate yourselves to the city!"

She threw down the gauntlet. She wouldn't allow the honor of the beastmen to be tarnished!

Chapter 95

After Lysfer left, Louie lay quietly on his mountain of gold. Rather than sleep, however, he was in deep thought over his next course of action.

A trip back to Earth was already necessary. While there was still enough food to satisfy the population, he needed more supplies to continue the city's development.

'But transportation will be difficult…'

Louie now desperately needed the spatial equipment that people spoke of. Preferably one that could allow him to put in tens and even hundreds of thousands of tons of items.

The supplies that he required could no longer be found at sea. He now needed to explore developed countries.

The problem was that spatial equipment of the required size was of divine class. Those were things that even Gods couldn't easily recreate, making them impossibly difficult to obtain.

'And in order to find the energy source to stimulate my growth, I would have to cause more trouble on Earth. It is very likely that some country has already found them and collected them. Trying to find them with just ordinary means is going to be very difficult… Moreover, since I have already created appearances of a dragon and Cthulhu on Earth. I can't just stop it.'

'But to cause more trouble on Earth, I would need more complex and varied spells, which simply aren't easy to learn in an instant…'

'Forget it. There is always a solution to a problem. Since I have to go back to Earth no matter what, I should wait until the army recruitment finishes. Once the military training gets on the right track, I'll go back to Earth once more! After I bring back a lot of wasabi, I can develop the bare bones of the magic legion. Dragon City is currently safe, but I'm afraid it won't take long for outside forces to understand my real situation. Once that happens, the real danger will certainly appear.'

'Even true Gods can fall. People won't take me lightly once I transform into a demigod dragon, but I shouldn't lower my guard. I can't relax just because of the current stability. If the humans gather enough powerhouses, they can definitely surround me and kill me.'

'Improving my own strength and speeding up the city's construction is the path I have to take!'

As a dragon with dreams, Louie could not be as lazy as his fellow dragons. His goal was to become a true God, the Dragon God. Even if he had godhood since he was reborn, he could not take things lightly. If he was killed with this many advantages and cards, then Louie could only call himself useless.

"Hoooo…"

After preparing his plans, Louie lightly exhaled. He focused on his mind, causing countless stars to appear. These stars were actually points that formed an outline of the city. This was how Louie normally patrolled the city, by placing [Protective Detection] throughout every corner of the city.

As long as he moved his mind to any of these points, he could monitor any part of the city at any time.

Although Louie needed to learn spells step by step, he was a dragon. His mental powers exceeded that of mages. This allowed him to be able to use multiple [Protective Detection] spells at the same time. He was like a surveillance room with many open security cameras, allowing him to see the whole city at any time.

This was his surveillance system.

Whenever he was bored, he would use it to peek at the people. Watching the people live happily and build up the city was a great satisfaction for him.

Everything in this city, be it people or things, were all his property!

He first switched to the beastmen side and saw that the beastmen were holding a small dinner party in their own style. Watching them sing and dance, he nodded in satisfaction and moved on to look at other corners of the city.

….

Creak—

The dilapidated wooden door was pushed open and a tall man walked into a small tavern. There weren't too many people in it, and most of them were civilians from the neighborhood. They looked up at the man and just averted their eyes, continuing their own chatter.

The man walked up to the old bar counter and called out to the owner of the bar, "Praise the dragon! The lord is finally going to lift the economic ban and allow commercial activities. Heaven knows how much I've been needing a drink!."

The owner of the raven was a slick old man, he took a look at the man and just smiled, "Praise the dragon! Wyatt, what are you drinking today?"

The man named Wyatt snorted and said, "What else do you have here? Now that the city is running low on supplies, you probably only have ale here, right?"

The boss wiped a cup in his hand with a rag and laughed dryly at Wyatt's words. Then he placed a cup of ale in front of him, "You also know that there recently ain't been any business with the outside, so the price of wine is a little more expensive; three copper coins!"

"Well… it used to be two copper coins," Wyatt muttered, but obediently took out a stack of bills, from which he took three and handed them over. Each one had 'ten cents' printed on them.

The boss frowned and refused to take them, "I don't want those. Don't you have copper coins from the Subila Empire?"

Hearing the boss' words, Wyatt's gaze suddenly chilled and sneered, "Haven't you heard of the lord's new law? From now on, no one can reject the new currency as a means of payment. Of course, you can try, but once the patrolling soldiers come, you may need to cough up ten times the price of three copper coins that I have to pay you."

