Under the Red Dragon

Dragon Era, Year 13, the last day of deep winter, the Day of Annual Rest.

The slumbering Cloud Dragon cub did not awaken, but the clouds shrouding the Dragon King's Court had already dissipated.

Having digested the Storm Titan's authority over storms and lightning, the Ancestral Red Dragon now controlled the weather without needing to manipulate related effects with mental power; for Caron, it was merely a matter of thought.

The warm sunlight, like a long-lost friend, shone evenly on every corner of the Dragon King's Court garden, bathing the mountaintop in a gentle glow.

Apart from the cloud walls and cloud nests built by the Cloud Dragons, the entire mountain range was fully revealed to the citizens of the Golden Empire, as if the dragons dwelling on the summit were celebrating with their billions of subjects in this way.

Many outsiders from distant lands, who did not have a holiday like the Day of Annual Rest, came seeking to experience the Annual Rest Festival of the Golden Empire, which was second in importance only to the National Day celebration.

This caused the Empire's ports to operate at near full capacity in these days, with many nobles and wealthy merchants bringing their families to the Empire as a vacation and leisure destination, appreciating the magnificent architectural culture and unique aesthetic displays.

The Moonlit Radiance that permeated the Golden Empire had become a unique scenic wonder in the Northern Lands, and the presence of the Tree of Life allowed travelers who lived within the Empire's borders for a long time to alleviate fatigue, and even cure some chronic minor ailments with its restorative effects.

This also meant that the wasteland once ruled by the evil race of Chromatic Dragons had been formally accepted and recognized as a member of the ordered nations in the hearts of many, and the Empire's stable order gave these people a sense of security.

When those outsiders looked at the mountains, they could see countless dragons rising and falling between them, flying to various cities throughout the Empire.

They knew that these were the unique Bat-Winged Wyverns of the Golden Empire, which were smarter, faster, and more powerful than other Wyverns.

These increasingly powerful dragon legions were the Empire's daily security support reserve, capable of quickly reaching areas where legions needed to suppress unrest.

Although no rebellions requiring support had occurred since the establishment of the Golden Empire, these Dragon Knights were always fulfilling their duties.

As for the rare Draconic Wyverns, they were serving in the hands of the Valyrians who were loyal to the Empire.

These talented Valyrians had begun systematically studying the knowledge of Druids and Mages, attempting to cultivate and improve these peculiar Draconic Wyverns, so they rarely appeared in the public eye.

Within the Empire, every household had its own atmosphere for the Day of Annual Rest, and among the dragons, there was also the dragons' own annual banquet.

Beneath the increasingly thick trunk of the World Tree Ouwo, the dragons gathered as usual.

On this special holiday, there was no need for Caron to invite the dragons to a banquet; these dragons had habitually come here on their own.

Dragons of various scale colors either sat on the soft carpets laid on the ground or lay prone, completely without restraint.

Thick, long sandalwood tables exuded the fragrance of the wood itself, mixed with the aromas of food and spices, and a sense of abundance naturally bloomed from these mixed scents.

In addition to common river delicacies, seafood, and game such as White-Horned Wild Bulls, Great-Horned Antelopes, Mountain Deer, Lampreys, River Sturgeons, Gray Herons, and Swans, many monsters with powerful active nutrients were also placed in golden basins and silver dishes on the table as food.

Among them were Deep-Sea Demon Whales and Hundred-Foot Sea Serpents from the depths of the ocean.

There were Rocs and Winged Serpent Dragons from the God-Forsaken Mountains.

There were Frost Dragon Lizards and Long-Haired Treasure Elephants from the Frosty Plains of the Far North.

There were also Giant-Tusked Mastiffs and Multi-Eyed Serpent Dragons from the jungles of the Empire's western frontier.

These monster flesh, neatly divided by Halfling chefs, retained a wild aura and powerful vitality energy even after death, which the White Dragon Camid enjoyed immensely.

However, these powerful monsters were not deliberately captured by the Dragon Lords, but were plundered and harvested by the Empire's legion soldiers everywhere to be offered to the Emperor of the Golden Empire.

Even the Frost Giant King Ragnar Hegg saw the Empire's legion soldiers' spontaneous and crazy actions.

