The Natural Empire of the Oceanic Dragon

Attilan's attention was mostly focused on observing the fire gnomes. Since the fire gnomes had become what they were now due to being infected by the power of the treasure, analyzing the composition of the fire gnomes' flames would roughly determine whether the treasure was the Infernal Dragon Soul that Attilan believed it to be.

But he couldn't see anything. The fire gnomes were releasing very pure fire elements, as if they were infected by some treasure from the Plane of Fire.

But Attilan didn't believe that the treasure had nothing to do with dragons.

The blue dragon was determined to obtain the treasure, so it must be helpful to the earth-type blue dragon.

The blue dragon's hidden power was much stronger than Attilan had expected. Originally, he thought that joining forces with the dwarves would be enough to suppress the blue dragon and seize the treasure.

As a marine dragon druid proficient in life force, he could naturally see that the hundreds of blue dragon people at the forefront of the blue dragon army had a vast life force that was not inferior to some sub-dragons.

The dragon breath spewed by these blue dragon people was even as powerful as that of young dragons, and the elites among the blue dragon people were all dual-class warriors and warlocks. The level of their spells might not be high, but the application of the spells was very clever.

The blue dragon warlocks even jointly created water vapor and released a surging tide towards the fire gnomes, suppressing the arrogance of the frontline fire gnomes and successfully launching a counter-charge.

Attilan had prepared three thousand sets of enchanted dragon armor for his elite troops, but compared to the blue dragon people's armor, his dragon armor was simply bargain-basement goods.

It wasn't that the dwarven master craftsmen's skills were not good, but that the materials provided by Attilan were not advanced enough. In the blue dragon clan, at least a dozen blue dragons lived together.

The dragon teeth, dragon claws, dragon scales, and condensed dragon magic crystals that they shed were superior to Attilan in terms of quantity and quality.

Most importantly, the clan had existed for at least thousands or even tens of thousands of years. The accumulated wealth was incomparable to Attilan, who started from scratch and had only been working hard for two years.

Attilan originally regarded the elves as troublemakers, but now it seemed that the appearance of the elves was their only possibility to suppress the blue dragon and seize the treasure.

The fire gnomes had fallen from the position of the number one enemy due to the decline in their power, unless the fire gnomes obtained the treasure first and held the ceremony again to fill the fire gnomes' bodies with the energy of the treasure.

Otherwise, the fire gnomes were not worth mentioning at all.

Whether it was the fiery bombs or the flame shields, they were very ingenious designs. If the fire gnomes' magical energy had not weakened, the bomb deployment alone would have killed many people.

Not to mention Attilan and the dwarven king's coalition forces, even if they joined forces with the elves and blue dragons, the four parties together might not be able to withstand the fire gnomes' offensive.

Moreover, as the war progressed, Attilan always had the feeling that the fire gnomes were not using their full strength. These fire gnomes blocking them did not fight them desperately.

Both sides did have a lot of casualties, but Attilan keenly felt that the fire gnomes' mission was to hold them back.

Moreover, the blue dragons, they, and the elves were digging tunnels downwards from three different places, but they had only just dug through and entered for less than half a day.

They actually ran into the blue dragons and elves, and the fire gnomes looked like they had been prepared for a long time, launching an attack as soon as they saw them, as if they had known they were coming to snatch the treasure.

Attilan was cautious all his life. There was a conspiracy waiting for them in the underground city. Attilan felt that it was better to let the blue dragons go and scout the area for them. After the blue dragons had tested out what the trap was, they would enter.

He felt that they probably wouldn't be able to take the treasure away.

But Attilan felt that there was still a chance to take the Great Desert occupied by the blue dragons.

As long as the blue dragon was killed in the underground city, wouldn't the Great Desert be his?

Even if the blue dragon didn't die, as long as all the blue dragon people under him were exhausted, then the blue dragon would be nothing to worry about.

Attilan narrowed his eyes.

Uniting with the elves, first eliminating the blue dragon, and then continuing to explore the underground city together was one way.

Pretending to be defeated and letting the blue dragon go to the front as cannon fodder was another way.

