Pillar of Yita

A plume of smoke gradually formed into the shape of a giant eagle behind the man in gray. Its silver shell, azure wings, and mithril claws, with eyes carved from rubies, were so striking and unique that upon seeing it, Fang Hong couldn’t help but stand frozen and exclaim, ”You, you’re Promisir’s Irs. How are you here?”

Promisir is one of the largest Free Guilds in the Osh Empire, and Irs has been a famous star contestant for many years. Other than not being one of the Ten Kings, his status in Osh is almost equivalent to that of Ye Hua.

Of course, compared to him, who is somewhat of a novice, the other is a true blue Dragon Knight. Fang Hong immediately felt somewhat uneasy.

The man in gray was slightly startled and looked at Fang Hong with a hint of surprise in his eyes. ”You actually recognize me, not bad, little guy, you’re well-informed.”

But Fang Hong was not at ease like him. He took a step back and quietly said to Princess Rupert behind him, ”Your Highness, I’ll hold them off, you head to the main hall.”

Princess Rupert had a complex expression, but as she looked at him and the enemy in front, she opened her mouth to speak but then fell silent, nodded lightly, and turned to leave.

Irs saw the Grand Princess escaping and instinctively wanted to move forward, causing a stir among the Dragonfire Guild members.

The towering knight-like construct ’Xiuma’ standing beside Fang Hong moved gently under the boy’s silent gaze, lowered its spear with a ’whoosh’, and blocked everyone in front.

No words were needed; the meaning was clear.

Irs’ eyes held some amusement as he pulled down his mask, revealing a face different from that of a countryman, with high cheekbones and deep-set eyes, still very young, just a youth.

”I want to see,” he laughed, showing a mouthful of white teeth, ”how long you can hold us off.”

As soon as the words fell, he pointed, ”Hillofen, charge!”

Fang Hong knew that Hillofen was the name of their Dragon Soul, an artificial beast-shaped Dragon Soul. It was naturally inferior to Miss Tata’s unique quality, but the clash of Dragon Souls wasn’t just about the Dragon Souls themselves; it was about their masters. His combat experience related to Miss Tata was obviously too little, and their coordination was nowhere near as proficient as the opponent’s—even Fang Hong thought so.

While standing before this already famous star contestant, who became a Dragon Knight years earlier when Fang Hong might not have even encountered ’R’, the other party had likely already experienced countless such battles over the decade.

So the moment he heard the command given to his Dragon Soul, Fang Hong became alert, entering the Dragon Knight’s vision. He saw the construct giant eagle flapping its wings and swooping towards him, as swift as a silver lightning bolt yet as slow as a snail—such a peculiar feeling—as if two versions of himself existed simultaneously.

One version was himself, and the other merged with the Dragon Knight, each seeing different sceneries.

”That construct’s performance is far inferior to ours, Mr. Knight.” Miss Tata’s voice came from the mind world.

Fang Hong was slightly bewildered but quickly understood.

Dragon Knight Xiuma, a hero’s construct, wielding a Dragon Slaying Spear, forged from the materials blessed by the stars.

It was made from priceless Star Iron, the result of a three-year collaboration harnessing nearly all the power of Colin Ishurian, with the mortal enemies Emerald Bird Workshop and the Westwood Sibika family working together.

Perhaps for the next hundred years, it would be tough to witness a more legendary construct being born on the land of Colin.

Though ancient, it was still incomparable to ordinary Dragon Knights.

The Osh Empire certainly had Legendary Constructs, but the one in Irs’ hands definitely wasn’t one. To be precise, it’s nearly impossible for Invokers to possess a Legendary Construct; this is the depth of the Natives.

Even with Ye Hua and Odin, the two Ten Kings, in the Third District, the only Legendary Construct is in the hands of Silver Weslan, and it’s still without an owner.

Excellent Dragon Knights select constructs; excellent constructs do the same. He stood firm against Nikopolas in the battle of Fanric, in that specific environment, only then did he gain Xiuma’s recognition.

Here, he merely skillfully projected Xiuma’s shadow.

Truly legendary constructs, especially those that once had a master, won’t easily choose a new successor.

But the gap between excellent constructs is also evident.

Dragon Knights are the pinnacle of Magic Guided Engineering, but there’s clearly a difference between pinnacles. Irs’s construct named Hillofen draws from the name of the ancient Giant Spirit in Osh myth, forged by one of today’s Osh people’s three masters, Aoduqi.

But Dragon Knight Xiuma originated from the hands of seven of Colin’s top craftsmen and a Great Alchemist. It wasn’t even born to combat other Dragon Knights, but rather as a Dragon killer.

Under the joint control of Fang Hong and Miss Tata, Xiuma swung its spear horizontally, the spear tip drawing a silver arc that caused an illusion in the eyes of the Dragonfire Guild members—as if the spear split into two, the afterimage lingering in place.

Irs was slightly stunned by this sight, yet he didn’t order Hillofen to change direction. Hillofen’s massive claws collided with the spear, causing a thunderous crash.

Both Irs and Fang Hong’s expressions turned less than pleasant at that moment, with Fang Hong even wiping his mouth, looking down to see his palm stained red.

”Mr. Knight?” Tata asked.