The Centaur legions, known as Death Knights, roamed around like wild dogs on the grasslands, only to hunt down the most ferocious beasts and monsters.

He then personally led his people to squat in the extremely icy Frosty Plains for nearly half a month, hunting extremely rare Frost Dragon Lizards and Long-Haired Treasure Elephants to be offered to the Emperor of the Empire.

These loyal warriors could not give the Dragon Emperor, who possessed a great amount of wealth, more, so they could only express their love and support for the Emperor through such actions.

The court maids, wearing long skirts, carried up barrels of fine wine and huge portions of food. These wooden barrels, comparable to water tanks in ordinary human families, were easily lifted in the hands of these maids like delicate flower baskets.

If a dragon were to observe carefully, it could also see dense, tiny scales growing on the skin under the skirts of these maids.

Granular scales also appeared at the edges of the eyes, growing towards the backs of these maids' ears.

Although many maids were replaced by the Head Maid Charlize according to the Ancestral Red Dragon's wishes after serving the dragons in the court for a period of time, over the years, many maids were able to continue working in the court because of their respective merits.

Therefore, these maids were also infected by the aura of dragon blood during their long-term interaction with the Ancestral Red Dragon, and gradually became dragonkin-like creatures.

However, under normal circumstances, the scales on these maids' bodies could be freely hidden.

But in today's gathering of dragons, these 'weak' maids could not hide themselves in the rich aura of dragon blood.

However, unlike the other Dragon Lords, who were free and unconstrained, talking and communicating freely.

The Empire's newborn dragon whelps sat at another table under the trunk of the World Tree Ouwo, and were obviously a little restrained.

According to the Empire's regulations, there was actually no obstacle for these dragon whelps to ascend the Dragon's Holy Mountain.

However, influenced by the dragons' innate inheritance, these whelps still did not dare to set foot on the private territory of other powerful dragons at will, even if the private territory of these dragons had expanded from nests to the entire mountain range.

The Emperor of the Empire also hoped that these newborn whelps could learn some necessary social skills and relationship management methods under the influence of the great dragons of the Gormorra Dragon Clan.

This atmosphere, which was different from other dragon clans and dragon groups, also needed to be felt by these whelps.

However, these dragon cubs, who had never been timid, were like scrawny chicks in front of the extraordinarily strong dragons.

Every glance inadvertently swept over by a Dragon Lord could cause these whelps to exclaim and discuss.

"Lord Rosani the Black King just looked at me. Is it because I'm particularly outstanding and will be as strong as Lord Rosani in the future?"

A black dragon whelp wagged its tail excitedly. Black dragons in their whelp stage were actually not much different from dragons of other scale colors.

Once they entered adolescence, each black dragon would gradually transform into the unique characteristics of its race—the Skull Dragon.

But born in the Empire and growing up in the Empire, this black dragon cub had begun to think that the black dragon ancestors in his inheritance were too thin and ugly.

Only black dragons as strong as Rosani the Black Dragon were the aesthetic standard among black dragons.

Just as Caron had influenced the dragon group little by little during his whelp stage, the civilization of the Empire had also begun to dye that different color in the minds of these newborn whelps.

"Tch," a white dragon whelp chuckled softly, "Don't even think about it. Not every black dragon can be as strong and beautiful as Lord Rosani. You'll only become a skeleton, an ugly skeleton, tsk tsk!"

"And I will only inherit the glory of the White Dragon Lord and become an equally outstanding white dragon."

The red dragon whelp with the largest head sneered at the white dragon cub who was about to burst out laughing, shook his head, and muttered, "How can a weak white dragon understand the power of a red dragon? What a boring delusion."

The fierce blue dragon cub didn't say a word, watching the appearance of Thunder Lord Dos, while learning Dos's movements, slowly tearing apart the most fatty flesh of the Giant-Tusked Mastiff's abdomen neatly divided in the plate.

The life enjoyed by the Empire's newborn dragon whelps far exceeded that of other wild dragons.

When some Chromatic Dragon whelps were eating dirt and gnawing on grass roots in the wild, the Empire's dragon whelps were already enjoying ample food, and could even choose their favorite parts.