The owner's expression changed and he hurriedly took the three paper bills. He smiled ingratiatingly, "I'll take them! Of course, I'll take them! I'm a good law-abiding citizen!"

This was Louie's new law. With the basic recovery and expansion of Dragon City, he couldn't make the people stop their work anymore to go to the construction site to move bricks.

Other than some employed civilians, Louie had restored the city's business operations.

Unlike in the past, Louie was no longer giving food to the civilians. Rather, he had set up a system of food stamps. Each family received a food stamp according to the number of people in their family. This way, Louie could allocate food sufficiently and without creating a surplus.

The citizens could only use food stamps and money to buy food. Each person could buy a limited amount of food. Louie's government had also begun to employ people with pay. Because there was a lot of readily available food, it was no longer expensive. As long as there were hands and feet working, it was possible for the people to earn money to buy food every day. If people had a surplus, then they could resell them, thus forming commercial activity.

The reason why Louis used food stamps to limit the purchase of food was that he understood these people didn't have enough to eat in the past. If the price of food was low and they had money left over, they would definitely spend it on buying food reserves. If that happened the economy would begin to stagnate.

This was the same as the real estate market. Residents would buy houses on loan, causing the real estate money to freeze and distorting the economy.

As for the issuing of paper money, Louie wanted to construct an economic system that belonged to Dragon City. With the basis of having a large amount of food, he possessed a substantial asset base that he could exchange for money. As a result, Louie was equivalent to a bank that issued money and determined product costs. As long as he had food, he would not need to fear a price collapse or bank run.

This way, he could use paper money to take all the gold and silver from the people's hands to fill his nest. When doing business with other countries, he could then have them exchange their coinage for paper money if they wanted to buy items from Dragon City.

As long as Louie's regime was stable, it would always be possible to redeem currency for food. Because there was only one city, the system would not have any problems since the money circulated internally.

After he gained an abundance of gold and silver he could properly peg the price of paper money to his reserves. This would further strengthen the financial system.

As for the anti-counterfeiting measures, they weren't implemented yet. At the moment, he was just holding a trial issue. When he obtained a large amount of wasabi and had Marches refine them into potions, he could coat a small amount of 'magic origin element' on each sheet so that it would be hard to make counterfeits. Only mages could counterfeit them, but the cost of doing so would be so high that they wouldn't be able to succeed, cutting them off from doing so!

Chapter 96

"Listen to God's command and you can win the war!"

— 《The Dragon God's Quotes》

…

The tavern was silent in the dim twilight.

In the past, when Dragon City was still Central City, many adventurers could be seen gathering in it, drinking poor quality alcohol, bragging to each other, buying anything they wanted to enjoy, and living a day-to-day life of licking blood off from their knives.

There were no stories of entering the mysterious forest nor of defeating dragons and obtaining countless treasures. Those were only tales that came out of bards' mouths. Even if these stories truly happened, they could only be completed by those powerful high-ranking adventurers.

Only low-ranking adventurers gathered in taverns like these. Being able to obtain supplies in exchange for money and goods to keep themselves alive was already enough of an adventure. They had never considered extravagant things before.

Central City used to be part of the Theocracy, but the Adventurer's Guild also existed. When Louie attacked the city, those adventurers either ran away or were killed. Even the guild's staff and officials fled.

Had the besieger been another human army or beastmen, then the Adventurer's Guild would likely not have packed up shop so hastily. But when it was revealed that the attacker was a dragon, no one who could escape chose to stay.

Now that Louie had been the city lord for two months already, other forces had begun to review their stance. Nonetheless, none dared to establish communications with him for the moment. This gave him some breathing room. He would use this opportunity to set Dragon City's internal affairs straight.

All the same, he knew that the current peace was only transitory.

Without any adventurers, the tavern seemed very quiet, giving it the same feel as a silent bar. Although it made people relax, it was also less fun.

For civilizations similar to the Middle Ages, there weren't many sources of entertainment. Nighttime activities between men and women were pretty much all the commoners could look forward to. The nobles might have had a bit more variety, but there wasn't much they could entertain themselves with either.

Wyatt took a sip of the poor quality ale. It was difficult to drink, but this was the greatest luxury that most people in the world could enjoy.

Being able to drink a mouthful of it was already enough to make many poor people envious. The price of a cup was equivalent to the price of a loaf of black bread, which was barely a meal for a family of four.

