The Elven Cultivator

”The essence of a Golden Peak Dragon Race member is truly far beyond what an ordinary one can offer.”

Anton couldn’t help but marvel.

He had hunted so many Dragon Race members before, yet the total boost they provided to his Sword Pill was nothing compared to the significant improvement from the bodies of these five Executives.

At this rate, if he could just take down another three or four Golden Peak Pure-blooded Dragon Race members, his Sword Pill would very likely break through its shackles and ascend to the level of a Profound Artifact.

Once the thought appeared, it grew like a weed. Anton was momentarily seized by the impulse to set off for the Dragon’s Fang Defense Line at once and eliminate the four Executives stationed there.

But in the end, he suppressed this tempting thought.

The previous battle might have seemed like a landslide victory, but in reality, it had almost completely drained his resources.

His True Essence was completely depleted.

Only a single drop of Dark Heavy Water remained.

Even the array flags and Thunder Talismans of the Nine Heavens Thunder Suppression Array had suffered varying degrees of damage and needed repairs before they could be used again.

Right now, the only ace he had left was the ’Soul Suppression’ ability of the Soul-Suppressing Bell.

If he happened to run into reinforcements from Kresol Dragon City at this moment and was surrounded by a few Executives, it would be no laughing matter.

’I’ll look for another chance later.’

Anton let out a soft sigh of relief, retracted his Sword Pill, tidied up the Artifact Refining room, and returned to his quiet room. He sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, closed his eyes to focus his mind, and began to condense Dark Heavy Water anew.

The Dark Heavy Water had been indispensable in his success at killing five Executives in one go.

It was only natural to accumulate more of such a powerful ace up his sleeve. It was always better to be prepared.

...

RUMBLE!

The heavy stone doors were pushed open, and five Executives strode hastily into the great hall.

They had just been urgently recalled from the Dragon’s Fang Defense Line and Bishui Port. They had been guessing what had happened the entire way, but even as they stepped into the council hall, they were still completely clueless.

When they looked up and saw Aurion sitting at the head of the conference table, his expression so grim it looked like it could drip water, the hearts of all five sank.

Walt sat beside Aurion, his own expression just as ghastly.

Neither of them spoke. The atmosphere in the hall was so heavy it was suffocating.

The five arriving Executives exchanged glances, each seeing the same alarmed uncertainty in the others’ eyes.

This kind of emergency recall was extremely rare. When it happened, it always meant something major had occurred.

Could it be that the plan to use the transport convoy as a trap to lure the Fallen Dragon Association had gone wrong?

’No, impossible.’

With five Executives deployed at once, no force in the entire Eldron Plain could handle such a lineup.

At worst, the Fallen Dragon Association simply hadn’t taken the bait. It wasn’t as if *they* had suffered any real loss.

The five exchanged another glance, suppressed the surging unease in their hearts, and took their respective seats around the conference table.

Hector, the Executive in charge of Bishui Port, was the first to break, asking, ”Lord Aurion, what happened?”

Aurion’s face was grim, and he didn’t speak.

It was Walt who finally spoke, his expression terrible, ”About an hour ago, we lost contact with Wood, Kenneth, and the others who were escorting the transport convoy for the ambush plan.”

”We sent people to investigate the area near Graystone Pass. About four to five kilometers away, they found the bodies of the transport convoy’s Gray Scale-man soldiers. The Dragon Race soldiers and the five Executives were nowhere to be found.”

”At the same time, we discovered extensive signs of battle inside Graystone Pass.”

”Judging from the traces of the Power of Law left at the scene, it must have been the location where Wood and the others fought the Fallen Dragon Association.”

”After that, we used Magic to partially reconstruct the battle scene.”

At this point, Walt’s voice suddenly dropped. ”The results confirmed... all five Executives are dead.”

As his words fell, a dead silence descended upon the hall.

On the faces of the five Executives who had rushed back, expressions of pure horror surged like a tide.

”Impossible!”

Hector blurted out, his voice filled with disbelief.

”The Eldron branch of the Fallen Dragon Association only has three at the Golden Peak. How could they possibly kill five Executives at once?”

The other Executives also cried out in shock.

”Did the Fallen Dragon Association bring in reinforcements from other branches?”

”Even if the Fallen Dragon Association had reinforcements, if Wood and the others couldn’t win, couldn’t they have escaped?”

”Could there have been a mistake in the reconstruction? Maybe Wood and the others aren’t dead!”

Walt remained silent, letting the clamor continue until the other Executives’ voices gradually died down. Only then did he sigh deeply and continue.

”According to the reconstructed images from the scene, there were only three attackers in total.”

”Sieg, Bullock... and Canglan.”

”And they all survived. Not a single one of them died.”

”Only three people in total?”

Hector and the others were truly stunned this time.

Three Golden Peak experts fought five Executives, and not only were they not wiped out, they actually killed all five of them?

How is that possible?

They knew of Sieg and Bullock.

The former was quite strong, but among the twelve Executives, he was only mid-tier.

Wood alone could have easily suppressed him.

And as for Bullock, he had awakened a lowest-grade Law and had been at Golden Peak for less than a century.

Any one of the twelve Executives could have soundly beaten him.

As for Canglan... although he had the combat power of a Golden Peak, he hadn’t even awakened the Power of Law. In the end, he couldn’t be that much stronger than Bullock.