Creatures dozens of times stronger than dragon whelps were only their rations.

And a female green dragon cub was wagging her tail and approaching Behemoth Achilles, showing great hospitality, inquiring about some information and gossip about the Dragon Lords.

A cunning look flashed from the female green dragon's pupils, but Achilles, who stammered and buried his head in eating and drinking perfunctorily, quickly made this dragon cub angry.

"What an idiot," the green dragon cub thought, sat back in her seat, and tried her best to find the whereabouts of the Green Dragon Lord Antagena.

But she never found the figure of this forest dragon. She could only quietly prick up her hidden ears, listening to the high-level discussions of the Dragon Lords, in order to analyze some useful information from the words of these Dragon Lords.

It wasn't that she had any unusual thoughts. That's just how green dragons are.

But soon this green dragon cub discovered some characteristics of the great dragons in the Gormorra Dragon Clan that were different from other dragons.

As a dragon species, whether powerful or not, whether gentle or violent, there was an arrogance derived from blood and a natural sense of alienation.

The interaction between dragons was enough for any race to see the sense of distance and boundaries.

The Chromatic Dragons showed this even more obviously, because almost all of the Chromatic Dragons' words were always full of strong aggressiveness, just like their appearance and personality.

But the Gormorra Dragon Clan was not like this. Even in disputes, it was only based on the different viewpoints and arguments of both sides.

"The creative concept of magic is to pursue the power of destruction and the strength of power. The power to destroy everything is the essence of magic," Red Dragon Kadilos shouted loudly, forcibly squeezing into the discussion between Steel Dragon Midiel and Mist Dragon Denero. Regarding the research and development of magic, this red dragon's point of view adhered to the ultimate genes in his blood.

"Wrong, wrong, you definitely haven't studied Caron's theoretical knowledge manual carefully," Steel Dragon Midiel, who had weak combat power but strong casting ability, rolled his eyes at the red dragon mercilessly.

"The creative essence of magic is based on the rules and effects behind it, as well as reasonable combination and use. It is not that the stronger the power, the better. Truly powerful magic has unique wisdom and wonderful uses," Steel Dragon Midiel patted the steel plate on his chest and despised the red dragon, "Such as creating wonders, changing reality, prolonging life, and predicting the future. This is what creating magic should pursue. The power of a mage does not lie in the power of magic, but in their brains and wisdom."

"Isn't the combination of tar magic and low-level fireball spells more powerful than intermediate magic? You idiot, Kadilos."

The young red dragon Kadilos looked blank. He looked at the other Dragon Lords. No one refuted Steel Dragon Midiel's opinion, but instead showed a look of approval.

Even the White Dragon Lord Camid, who was burying his head in eating and drinking, looked like he had everything under control.

"Have you all studied it? How come I don't know?" Kadilos was taken aback. A whole lamb could be stuffed between his thick upper and lower teeth.

Mist Dragon Denero glanced at the red dragon, "The newly built library in the Dragon King's Court has this knowledge. Do you think the rest of the dragons often come to the court just for banquets and gatherings?"

"You should pay attention, Kadilos. Even the White Dragon Sacreles was allowed to come to the court to study once because he got a good grade in the elementary logic math exam. If you don't work hard, you may be left far behind."

Kadilos shook his head and lay down disgruntled.

Yang Dragon Naxen on the other side moved imperceptibly and continued the topic with Bronze Dragon Alina and Blue Dragon Dos.

"Those elves have been hiding in the forest for many years. Although their civilization has declined, they performed very well on the battlefield with the Drow today."

Bronze Dragon Lord Alina sipped a barrel of 'Odysseus Brew' and continued, "The elven Sword Dancer and Magic Archer legions are very powerful. Cooperating with the elven casting legions, they defeated the Drow's dark legions. It seems that we still can't underestimate those long-lived civilized countries."

Blue Dragon Dos nodded. As long as it didn't involve government affairs, this blue dragon spoke more frequently.

"Every race that can last will always have its own unique advantages. Although the Empire will inevitably be countless times stronger than those elves who close themselves off from knowledge in the future, we should not underestimate the other party."