After putting down the cup, Wyatt looked at the two burning candles. Oil lamps were too expensive for the average family. For a tavern, this was already extravagant, as candles were also difficult to procure. The majority of the population didn't even have lights when they got home at night.

"The city lord is currently recruiting soldiers."

Wyatt whispered to the tavern owner.

"Are you going to enlist?"

The boss was also bored just wiping glasses back and forth, so he asked casually.

"Of course, I'm going to enlist… The lord is extremely generous. Although soldiers can't go home as much, they receive twice the food stamps and money compared to general workers. It's enough for a family to live a good life. If you sacrifice your life for the lord, he even promises to give a compensation payment to your family. I am already very thankful that our lives are at least worth some money."

Wyatt laughed to himself.

"You know, my father is already dead. In order to raise me and my brother, my mother desperately worked odd jobs and has fallen ill. My brother is too young to work, so only I can support my family."

"In fact, we never really cared who the lord of the city was, and as long as we could survive, we were satisfied… I still can't believe I got to eat that soft white bread two months ago and even ate it for an entire two months. This was something I had always fantasized eating before, but would never be able to."

Listening to Wyatt's sigh, the boss also gulped down, as if the nostalgic taste was still in his mouth. Although he was a small tavern owner, his life was a little better than the average civilian when the Theocracy was in control of Central City, but the harsh taxes and the costs of running a tavern had left him with little extra savings. That said, he was still able to buy white bread, but he could only enjoy them on holidays.

Recently, everyone has started to look for new jobs. The lord no longer needs that many people to build houses. At that time, many people panicked, thinking that they would return to their past miserable lives… Fortunately, the lord is benevolent. He is still willing to give us his mercy. He sold that refined wheat at prices so low that many still can't believe it.``

"Although there are food stamps and a limit on the amount purchased, we should know how to be grateful to the wonderful food that is given to us by the lord. It's already good to have something to eat. We shouldn't be greedy."

Wyatt sounded a little excited. He lowered his head and closed his eyes like a devout believer before giving thanks, "Praise the dragon!"

The boss also lowered his head and closed his eyes, "Praise the dragon!"

"We should all cherish this life. Many young people wanted to sign up after hearing of the lord's draft. Nobody wants to return to those miserable days when starving to death was the norm… We must protect what we have now with our own hands!"

After finishing the last sip, Wyatt stood up and said, "Well, I'll be leaving first. I need to keep up my spirits for tomorrow's test. The lord likes cleanliness, so I'll take a bath once I get home."

He pulled on his own washed tattered clothes.

"Good luck, Wyatt." The tavern owner encouraged me.

"Of course, I'll work hard… If I really become a soldier of Dragon City, I might not have many chances to look after your business anymore."

The boss smiled and said, "Then, I'll give you a discount."

The tavern was still quiet, but Wyatt pushed open the dilapidated wooden doors to leave.

The same thing happened in many corners of Dragon City.

Seeing this, Louie felt satisfied. The pleasure of changing other people's fate made him exceptionally delighted. Even the godhood within him seemed to tremble in response.

…

The next day many people gathered at a large open space at the edge of the city, which had been set up as a military exclusion zone. Civilian entry had been restricted as the place became the training ground for the new army.

Thousands of people had gathered, ready to accept the test.

Fences surrounded the empty field with many words written in the common language, but the vast majority of the civilians were illiterate. Special personnel had come to tell them the meaning of these words.

"You must be loyal to the people of Dragon City, loyal to Dragon City, and loyal to the great lord!"

"The guidance of the lord is our everlasting soul!"

"…"

These heartfelt slogans made the people a bit confused, but when they heard that they were engraved at the lord's request, excitement began to burn within them, and they stood at attention!

Chapter 97

The city's new barrack was crowded, but the people within it remained fairly orderly in the true military tradition.

Armies were very costly forces to uphold. Regardless of the power that employed them, they were a significant financial burden. In a world of low economic productivity like San Soliel, very few people served as full-time professional soldiers. Most armies were cobbled together with farmers and other civilians on occasion.

This bulk of part-time soldiers would only train on occasion and when war was imminent. On average their combat abilities were low, but their numbers more than made up for these deficiencies.

Wyatt followed the flow of people waiting to sign up. When he saw the dense crowd, he was shocked. Estimates placed the number of willing signatories at over 10,000. For Dragon City, with a population of slightly over 100,000, this meant that the vast majority of those eligible wanted to join the army.

'This is the appeal of the dragon lord.'

