Ember Dragon

The Taliro Desert, the western lair.

Beneath the ruins of the ancient city swallowed by sand dunes, the blue dragons of the Faria family were in chaos and terrified.

Several blue dragons, riddled with bullet holes and scorch marks, returned to their lair, panting heavily, and cried out anxiously, "Elder Gorazdra, she, she's fallen! She was killed by the Emperor of the Burning Flames!"

"Gorazdra is dead!"

"The allied forces have occupied the Taliro Desert, annihilated the Blue Dragon Cult, and are advancing towards our lair!"

"Those descendants of the blue dragons were all killed!"

"Run! The Imperials are coming! The iron balls they shoot with their clubs can pierce our scales! I saw a young blue dragon killed by a group of weak humans with no superhuman strength!"

"By Tiamat, do those crazed Imperials intend to kill us all?"

The patriarch of the Faria family—the ancient blue dragon Keldom—frowned, stepped forward, and said in a deep voice, "How could Elder Gorazdra die so easily? She is a demigod-level ancient dragon. Unless a true god intervenes, she will not die even if an epochal cataclysm occurs."

The blue dragon, its body riddled with bullet holes, recalled the events with terror, its voice trembling as it said, "But... I saw with my own eyes that the Red Dragon Emperor use dragonfire to cover a space thousands of meters wide, burning Elder Gorazdra to ashes, leaving not even a corpse behind!"

"Tiamat above."

Keldom's eyes flickered, and he couldn't help but sigh, as if he could see that magnificent yet tragic scene.

Just then, Christina stepped forward, pulled out an emblem of the Burning Empire from the gaps in the scales, and said loudly, "I have said before that the Faria family should not interfere in this war. I have already signed an agreement with the Burning Empire. As long as we submit to them, no one in our clan will be harmed."

The heavily wounded blue dragon hesitated for a moment, then said cautiously, "But this is blatant betrayal."

"idiot!"

Christina's eyes widened, sparks flying in her pupils, and she angrily retorted, "Did the Empire's bullets damage your brain, turning it into a jumbled mess? The Faria family is already in dire straits, and you're still thinking about so-called betrayal!"

The blue dragon still hesitated: "But if Her Majesty Tiamat investigates further..."

Christina sneered: "The Faria clan has devoted themselves to Him for over a thousand years, and apart from a few insignificant compliments, we haven't even received a single gold coin. It's time to face reality and seek another master."

"Fortunately, I predicted the current situation long ago. Otherwise, if you bunch of fools were to serve the Dragon Worship Cult, our Faria family would probably be in no better shape than those degenerate bastards!"

Another adult blue dragon, returning from the battlefield, raised another question: "Can those Imperials really guarantee that we'll benefit? Could this be a trap?"

Christina shook her head and said, "No five-colored dragon clan has submitted to the Empire yet. If we, Faria, are the first to submit, we will set an example, and they will treat us very well."

“However, what you said does make some sense. These imperial people will never completely trust the clan in a short time, let alone consider us as their own. We need a pledge of loyalty.”

Suddenly, a noisy buzzing sound rang out, and a tiny blue arc of electricity surged into the depths of the cave, condensing into a familiar blue dragon shape in the shocked gaze of the dragons, radiating an extremely high level of pressure—it was Gorazdra.

In the final moments before his physical body was about to be destroyed by Kaisius, Gorazdra caused his dragon soul to detach from his body and escape. His quasi-god-level spirit allowed him to travel at high speed through the material world in soul form, thus avoiding the long period of soul reunion.

Amidst the crackling of electricity, the spirit form of Gorazdra screamed in fury, "Kaishus, that damned traitor! I'll make him suffer a fate worse than death! Just one step away, just one step away from killing him!"

A dazzling bolt of lightning erupted from her body, shattering the rock wall and creating charred cracks on it—even without a physical body, only her soul remained, this ancient blue dragon possessed power that ordinary dragons could hardly match.

After venting his anger, Gorazdra looked at the ancient blue dragon with a cold and contemptuous gaze and said in a commanding tone, "Keldormu, I need a new body that can carry my soul, at least an adult dragon."

"But."

Upon hearing this, Keldom looked troubled, and the blue dragons in the lair all took a few steps back, shrinking into the shadows of the cave, fearing that this infamous elder would target them.

Although the Blue Dragons are the race with the most perfect social system and the most orderly behavior among the five-colored dragons, they are also greedy and selfish evil dragons who never give their lives for their race in vain.