Which one to choose specifically depended on why the elves wanted to get involved.

Attilan knew very well that unless the blue dragon was a fool, he wouldn't watch Attilan and the elves unite.

So the messenger they sent out would definitely be intercepted.

That's why Attilan told Old Blind Eye to take care and not die.

Old Blind Eye also knew that the mission was dangerous, but he had a big heart by nature and liked the feeling of being entangled in danger, otherwise he wouldn't have become an excellent warrior.

He was indeed old, but that didn't mean that Old Blind Eye couldn't fight anymore.

Attilan used Life Control in conjunction with his sea dragon magic to sort out Old Blind Eye's life force. Originally, he had been tortured by old injuries from years of war and had lost most of his combat power, and even his only remaining eye had become blurred.

After receiving Attilan's treatment, his condition certainly did not fully return to his prime. Old Manma and the others had been immersed in the Druid path for many years and were skilled at manipulating life force.

That's why they were able to regain their youth and vitality.

After Old Blind Eye became a sea dragon warlock, his body did recover somewhat.

His blind eye certainly couldn't grow back, but he was confident that with the help of magic, he could use his spear to stab to death the blue dragon people who came to intercept him.

For a mission of this level, such as intercepting a messenger, the blue dragon people leader would naturally not do it himself. He would not have thought that Attilan would actually send a warrior of the same level as him just to send a message.

Although Old Blind Eye was not considered a confidant on the swamp dragon's side, he was still a vanguard general... one of them!

With his combat power guaranteed, the blue dragon people leader, like the blue dragon, seemed cautious, but in fact, he did not let go of the arrogance in his bones. He simply did not believe that the blue dragon people army would be defeated by the mud-legged forces on this continent.

So he only sent a squad leader, leading seven or eight blue dragon people, as well as the desert lizardmen and snake people recruited by the blue dragon, to intercept Old Blind Eye.

And Old Blind Eye's side were all elites!

Because of the possible risks along the way, the attacks of the fire gnomes and blue dragons, and if the elves didn't want to communicate with them after seeing them, and chose to kill the messenger directly?

So when Attilan chose them, he required that everyone must be an elite, and at the same time, they must be paired with the eloquent Old Blind Eye. Old Blind Eye's rhetoric was not the best.

But compared to other horsemen and dwarves, he had been influenced by Attilan for such a long time. Attilan's ability to speak human language to humans and ghost language to ghosts.

Old Blind Eye had also learned some of it, and it should be no problem to deal with the elves.

Even if he couldn't pull the elves to their side, at least he wouldn't anger the elves because of inappropriate words and make the elves their enemies.

Attilan hid in the rain clouds, and with the help of the light emitted by the underground space's fluorescent plants and the firelight of the bombs dropped by the fire gnomes, he saw from a distance Old Blind Eye pick up the blue dragon people squad leader with his spear.

Finally, he threw the squad leader's body towards the blue dragon people leader's direction.

Although he couldn't see the blue dragon people leader's and blue dragon's faces clearly, Attilan could probably be sure that their faces must be very ugly.

The dwarven king, who was also flying in the sky on a griffin, felt a little heartache. The iron cans he sent out died several times under the blue dragon people's lightning breath attacks.

The horsemen Attilan sent out were elites, and his argali knights were also elites. It was heartbreaking to lose one of these elites, let alone several.

Because Attilan had asked the druids to help prepare healing potions in advance, not many, and the horsemen who went out to perform the mission only received one bottle each, at least leaving the seriously injured horsemen with their last breath.

Coupled with the healing of minor injuries released by Old Blind Eye, they finally saved their lives.

The elves also saw this battle, but they did not send anyone to support them, even though the elves' general had roughly guessed what this team wanted to do in front of them.

The elf general's deputy asked suspiciously:

"General, since the dwarves and marine dragon are taking the initiative to show their goodwill, why don't we send someone to help them eliminate the blue dragon people?"

The female general calmly looked at the elf soldiers fighting the fire gnomes in front of her.