Wyatt sighed. His heart suddenly sank. Given the number of people that had thronged to the barracks, he knew that very few of them would actually make the cut. He also saw that many of the city's guards and former soldiers had lined up as well. While they might not have been elite, their presence raised the bar of the competition for almost everyone else.

Other than humans, Wyatt also saw many beastmen and elves. From the air they were giving off, it was clear that they were real warriors. This time, the soldiers that were being drafted were humans of Dragon City, so these beastmen and elves would be here to help in the screening process.

"Everyone pay attention!"

A large bear-headed beastman walked out of the crowd. His gaze contained traces of bloodthirst. Wyatt shrunk back a little after seeing him. He knew that he wasn't an ordinary soldier and predicted that he might be at the level of human great knights.

The bearman shouted loudly in a broken rendition of the continental language, "The great Lord Galakrond is not here, but he is watching this place in his own way!"

The bearman pointed his hand at the stake-like objects that were placed on the surrounding fence. These were covered in strange and complex patterns, and on top of each one shone a glowing eye. These were outposts of the [Protective Detection] spells that Louie had cast.

Louie placed great importance in the army. Nevertheless, as a lord, it was improper for him to supervise it himself. He had thus placed the observational units around the fence in order to remain aware of what was going on, even if he wasn't directly leading them.

After seeing the dozens of outposts, the people present were awe-struck. For the common folk, spells were inherently mysterious things. This feeling was amplified further knowing that it was their revered lord who was behind them. Thus many bowed their heads in reverence.

"Praise be to you, Lord Galakrond!"

"Praise be to you, our great lord!"

"…"

All kinds of names came out of the people's mouths, causing a brief cacophony.

Seeing that the allotted time for the next events was approaching, the bearman, Lysfer's trusted companion, directed the attendees to quiet down.

The bearman was a bit depressed. He was a seventh rank warrior but was now forced to train soldiers for Dragon City.

With their millennia of conflicts, humans and beastmen had a significant amount of bad blood between themselves. In fact, war was almost guaranteed in periods of poor harvests.

However, the bearman did not think too much about it anymore. The dragon lord had saved his people and even gave them a sumptuous meal. He knew that he could not return back to the land of the beastman, nor advance to the land of the humans. Perhaps Dragon City would be the only place where they could settle down.

He collected his mind and continued to shout in the continental tongue, "Lord Galakrond is benevolent and mighty. He does not want to see the elderly stay alone without support. Those who are the only sons of the family should return. Don't make us waste our time trying to find you!"

The bearman's words fell. The crowd whispered to each other and some regretfully left.

That said, a majority of people were still staying. In this poor world of constant wars, there were only a few families with only one child. This was mostly because their societies hadn't yet undergone the demographic transition.

"The lord does not need so many soldiers. Only two thousand of you can stay, at the very most. Now, divide yourselves into queues to be tested!"

The crowd began to sort itself out. They were each inspected one by one by the beastmen, the elves, and even the priests that had been captured by Louie.

"No, this one is too short."

"Your physique is too weak, disqualified."

"This one had no problem."

"This one has a disability."

"…"

After a series of inspections, another group of people was eliminated.

Wyatt was lucky. He was able to stay with the rest of the people. He was now getting more and more nervous as if he was about to face a life-changing decision and feeling terrified about the next examination.

He sneaked a look at the people around him and noticed that many were as tense as him, causing him to feel relieved.

'So everyone was nervous.'

"Lady Lysfer, the number of people left behind is more than expected. Could it be that humans actually have good physiques?"

The bearman came to Lucifer's side and whispered with a surprised tone. Humans were more focused on farming and were more populous than the beastmen, but because the beastmen were born with physical prowess, they would grow into powerful warriors. They would rely on their combat ability to fight back and forth with the humans. At the peak of their glory, they were almost able to exterminate all human countries.

But from the selection today, the quality and the proportion of those that could become warriors was not insignificant.

Lucifer was a ninth rank warrior so it was impossible for Louie to not use such a good talent. Compared to the elves who were agile and good with the bow, he felt that the beastmen's combat experience made them more suitable for training the army.

Other than being Louie's exclusive property at night, Lysfer was also the chief instructor of these soldiers in the daytime.

The wolf girl folded her arms around her chest and gazed at the four thousand humans who were left behind with a grin, "If you eat good food for more than two months in a row yet still have bad health, then you are simply too weak."

Lysfer's words stunned the bearman. There was simply no mistake in her words. Due to the lack of supplies, most human civilians could not eat their fill and were malnourished, so it was natural that their physiques would be bad. Beastmen were also the same in that regard. They were more lacking in supplies compared to humans, but because of their innate talent and the basic qualities of their bodies, they were stronger than humans.

