Beneath the Red Dragon

”Maybe these soul crystals are more precious than I imagined,” Karon pondered, recalling that such things were quite an expensive currency even in the abyssal hell.

They could even compel those chaotic evil demons and devils to obey the orders of a paladin, provided the paladin could pay enough soul crystals.

The Red Dragon then instructed all his beloved to disperse and search for these soul crystals amid the battlefields that had gradually cooled and condensed into crystalline surfaces.

The moon sank, and the sun rose in the east.

At this moment, the earth appeared transformed, displaying a certain splendor under the dawning sun.

Karon and his group continued advancing toward their goal, with forty-two soul crystals now stored in his spatial magic bag—fruits of the Red Dragon’s beloved’s labor throughout the night.

Karon did not magnanimously allocate a portion of the soul crystals to the mages, as he and his beloved contributed the majority of the effort in this battle, rightfully claiming the spoils.

He was already being particularly generous by not confiscating the soul crystal from the Squinting Mage, especially for a giant dragon like himself.

Throughout the journey, the Red Dragon’s beloved smashed every white bone they encountered, but when night fell, numerous white bone undead would constantly appear from afar, persistently harassing the group, as if seeking to obstruct their passage.

With the experience of the first night’s occurrence, everyone now travels for only half the day before they camp down around noon for rest. Each evening, Karon uses his power to consolidate the sand into a fortress for the mages to base themselves upon for defense.

He, together with his beloved warriors, boldly slaughtered those invading white bone undead.

This was how the journey went on, after several battles, the seemingly endless white bone undead gradually diminished, and the nightly attacks of the undead swarm grew visibly sparse and disbanded.

The mages were delighted, almost reaching their exploration objective. The beloved warriors were also pleased by their innate penchant for carnage and battle, finally letting loose after having behaved themselves for too long in the dragon’s domain.

Karon looked at the ever-increasing soul crystals in the magic space bag and felt a sense of satisfaction, saddened were only those white bone undead and their mastermind.

On the tenth day after entering the desolate sandy area, the mages finally sighted their target, and Karon, with a slightly heavy expression, gazed forward. Though it was midday with the sun at its zenith, the region remained enveloped in a thin black mist.

Layer upon layer of black mist, the center was even as dark as the night, even Karon’s eyes could barely pierce through the mist to glimpse the fleeting scene.

A colossal golden divine spear pinned a corpse to the ground, from which radiated a life force vast as the sea and a power of destruction so terrifying it even made the Red Dragon’s heart skip a beat. These two powers coexisted on the spear, contradictory yet harmonious.

Karon’s face grew more serious. His massive form blocked the mages, ready to unleash magic to probe, saying, ”Be careful, don’t act rashly, this place is slightly dangerous.”

A mage quickly dispelled the magic gathering on the magic staff. Through the battles up to this point, these mages had developed a deep trust in the Red Dragon’s abilities, realizing that if the Red Dragon sensed danger, it was certainly not a mundane place.

”Caution is a wise habit, clever giant dragon,” a faint figure formed within the black mist, resembling a transparent spirit apparition, parting the mist and revealing a path leading to the golden divine spear.

Others then saw the scene within and gasped in shock.

The thick golden divine spear was about as thick as an adult thigh, the elongated shaft embedded within the immense corpse, with another ten meters protruding above.

The corpse on the ground was even more immense, resembling a giant dragon lying down, with six wings, six arms, three heads, each head differing from usual creatures, like a form fused with a primordial beastly instinct and divine essence from the beginning of heaven and earth.

Even after an eternity since demise, the corpse continued to emit a terrifying pressure and aura, imposing itself alongside the giant golden divine spear upon everyone, leaving them breathless.

The aura from the corpse felt like the mastermind Karon had sensed, yet it was more akin to a mammoth than a mere mouse.

”Legend!” Mage Hughes exclaimed in shock, the unintentional aura borne by the two forces weighted heavier upon the group’s spirits than even the dragon’s power, despite the considerable distance between them.

Hughes had sensed such pressure only in his teacher, the Saint-tier Mage Lapus, yet did not match the oppressive and penetrating sensation carried by the corpse before them.

”Indeed, you annoying mages are often worldly-wise, possessing great knowledge.” The transparent spirit apparition commented blandly.

”Who are you? An elf?” Karon asked cautiously, ready to retreat.

At this moment, the flames around him condensed into a thin field of flame, forming his domain, effectively repelling the incoming pressure while those spiritual oppressions were blocked by the domain.

The transparent spirit bore resemblance to a male elf, with pointed ears and elf-like features, but appearing within the eerie black mist made Karon uncertain.

”Elf? That’s merely my guise,” the male elf’s spirit chuckled, pointing at the gigantic golden divine spear, saying, ”That is my true self!”

”You are the spirit born from this divine spear?” Karon furrowed his brows, never having heard of weapons capable of birthing their own spirit. Though mighty magic alchemy weapons might possess some basic spirituality, none achieved complete, lively spirit.

Perhaps only those divine artifacts held by divine spirits could birth perfect souls, yet although the golden divine spear exuded strength, it still fell far short of the threshold of divine artifacts.

The male elf shook his head, his tone subtly shifting, ”That divine spear was crafted from the heart of the world tree, and I am the spirit unexpectedly born from the world tree.”

”Those mages harvested the world tree for research, while its heart was refined into a magical creature capable of transitioning between life and destruction.”