"You must remember the most important thing, we are not here to get the fire treasure, but to avoid the treasure from being obtained by anyone, and it is more in our interest to let the blue dragon and the dwarves, the marine dragon's coalition forces fight to a stalemate."

“The foundation of the Water Elf Kingdom is maritime trade, so we can't let those land kingdoms obtain the treasures and build powerful armies. Otherwise, how can we do business with peace of mind?”

The adjutant asked with doubt:

“But isn't our business so good precisely because the Swamp Wyverns are attacking the eastern kingdoms, and they need our help to replenish the supplies needed for the war?”

“So, the emergence of war should be beneficial to us, right?”

The female general smiled faintly.

“A war of balanced power is what the kingdom wants to see. Haven't you noticed that the current alliance of Blue Dragons, Dwarves, and Ocean Wyverns is exactly the kind of business partner we want?”

“Remember what the scout reported two months ago? Less than ten kilometers outside the northern villages, a village composed of Centaurs, Minotaurs, and Fishmen appeared.”

“Moreover, these demi-humans are actually cultivating the soil and planting wheat and black beans. If we don't let them fight with the Blue Dragons, do you think they won't attack our northern territory?”

The deputy fell silent. The Water Elf Kingdom does not advocate active aggression, but that doesn't mean they will just sit idly by and watch the enemy launch an attack before fighting back.

“From the appearance of the Ocean Wyvern here, we can see that he is an ambitious fellow. He can tame Minotaurs, Centaurs, and Fishmen to honestly farm the land, which further shows that he is no ordinary dragon.”

“Compared to the seemingly more powerful and elite Blue Dragon Kingdom, I am actually more wary of the Ocean Wyvern. But the old guys in the council didn't agree to expand the army and establish defensive strongholds in the northern territory to guard against invasion.”

“In their eyes, the little benefit brought by the farming in the northern villages is not worth the cost of stationing troops. In their eyes, the Water Elf Kingdom seems to only need heavy troops to defend the port and the main city's commercial district.”

“These old guys who only have money in their eyes!”

Mentioning the council members, the female general gritted her teeth a little. If they were willing to provide enough military expenditure, how could she possibly be leading just over a thousand people to compete for treasures?

Such a dangerous war, a thousand elves are nothing at all.

This was still the result of her arguing with reason. Otherwise, even these thousand people would have been discounted.

However, as the only Land Ranger General of the Water Elf Kingdom, she must show the strength of their army in this treasure-contending war. Otherwise, next year's military expenditure will definitely fall by a large margin again.

That's right, the Water Elf Kingdom, as the name suggests, is a country that values the navy. Especially since the naval fleet can bring huge benefits to the country, the army naturally needs to take a back seat.

They have completely become stepchildren.

The total strength under her command as a Ranger General is less than five thousand, but she needs to defend that huge semi-circular border line from west to east, from south to north.

Over a thousand kilometers of border, with only five thousand people, tell me, how should she defend it?

After deducting the troops guarding against the invasion of humanoid races in three directions, she can only bring out so many, and it's still thanks to Attilan's recruitment of refugees in the north, which has greatly reduced the humanoid races invading the northern territory of the Water Elf Kingdom.

Only some Gnolls, Trolls, and Ogres still invade in groups, but generally less than fifty people, even the village militia can barely resist for a while.

At least enough to hold out until they arrive on horseback.

Speaking of arriving on horseback, the Ranger General felt even more heartache.

The navy's cavalry rides fierce Gryphons, while they ride even ordinary horses with Gryphon bloodlines.

As for the Horned Horses raised by the kingdom, almost all of the Horned Horses that could be ridden in combat were sold to the two kingdoms in the east by the councilors.

Otherwise, where would there be money to pay pensions to the villages plundered on the border?

Under the calculations of the old men, it is enough to pay a meager pension after the village is invaded, but expanding the number of the army is a bottomless pit.

Moreover, as old men of the navy faction, they naturally want to prevent the army faction from growing stronger.

Therefore, the Ranger General's needs will naturally not be met.