"Well then, continue! The lord does not need so many people. Use other ways to screen them. Leaving one thousand five hundred to two thousand people is enough."

"Yes!"

Chapter 98

"Haaa…"

In the barrack square, thousands of people gasped for breath on the ground as sweat ran from their bodies.

"I-it's finally over…"

Wyatt wanted to lie down on the ground. His lungs felt like they were burning, and his throat was so dry that it hurt. It was a pain that he had never felt before.

"Tha-thank you…"

An elf placed a water pouch in front of him. When Wyatt peeked at the elf, he quickly looked down, because this elf was simply too beautiful. He did not dare look directly and continued giving his thanks.

The main reason for this was because the elf was male…

"Drink slowly. Drinking too fast in your current state will cause problems to your body."

The elf's voice was a bit cold, but ever since the elves came to live in Dragon City, their human neighbors had come in contact with them a lot. They were already familiar with their proud and aloof dispositions.

Wyatt opened the water pouch as he listened to the elf's words. He once again raised his head to look at the beautiful male elf and quickly lowered his head again as he blushed.

The four thousand people had just had the worst time of their lives. Under the leadership of the beastman, they had done long-distance running. Those that could not make it to the end were disqualified. The remaining ones were then asked to lift weights.

They said that this was the method requested by the great lord. They needed to run to test their endurance, and lift weights to test their strength. Wyatt didn't know what endurance was, but he knew what strength was for. At the point where they could not endure anymore, these people finally passed.

"Stand up. Everyone stand up!" That demon-like bearman once again came over and shouted.

The bearman had run with them, but he had no problem at all other than his slightly deepened breathing. He even lifted a hundred-ton boulder a few hundred times, causing the people to greatly admire him.

After some groans and huffs, the qualified people got off the ground.

"Congratulations, you are all qualified. From today on, you have a new identity; you are warriors of Dragon City! And in the future, you can call yourselves as such! Of course, that's after you've been trained and baptized with blood!"

The bearman gave a sardonic laugh and pointed at the distance, "Now, line yourselves up and have your information recorded!"

The qualified soldiers stumbled to walk to the registration site. They finally understood why humans and beastmen were often hostile. These crude guys simply didn't know the meaning of restraint and nearly drilled them to death on the first day.

The people at the registration site were the literati of Dragon City. Some worked as staff for the adventurer's guild in the past. Others were accountants of noble lords, etc. Among the commoners, they formed the upper crust of society.

"Name!"

A man with a mustache stroked the paper on his desk with a loving hand.

The paper was glossy, smooth, and white. There were no hairs at all, making it look pure like the skin of ladies from noble houses.

These were the materials that Louie had given them to record. They were materials that they had never seen before in their life.

"Wyatt…"

Hearing his answer, the scribe carefully used the pen in his hand to write on this white paper. He did not dare use too much force for fear of tarnishing this incredible set of recording tools. That's right, he also held a slender pen in his hand made of material unknown to him. It left traces of ink on the pure white material in a single stroke.

'This is simply the creation of the Gods. A magical item that only the lord can possess!'

The scribe exclaimed. He wrote with great care for fear of penning the wrong word and insulting this magical set of recording tools!

Naturally, the materials were part of Louie's loot from the Neversnar.

"Gender!"

"Uh… male…"

Wyatt said with a red face, feeling a bit strange at the question.

The scribe looked up and smiled at him, "I don't know why I have to record this, but it was decided by the lord!"

Hearing the scribe's words, Wyatt immediately straightened his chest and raised his head. He believed the data collection process had a deep and profound meaning that only the lord understood, so he had no further issues with it!

"Age!"

"Eighteen!"

"Are you married?"

"No…"

"Who are the members of your family?"

"A sick, bedridden mother and a twelve-year-old brother."

"When did your ancestors come to live in Dragon City?"

"Ro-roughly around two hundred years ago… I-I can't remember, sir!"

"Do you have relatives in other countries?"

"No, there are no other relatives in our family."

"…"

After asking a bunch of questions, the scribe carefully placed the paper aside and smiled, "Congratulations, you passed the background examination!"

"Background examination?"

"It's a term invented by the lord. It probably means that you have a good family situation and are not a scout of the enemy."

"Scout? No, no, no. I'm wholeheartedly loyal to the lord. There is no way I am an enemy scout!"