"However, speaking of the Underdark, according to the latest documents, it seems that the Empire's Miner Legion accidentally dug up a large channel node leading to the Underdark when they were digging deep into the mines on the grassland."

"Not only are there many Underdark monsters on the opposite side of the channel, but the Miner Legion also discovered the shadow of dragon activity. According to some habits and some traces left by that dragon, the Miner Legion believes that it is a Purple Dragon," Blue Dragon Dos shared the information he saw.

Yang Dragon Naxen suddenly asked with great interest, "Purple Dragon? I've heard of this nightmare-like cousin of the Chromatic Dragons. It is said that this guy is a natural abyss manipulator, a perfect hunter in the Underdark."

Western Dragon Nakson looked at Blue Dragon Dos and asked curiously, "Moreover, the habits of the Purple Dragon, a giant dragon species, are closely related to the legendary Creator Dragon God Io. Dos, are you clear about the mysteries within?"

Blue Dragon Dos shook his head, "The inheritance of the Five-Colored Dragons doesn't value these things. After all, the Purple Dragon race isn't classified among the ten True Dragons, so I don't know much about it."

"I do know a little about the legends of the Purple Dragon race," Western Dragon Nakson's usually serious expression became very cheerful, and his long tail began to sweep unconsciously, like a cat's tail, having its own independent consciousness.

"Legend says that Purple Dragons like to collect secrets and also like to learn about distant lands. They pursue increasing their knowledge and schemes. They despise creatures that are useless to them, but are willing to bargain with any creature for the knowledge they want."

"They live in regions deeper than even Black Dragons, reaching the lowest levels of the world, and are always curious about tunnels and fissures leading to deeper unknown regions. All these habits come from a legend of a mysterious kingdom."

Western Dragon Nakson pretended to sip his wine, and seeing that the surrounding Dragon Lords had more or less perked up their ears to listen quietly, he contentedly put down his barrel and continued.

"Purple Dragons are more fond of exploration than any other race of dragons, and they are enthusiastic about exploring the deep underground world, which is a hundred times more complex than the surface world, because of a mysterious kingdom left behind by the Creator Dragon God Io."

"According to the Purple Dragon clan's inheritance, in ancient myths and legends, before the Creator Dragon God Io was split in half by the powerful Lord of Terror with an adamantine giant axe, he left a mysterious kingdom in the depths of the world."

"This mysterious kingdom contains ancient knowledge written by the Creator Dragon God Io and sacred artifacts carrying ancient knowledge. This knowledge is so powerful that a dragon who obtains this ancient knowledge can obtain a spark of divinity powerful enough to control."

"And then ascend to the power of godhood."

……

Pixie Raven stepped onto the second floor of the Dragon King's Court, looking for the trace of the Ancestral Red Dragon.

The deep corridor was quiet, without a single maid.

And from the bedroom deep in the corridor, a strange sound faintly came, amorous and hazy, the kind of sound that Pixie Raven could only occasionally hear when eavesdropping on her parents' conversations.

"What is Kalon doing?" Pixie Raven's little face was flushed, but she couldn't help but curiously fly towards the source of the sound.

When Pixie Raven quietly flew to the end of the corridor, an unprecedented scene shocked Raven in place like lightning.

This was a spacious bedroom, and the Ancestral Red Dragon that Pixie Raven was looking for was staying with Green Dragon Antajena and Red Dragon Kleineria.

The Ancestral Red Dragon, whose size reached more than twenty-seven meters, was like a mountain covering the backs of Green Dragon Antajena and Red Dragon Kleineria.

A pure white silk was held in the mouth of Green Dragon Antajena, the white silk and the white fangs indistinguishable in color, the green scales seemed to be dyed with the color of the Ancestral Red Dragon, becoming like boiled red shrimp, shining with a hazy luster.

And Red Dragon Kleineria had a slightly hoarse voice,

Perhaps it was very painful, but the slender tail of the female Red Dragon Kleineria was firmly wrapped around the Ancestral Red Dragon. This was the submission of the dragon, and also the pleading of the dragon.

"Oh my, what did I see?" Pixie Raven's little face was flushed, and she shouted in a soft voice, "My eyes are going to break, they're burning!"

"No, no, actually I didn't see anything!"

Thanks for the tickets!