"There are no buts. Without me, do you want to be wiped out by those greedy imperial people?" At this moment, although Gorazdra was quite small, he possessed an aura far stronger than the other blue dragons in the lair, causing them to hold their breath, be cautious, and dare not speak.

Within the Faria clan, almost all blue dragons are terrified of this elder; if they anger him, they could easily face annihilation.

But behind Gorazdela, Christina's eyes were slightly narrowed, her lips were slightly upturned, and her long, narrow pupils seemed to be flashing with an unusual light.

Perhaps she has already found a suitable pledge of allegiance, and this pledge certainly carries significant weight.

That afternoon, Gorazdra's dragon soul was resting and recuperating deep within its lair, using a crystal filled with lightning elements to restore its divine power, its entire body emitting restless electrical crackling sounds.

Several adult blue dragons stood around her, trembling with fear, moving with extreme caution, for fear of angering this thunderous tyrant who had just lost his physical body.

Gorazdra casually raised his eyes and glanced at the ancient blue dragon not far away: "Keldormu, I need to see a suitable body before dawn tomorrow, understand?"

"Yes, Elder." Keldom lowered his head, still as respectful and humble as ever, but his eyes subtly sharpened, as if he had made a decision.

Gorazdra nodded slightly, his face filled with hatred, almost grinding his teeth to powder: "Once I regain my strength, I will definitely make that arrogant red dragon—"

"boom!"

First came a piercing shriek from the sky, followed by a deafening roar. The earth shook violently, and rubble kept falling from the cave. An unparalleled, terrifying pressure descended upon this land, and even space itself gradually distorted, like a piece of paper that had been carelessly crumpled, with creases everywhere.

The blue dragons panicked and scattered in all directions, their noisy roars echoing through the lair.

"How is this going?"

"Could it be those Imperials? Are they attacking our stronghold?"

Even Gorazdra roared in shock and anger, "Who is it? Who is it? You bunch of useless trash, you can't even defend a single lair!"

Kaldom, however, remained quite calm and said in a low voice, "Fellow clansmen, what is bound to happen will happen. Everything must be done in the best interests of the Faria clan."

"How dare you—" Gorazdra seemed to realize something, abruptly turning to look at the ancient blue dragon, gritting his teeth, his eyes filled with astonishment as if he were seeing him for the first time. "You...you all look!"

Just then, one of the blue dragons raised its head in a trembling voice, looking up at the top of the nest in great fear. There, it saw a series of hideous cracks, which were spreading rapidly and emitting beams of light.

"boom!"

With a deafening roar, the top layer of the nest was forcibly ripped off, and sunlight shone into the dark nest. Then, accompanied by immense pressure, a shadow once again enveloped the place.

"That, that is..."

"By Tiamat! He... he has actually descended in person!"

"How is this possible? Such a size, such dragon might—that's the Burning Emperor!"

The blue dragons raised their heads tremblingly, their eyes scanning from bottom to top. First, they saw the enormous claws, then the forelimbs covered in red scales, and then the mountain-like bodies covered in iron-like muscles, which gleamed in the sunlight and were edged with gold.

A colossal red dragon hovered above them, its form imposing and majestic, its wings blotting out the sky like a crimson curtain, exuding an aura of majesty, brutality, and holiness.

—It was none other than the Burning Emperor, Kesius, who had just defeated Gorazdra, withstood Tiamat's divine punishment, and destroyed the Blue Dragon Cult.

Under the gaze of countless fearful, terrified, and hostile eyes, Kaisius slowly lowered his head, a mocking smile playing on his lips, his pale golden vertical pupils blazing with fire.

"Gorazdra, we meet again. This time I won't let you escape so easily."

"Casius!"

"You actually colluded with a traitor within your own clan! You are utterly shameless!"

Gorazdra let out a shriek of shock and rage, then transformed its soul into silver-white lightning once more. Endless lightning bolts crisscrossed as the ancient blue dragon attempted to traverse the underground space, merging with the lightning elements within the mine, thereby escaping the Red Dragon Emperor's pursuit.

However, Kaisius had made thorough preparations for this surprise attack, determined to completely control this quasi-god-level ancient dragon.

“Gorazdra, it was your people who contacted me. I’ve heard the saying, ‘Those who do many evil deeds will surely perish.’ But it seems that this doesn’t apply to us dragons. You’re just too useless to command respect, and you can’t even control your own people.”