Wyatt said in a panic.

"At ease. I did not say that you were a scout… Well, don't just stand there! We are still busy with work. Next!"

"…"

Dozens of people worked together to record information. After an hour or so, they were finally finished.

These qualified soldiers were again called to stand in line, and then a young priest walked up a high platform and shouted, "My name is Clooney. From today onwards, you will see me every day!"

"Right now, I just want to tell you, soldiers, the one thing that you must follow, and that is loyalty! You have to be loyal to your loved ones, loyal to the city you are stepping on, and loyal to the great lord! It is the lord who gives you food! It is the lord who gives you hope to live! It is the lord who provides you with a comfortable living environment!"

"You are warriors of the lord. You must swear on your souls to build an unbreakable wall with your flesh and body for the lord, for your loved ones, and for the people of the city!"

"Now, tell me who you pledge your allegiance to!"

"The great lord!"

"The great lord!"

"The great lord!"

"…"

At first, their voices were a bit chaotic. Gradually, their shouts became orderly. The shouts of thousands of people trembled in the air, making Clooney reveal a joyful smile.

From now on, he would use the various methods taught by the lord and the church to instill loyalty in these warriors, so that they will become the lords' most faithful followers!

At this time, Lucifer walked up. Clooney hastily bowed and got down. The bloodthirsty gaze of the wolf girl swept the crowd. The two thousand people immediately felt chills down their backs. They remained silent as cold sweat drenched their bodies.

"I am Lysfer Blood Blade… From today on, I will be your chief instructor. You will be personally trained by me. Prepare to become qualified warriors… And believe me, you will never forget my teachings for your entire life!"

Lysfer let out a cruel smile. She suddenly pulled out her sword and casually waved to the side. A piece of rock was instantly divided into two halves.

Everyone gulped as they saw this.

…

"Milord, a total of one thousand eight hundred fifty-four people have passed the test and officially become soldiers of Dragon City. They are now your future warriors. These are their personal records.

In the dragon's lair, Lysfer was completely devoid of her previous wild aura. She knelt with one knee and passed on a stack of papers.

"I watched everything with my eyes…"

Louie was lying down on his gold mountain. He slowly opened his mouth, "Archive these records. They will be the first file of the Dragon City army!"

"Yes, milord!"

Two elven maids quickly moved the papers behind Lysfer.

Chapter 99

The elves moved the records away while Lysfer remained kneeling, waiting for her master to speak.

Louie lay on his mountain of gold with half-squinted eyes. He seemed to waver between slumber and wakefulness. Curious, Lysfer raised her head to look at him, but soon lowered it back to the ground.

She did not bother asking if Louie was asleep, and quietly waited.

The common thought was that beastmen were always grumpy, but Lysfer could be extremely patient when necessary. This was because as a high-ranked warrior she needed to keep a cool head on the battlefield.

After a long time, Louie opened his eyes to look at her and slowly spoke, "I taught you something, remember?"

"Milord, I have remembered it by heart and will train the soldiers according to your request."

Lysfer replied respectfully. She was quite curious but did not bother to pry into his thoughts. It would only work against her and her people.

Nonetheless, the lord's training methods were quite unorthodox, even to her.

Lucifer had pondered over this for a long time. At first, she had thought it was the human way of training, but upon further reflection, she realized that that was impossible. From her knowledge, she knew that humans would never train their soldiers this way.

For example, Lysfer could not see any purpose in having the soldiers march in synchrony. It was similar to how elves went about their wars. Louie had also made the soldiers do standing military postures and other strange motions that seemed unnecessary to her. After all, battles and wars were things where people competed in power.

The beastmen rarely did military drills. They preferred to face danger with their own strength to solve their problems. This would allow them to gradually become stronger. If there was really a war, the great chieftain would unite the clans and act as their brains. The fragile bodies of humans would not be able to stop their assault at all.

Although Lysfer didn't feel that this was in line with beastmen's training methods, she did not dare question it. Her master's orders simply could not be questioned.

Louie detected her befuddlement and had already guessed her thoughts.

The training methods he had taught Lysfer were actually derived from modern military theory. Of course, he had tweaked them to better suit San Soliel. He wasn't one to think that everything modern held an edge over ancient ways of doing things.

For example, modern military training might have had a scientific basis, but it was connected to modern warfare.

In modern warfare, hot weapons were the norm, and close combat opportunities were rare. As long as a soldier could pull the trigger, their enemy would be crushed. As a result, modern military training was focused more on endurance.