No matter how they thought about it, those three shouldn’t have had the strength to take down Wood’s group of five.

Seeing their disbelieving expressions, Walt couldn’t be bothered to say more. He tossed out an Imaging Stone.

”This is a recording of part of the battle. See for yourselves.”

Hector caught the Imaging Stone and eagerly injected his Magic Power to activate it.

The Imaging Stone suddenly erupted in a dazzling halo. Countless fine threads of light spread out from the stone, weaving together in the air to form a massive screen of light.

Scene after scene quickly flashed across the light screen.

The battle reconstructed by Magic was incomplete, flickering intermittently like a movie with missing frames.

But Hector and the others were still able to piece together a rough outline of the entire fight.

Soon, the images ended, and the screen of light dissipated.

For a long time, the council hall was silent.

The five Executives who had just arrived sat stunned on their stone chairs, the shock on their faces lingering.

Countless bewildered thoughts churned in their minds.

’What were those strange puppets that could form an array and trap a Golden Peak expert?’

’What was that Array that could summon countless bolts of incredibly powerful lightning?’

’And what were those black-jade water droplets that Canglan released?’

As members of the Dragon Race who had lived for over a thousand years, the highest authorities in Kresol Dragon City, they considered themselves knowledgeable and widely experienced. Yet, the various methods Canglan displayed in the images were far beyond their comprehension.

For the first time in their lives, they felt fear toward a being that was not of the Dragon Race.

Canglan’s strength had far, far surpassed their imagination.

Even if Lord Aurion himself were to act, it was doubtful he could kill five Executives in such a short time.

That man... just who in the world was he?

”Lord Aurion.”

Hector swallowed hard, his voice strained as he asked, ”What... should we do now?”

All the Executives turned in unison to look at Aurion at the head of the table, their eyes filled with confusion and unease.

At this moment, they actually felt a sense of panic and helplessness.

Heaven knew how long it had been since they had felt such an emotion.

Having ruled the Eldron Plain for a thousand years, it had always been them who made others feel fear. When had it ever been their turn to fear someone else?

Aurion was silent for a long time.

So long that the air in the council hall seemed to solidify, becoming so heavy it was hard to breathe.

Finally, he spoke, his voice hoarse.

”From this day forward, all Dragon Race and Vassal Army troops stationed outside are to withdraw to Dragon City. This includes Bishui Port and the Dragon’s Fang Defense Line. No one is to leave without my permission.”

The council hall immediately erupted in an uproar.

Disbelieving expressions appeared on the faces of all the Executives.

’Withdraw to Dragon City?’

’Doesn’t that mean abandoning Bishui Port and the Dragon’s Fang Defense Line?’

Bishui Port was the most prosperous commercial hub on the Eldron Plain, contributing an astonishing amount of tax revenue to Dragon City each year.

The Dragon’s Fang Defense Line was even more critical; it was the lifeline through which Dragon City controlled all entry and exit to the plains, a cornerstone of its rule. Without the Dragon’s Fang Defense Line, Dragon City’s blockade of the plain would be nothing but empty words.

Abandoning these two locations would be a disastrous blow to Dragon City’s prestige, economy, and military control.

”Lord Aurion, this...”

Hector couldn’t help but speak up, but he didn’t know what to say.

He understood how helpless Aurion must have felt to make this decision.

The Fallen Dragon Association and Canglan had managed to kill five Executives this time; there was no guarantee they wouldn’t strike again.

Unless they traveled with at least six Executives every time they left Dragon City, they couldn’t be considered safe at all.

But Dragon City still needed enough strength left behind to defend it.

If they all went out in force and Canglan’s group took the opportunity to attack Dragon City, the consequences would be even more unthinkable.

Maintaining the status quo would only allow Canglan and the Fallen Dragon Association to pick off the Executives one by one.

Rather than let that happen, it was better to pull back their defenses, concentrate their forces, and wait for an opportunity.

Once he understood all this, Hector fell silent.

The other Executives also gradually understood the key points, and the indignation and anger on their faces were slowly replaced by helplessness and solemnity.

”Until the City Lord returns, all operations against the Fallen Dragon Association are suspended. We will hold our positions and make no moves.”

Aurion’s voice echoed in the great hall.

”Yes.”

The Executives responded in unison, their voices low, devoid of their usual high spirits.

And so, the council meeting ended.

The Executives rose one by one and left, their footsteps echoing in the empty hall before fading into the distance.

Aurion sat alone on his stone chair, his gaze fixed blankly on the ceiling, unmoving for a long time.

”Canglan...”

He muttered the name, his expression terrifyingly grim.

For nearly ten thousand years, the Dragon Race had ruled the Dawn Continent. Never before had a being not of the Dragon Race thrown a ruling Dragon City into such a pathetic state.

A single person had forced the entire Kresol Dragon City to pull back its defenses and turtle up, afraid to venture out.

No one would believe it if word got out.

But this was reality.

Once the news of the five Executives’ deaths spread, there was no telling what kind of uproar it would cause across the Eldron Plain.

Those Vassal Races, those powers lurking in the shadows with greedy eyes, would likely all start to stir.

’There are more headaches to come.’

Aurion closed his eyes and sighed deeply.

This unprecedented frustration and powerlessness left him at a loss for how to respond.

’I can only hope the City Lord returns soon.’

’Until then... we can only endure.’