"Tsk, I never thought that the once high and mighty quasi-god would now become the Faria clan's pledge of allegiance to me. How ironic."

"Give up your futile struggle and surrender, you loyal dog of Tiamat!"

With a long roar, the power accumulated within the time imprint on its body surged forth, and the torrent of time gushed from Kaisius's throat, instantly enveloping the soul of this ancient blue dragon.

That's a ninth-ring spell—

[Perpetual Stasis]!
If Gorazdra were at its peak, ordinary ninth-ring spells would have little effect on it; they would simply be torn apart and easily broken through by its devastating lightning.

But now, the ancient blue dragon's body has been burned to ashes, and it is unknown how long it will take to reassemble. Only a fragmented and weak soul remains. The god's divine power is extremely scarce now, and despite its high and mighty status, it is completely unable to withstand the impact of the power of time.

"boom!"

A tremendous impact erupted, as if a stone had been thrown into space. Ripples spread around the [Eternal Stillness] spell, affecting every blue dragon in the vicinity.

In an instant, the space around Gorazdra froze, and everything—dust, particles, and even the dragon soul—was frozen in time, as if it had condensed into a delicate, solidified piece of amber.

"Elder."

"She...she was actually imprisoned there like that!"

Seeing this, Keldom lowered his head and said with exceptional respect, "Welcome, Your Majesty Caesus. It is truly an honor for us that you have graced the lair of the Faria clan."

Seeing this, the other blue dragons in the lair looked at each other for a moment, then lowered their heads and said in unison, "Welcome, Your Majesty Caesus."

Christina flapped her dragon wings and rushed over from a short distance away, kneeling on her forelimbs and bending her neck to perform an elegant dragon salute to the red dragon emperor: "Your Majesty Caesus, the dragon soul of a quasi-god, this is our Faria family's pledge of allegiance—I wonder if you are satisfied?"

In the young blue dragon's view, it was inevitable that Gorazdra would be captured by the Burning Empire after his physical body was destroyed; it was only a matter of time.

Rather than searching for a new body for her, performing a resurrection ritual, and gambling on her regaining her former glory, it would be better to let this ancient blue dragon exhaust its last bit of value, making her a pledge of allegiance for the Faria clan to join the empire, thus demonstrating their firm resolve and attitude.

Christina quietly raised her head, gazing up at the Red Dragon Emperor's broad and majestic body as if on a pilgrimage, while also observing the changes in his expression.

Kaisius grinned slightly, revealing a ferocious smile that exposed his bloodstained teeth, giving off an extremely strong sense of oppression: "Not bad, I'm very satisfied."

He swung his dragon claw, and the solidified Time Amber flew into the sky, appearing in his palm. The Gorazdra sealed inside still had a look of fear and terror on its face, with lightning flashing in its pupils, and still exuding the pressure of a quasi-god level.

But now, this powerful quasi-god has appeared in the palm of the Red Dragon Emperor, sending chills down everyone's spines.

After doing all this, Kaisius flapped his dragon wings and rose into the sky. His deep and resonant voice echoed across the desert, stirring up gusts of sand. Then, he spread his broad dragon wings, casting huge shadows in the yellow sand: "Gentlemen—welcome to the Burning Empire!"

The blue dragons emerged from their lair and saw an endless, mottled torrent of yellow sand in the distance—the imperial army. Countless heavy cannons, painted in jet black, stood tall, their dark muzzles pointing directly at the Faria family's lair, as if they would unleash a barrage of cannon fire at any moment, reducing the place to ruins.

Seeing the Red Dragon Emperor take to the air to welcome the Blue Dragons, the commander of the Imperial Heavy Artillery Legion, the Imperial Army Lieutenant General, the Dragon Vein Ogre Big Head, waved his hand somewhat dejectedly and said in a muffled voice, "They've surrendered! Cease fire!"

"Alas, what a pity, the battle merits that were within my grasp are gone."

"These blue dragons are spineless!" The Imperial artillerymen murmured amongst themselves, their tone tinged with disappointment and frustration.

Seeing this, the blue dragons still in their lair were terrified—especially Keldom, the chieftain of the Faria clan, whose scalp tingled, eyelids twitched wildly, and he couldn't help but swallow hard, feeling incredibly fortunate for the correct decision he had just made.

If the Faria family didn't surrender, these imperial soldiers would probably use them as cannon fodder and blast them to smithereens. (End of Chapter)