On the other hand, cold weapon warfare was different. What was most required for soldiers was not endurance but strength. As a result, ancient military training was focused more on strength.

It would be stupid for transmigrators and time travelers to teach modern military training to people in backward civilizations. Teaching soldiers to only run faster and farther would result in a gap in power once they come into close combat. These soldiers would not be able to beat soldiers who trained their muscles and knives day in and day out.

However, Louie had found some strange things from these training methods.

This started with the profession system of this world.

Mages and other spellcasting professions were required to accumulate magic power to rank up. While those in melee professions would rank up based on their combat experience.

Louie had even specifically asked if there was some kind of legendary book to sense Qi and ascend faster.

But no such thing existed.

All mages knew meditation would allow them to train their spirits. Body strengthening techniques were fairly well-known as well. And anyone could learn them regardless of class.

In the warrior profession, as long as people strictly trained and exercised, they would naturally be able to become first rank warriors. If they continued their exercise and deepened their skills, it was natural for them to reach the second or third rank.

Those so-called secret books from some military force were just teachings passed down from their ancestors that summed up their training methods. In this world of poor information flow and backward civilization, the commoners only knew a few words, so the summarized methods would naturally be treated as secret books.

Those at the lower stages could advance with just pure training, but if a third rank warrior wanted to reach the fourth rank, pure training would not be enough. They would have to fight and kill. By standing at the edge of life and death, they would get stronger and be able to rank up.

Moreover, it was possible to sense what rank a person was. Louie felt that this characteristic was the same as MMOs, but because this was reality, there was no chance to start over once you died.

The reason why there were many powerful warriors among the beastmen was determined by their culture. The beastmen were faced with powerful animals and monsters from birth. With high mortality rates, the chances of powerful warriors being born rose.

This was one of the wonderful characteristics of this world. Louie thought that this could be attributed to the world's mysterious energy which the Intelligent Brain had once mentioned.

Under this rule, powerful professions were able to exist, and as people evolved, the ranking system was born.

When a person reached the ninth rank, it was possible for them to ascend to the legendary rank once they had enough fame. It was a huge qualitative change and would push them closer to immortals.

Obtaining a profession was also easy. Other than professions that required spellcasting, daily exercise and training would allow most to do so. Nevertheless, that was contingent on them possessing enough resources. And unfortunately, that was where most people fell short. And if a professional was to stop training for an extended period of time, their accumulated power and skills would begin to atrophy.

As a result, anyone who wanted to walk on the road of professions would not farm while they trained. Their only means of feeding themselves would be to fight against all kinds of beasts and monsters. They needed to obtain enough resources to feed themselves and not starve to death.

This was the reason why there were many adventurers in this world. If they didn't roam and fight, they wouldn't be able to feed themselves. They could only go home to do farmwork and slowly lose their power. On the downside, adventurers had high mortality rates.

He had also noticed a blind spot in their training. Because they fought with cold weapons, they only trained in strength while caring little for endurance.

In Louie's opinion, these powerful professions were not only strong, their endurance and agility also exceeded the normal person. Thus he became suspicious, if the training was much more balanced and more comprehensive, then the people might be able to advance faster. It might not allow a person to jump from the third rank to the fourth rank easily, but it should allow them to rank up fast from the first three ranks.

Louie, therefore, combined modern military training with this world's military training methods to create a more comprehensive training method. He was trying to experiment if this idea was correct or not.

If his idea was correct, his training method would be priceless, equivalent to one of the world's military secret books!

As a college student taught by modern civilization, Louie had to use those logical and organized ways of thinking taught by his teachers.

Chapter 100

For Louie, the world of San Soliel was chock-full of mysteries. Things were so radically different from Earth that he felt the need to fully codify his understanding. This would in turn allow him to interact with its elements more smoothly.

If this training method is correct and in line with the rules of the world, then soldiers from Earth should be able to quickly train until the third rank. A legion full of third rank warriors is practically elite here. Likely only a few countries can match it.

'These soldiers need to be full-time. I can't let them waste all their training so far on the farm.'

As Louie pondered, he scratched his cheek with a claw.

'We'll need a large number of resources to raise a standing army. From my understanding, very few powers can afford to do that. Nonetheless, it shouldn't be a huge issue for me. We have food for days. We can easily prioritize the quality of soldiers over their quantity.'

'With Dragon City's geographical location, as long as there are ten thousand elite soldiers and enough supplies, then there is no need to be afraid in the face of a hundred thousand strong siege. Moreover, the enemy can only attack from one direction.'