She is still too naive, and too upright, not knowing the principle of raising bandits to support oneself.

The border is all small troubles, how could the councilors pay attention.

You must know that the reason for setting up the Ranger General was because the land did not have a standing army, allowing the Horse King to drive straight in and all the way to凝风 Port.

Therefore, facing the Centaur messenger sent by Attilan, the Ranger General naturally did not have a good face.

Old Blind Eye still got the opportunity to meet with the general.

But before Old Blind Eye could speak, the general raised his hand to stop him from speaking.

“I know what you want to say, but we Elves will not participate in the battle for treasures. We only hope that the treasures will continue to sleep peacefully, so that the southern part of the continent can continue to maintain peace.”

Old Blind Eye took a deep breath and suppressed his anger. He really wanted to burst into a rage. If you don't want the treasures, then what are you doing bringing troops here? Watching the show?

Old Blind Eye barely squeezed out a smile.

“Our Atlantis Kingdom is also a peace-loving country, so we also attach great importance to the treasures that may cause turmoil in the southwestern region of the continent.”

“Please rest assured, Water Elf Kingdom, we have no intention of invading the territory of other civilized countries. The land we currently own is already vast enough, and soon our two countries will become neighbors.”

“In another two years, the general should see our envoys visiting your country. At that time, there will inevitably be a discussion about the border line between the two countries.”

The general said knowingly:

“Those appearing on the edge of the northern territory are indeed your people. Occupying such a large piece of land, can you eat it all? Letting people establish villages in advance to divide the territory, your Dragon Lord is wise.”

But the general didn't believe a word of Old Blind Eye's words!

She knew very well that everything outside the northern territory was swampy land. The Ocean Wyvern even wanted this kind of rotten land. How could he not covet the high-quality farmland cultivated by the Water Elf Kingdom?

Occupying the northern territory, the Ocean Wyvern can obtain a granary that stably produces millions of tons of grain.

The general didn't believe that the Ocean Wyvern wouldn't be tempted.

It was precisely because she saw the threat that the Ocean Wyvern might bring that she insisted on expanding the number of Ranger troops. Even if she didn't expand the number of Rangers, she should at least allocate a few more mages who graduated from magic schools to them.

“General, I think you have also seen that the Blue Dragon's power is the strongest. After obtaining the treasure, he may be willing to only huddle in the desert. The wealthiest around is your Water Elf Kingdom.”

“Think about it, after he has power, which country will he attack?”

The general looked at Old Blind Eye with confidence.

“Please rest assured, our army has the confidence to protect our country.”

Although she didn't want to admit it, the Ranger General knew very well that her troops were worlds apart from the navy, just like their mounts, Gryphons and ordinary warhorses.

“We will ensure that the treasure does not fall into the hands of any party. There is no need to say more, please go back.”

The general issued an order to evict the guest, and Old Blind Eye could only return to report to Attilan in a dejected manner.

Attilan snorted coldly and said with a sneer:

“Bringing just over a thousand people, who does she think she is! So arrogant, and ensuring that the treasure does not fall into the hands of any party, if she has the guts, she should kill all the Blue Dragon people, and I will withdraw my troops now.”

After being angry, Attilan still had to think about how to win over the elves.

The great man once said that we must unite all the forces that can be united. Now is the time to unite the elves. Without their power, it is difficult to take down the treasure.

“I will go in person and make sure that the elves see our sincerity.”

The Dwarf King also nodded and said:

“I will also go. My goal is only to deal with the Frost Giants of the Snow Mountain. I have no intention of attacking the Water Elf Kingdom to the south at all.”

Running hundreds or thousands of kilometers to attack the Water Elf Kingdom, unless the Dwarf King is crazy.

Attilan knew very well that if he wanted the elves to become his help, he had to make this elven Ranger General believe that his goal was the Great Desert, not the rich Water Elf Kingdom.

Don't mention the Ranger General, even Attilan himself doesn't quite believe that a dragon would not be interested in the rich elves, but would go to occupy the barren desert.

Attilan knew that the key to gaining the trust of the elves lay in his Druid identity.