'When the soldiers train to the limit, maybe I can find some excuse to invade other races or countries. I don't need to occupy the land. I just need to keep their skills polished enough so that they remain a potent force.'

'If there was a legion of ten thousand middle-ranking professionals, it would be a nightmare for any country to face. As for a legion of high-ranking professionals… Well, we're still far away from that now. The difficulty of becoming one is too high… Going from the sixth rank to the seventh is far more than I can request of most people.'

According to Louie, the only powers that could have a legion of middle-ranking professionals were the Theocracy and the human empire. As for the other kingdoms, they could barely make one if they pooled their forces.

As for the beastmen and other races, there was no need to think about it. Their battle styles were too different from humans.

'I should also take advantage of the perks of having to be a multi-racial city. I will place them in positions where they can display their full abilities. The elves can be archers and the humans and beastmen can take the plains.'

Louie pondered for a long time and finally constructed a proper plan for the future.

When he came back to his senses, Lucifer was still kneeling in front of him. After thinking for a moment, he spoke with a majestic voice, "You will begin training them tomorrow, you can go back to rest… Lysfer, make great contributions to Dragon City and train those soldiers to the level that I need."

Lucifer had been kneeling on the ground for almost an hour, but she did not dare become impudent at the great lord's silence. When Louie suddenly opened his eyes and spoke, his words stunned her.

She froze for two seconds and felt disbelief at Louie's words.

'Did he just let me go? I don't need to serve him tonight?'

She thought dumbly. She thought that she had to give her body to the dragon after being left alone for a long time at this hour. She didn't expect the dragon to let her go back to rest.

The world girl collected her thoughts, bowed her head, and respectfully said, "By your will, milord."

Lysfer stood up with her head still lowered. Only after slowly backing to the door did she turn around and leave.

After exiting the palace, the cool breeze of the night blew on her body. She stood at the highest point of the city while looking at the city. Then she raised her head to gaze at the silver moon and muttered, "The lord is more frightening than I imagined."

"As a dragon, the lord was actually able to restrain his desires. This is really incredible."

Under the vigilant gaze of the elven guards, Lysfer moved away and left the place with a sigh of relief. Tomorrow, she will be the chief instructor in charge of drilling the soldiers. Lysfer liked this job very much because she could use it as an excuse to train. She could also give the soldiers a good beating.

She loved to fight. She loved war!

Since the humans were new recruits, she would beat them lightly. She could be a bit more forceful to the beastmen and beat them half-dead. As for the elves, she would beat them to death if they did not obey.

With a joyous expression, her figure disappeared in the darkness.

After the wolf girl left, Louis sighed with a heavy breath.

"I'm exhausted…"

The great dragon lord muttered. He was both happy and a little annoyed with his current life.

Louie was once an ordinary social animal in China. He was not some protagonist so he didn't really know how to act.

At the start, he relied on his past eighth-grade syndrome and was able to fool others with it. Thanks to this, he was able to live a steady life. As the dragon lord, he needed to maintain enough authority at the top. There were just words that he could not say which was his biggest test.

When no one was looking, Louie was practicing and imitating the speech of people that were of higher status and then performing it in front of everyone.

Fortunately, no one dared to suspect that he was just acting with his identity as a demigod dragon. The more he acted, the more he noticed that he was gaining a bit of majesty.

It's just like the old saying, status and temperament could change a person's temperament, and consecration could change a person's physique.

After talking to himself, Louie frowned.

The development of Dragon City was for the purpose of establishing his own church and gaining many believers, but he needed to avoid conflating his ends and means. Compared to the number of believers in the future, what he needed to place the most importance on was his own strength. As long as he was strong, believers would naturally appear.

'It seems that the godhood trembled earlier… I should really check this out.'

Thinking about this, Louie dived deep into his consciousness and entered the depths of his soul. In the endless darkness, he saw the shapeless, multicolored, indescribable crystal.

This was what countless mortals in the world of San Soliel dreamed of obtaining, a godhood!

After a bit of thinking, Louie injected a bit of his will into the godhood.

'Let's see what changes have appeared.'

Just as he thought of this, his mind and soul shook!

BOOOM!

As if pushing a heavy door open, countless colors appeared in Louie's eyes. Those colors appeared to have been a collection of the laws of this world that contained endless knowledge and power.

Among them, the colors that belonged to Louie were revealed to him.

"This is…"

Louie was shocked as five colors were displayed in front of him.