Ember Dragon

In the city of Salim, in the Taliro Desert.

In the Imperial Expeditionary Force's headquarters, Dolo sat with a group of high-ranking Imperial officers for a collective combat meeting, while Christina, as a "dragon research expert" familiar with the Red Dragon Cult, also participated in the meeting.

Dolo glanced around, his sharp gaze sweeping across the faces of every Imperial officer present. He placed his hands on the table and said in a deep voice:
"Everyone here is the pride of the empire, a warrior under the great Emperor Burning. I believe you, like me, understand the significance of this war—it is the beginning of the empire's hegemony on the continent of Feanso, and an indispensable step in realizing our grand vision."

Dolo lowered his hands and slammed them heavily on the table, his tone becoming increasingly impassioned, a strange light flashing in his pale golden eyes.

If we win, the Burning Empire will acquire the rich legacy of Holy Faldran and become the largest and most powerful empire in the land.

Each of us will stand proudly under the glory of the empire, chests puffed out and heads held high. We will obtain raw materials from all over the world to build skyscrapers and factories billowing with smoke. Humans, dwarves, elves, giants, orcs—those inferior races—will toil diligently in the empire's factories, and everything they possess will be used to produce abundant products for us.

Poverty, hunger, and disease will be eradicated on the empire's homeland. We will receive the most generous treatment, enjoy the most affluent lives, and become the most confident and proud first-class citizens in the world.

Before the guns and steel of the empire, all inferior races will tremble in fear, and the race with the burning bloodline will become the eternal rulers of this world! " As he finished speaking, Dolo clenched his huge fist, raised it, and shook it.

Upon hearing this, the imperial officers present became excited, their hearts surging with emotion and a surge of passion welling up within them.

"What a bright future!"

“It’s so beautiful!”

"This is the grand blueprint His Majesty Caesus has drawn up for us! This world should operate according to the will of our empire!"

This is the mainstream view of the hawks in the Burning Empire, which is mainly prevalent in the imperial army system. The imperial army is basically composed of imperialist and monopoly capitalist warriors with firm will and unwavering faith.

In their minds, the so-called "grand blueprint" is a perfect world where the resources and manpower of the entire world are used to support a group of imperial "Celestial Dragons".

Even George, an officer who came from a serf background, was captivated by Dolor's descriptions of the scenes, as if he wanted to immerse himself in them.

After experiencing a rapid rise in status and several years of brutal military service, George has now been transformed by the military system into a standard Imperial soldier: brave and skilled in battle, fearless of sacrifice, loyal to the Emperor, and extremely prejudiced against countries outside the Empire.

At the same time, they usually had ideas of freedom, equality, and the abolition of serfdom, but paradoxically, they also had an extremely strong sense of hierarchy. The saying "everyone is equal above me, and class distinctions are clear below me" was perfectly embodied in them.

But then, Dolo's tone shifted, becoming heavy: "But if we lose, the world will fall under the shadow of Tiamat's wings, and those brutal and foolish chromatic dragons will rule this land and wage a protracted war against us."

I believe you all know what to do as a proud citizen of the Empire, a warrior who has received the supreme grace of His Majesty Caesus, in this final war against the Church of the Dragon!

George was the first to stand up, clench his fist, place it in front of his heart, and said in a firm and powerful voice, "I will give my life for the Empire! I will give my life for His Majesty Caesar!"

Following George's example, the Imperial officers all stood up and, in turn, placed their fists in front of their chests, expertly performing the "Loyalty Salute."

"For the Empire!"

"For His Majesty Caesus!" Their slogans were unified and loud, displaying an air of unwavering determination.

After everyone was seated, the messenger from the south activated a magic crystal, and countless particles of light floated in mid-air, gradually condensing into magical images recorded by the Crimson Scale Conqueror scouts.

In that magical image, the once fertile Seleucia Plain has now become a scorched wasteland, with flowing lava, charred remains, and thick smoke rising from the ground.

The scorching lava crisscrossed the earth, flowing slowly and carving the ground into fragments.

The sky was shrouded in endless volcanic ash, the earth was dark and gloomy, and even the sun was blocked by the ash, unable to cast a single ray of light. The world seemed to have fallen into eternal darkness.

In the ruins of that town, one can still see the remains of humans. They remain in the same positions they were in before being swallowed by the lava, twisted, struggling, with their arms raised. But their bodies have long since turned black and have been completely carbonized, like human statues carved from coal.

The messenger explained, "This is the land affected by the calamity summoned by Kazul. We call it the 'Doomsday Forbidden Zone,' which is estimated to be 300 kilometers wide and has caused the deaths of more than five million people."

Christina stood frozen in place, her eyes slightly open, her expression a mixture of emotions: "He actually went this far! It seems the final ceremony is about to begin."

"Cassius above"

"The southwestern Seleucia has been transformed into this state!"

"Has that red dragon gone mad? This is territory occupied by their Dragon Worship Church! He has slaughtered all the people here!"

"Don't they need logistical support? They really are the followers of that evil mother of dragons, truly a brutal and insane being!"

The imperial officers, accustomed to lava and flames, were still quite surprised by this cataclysmic scene.

After all, this was hundreds of kilometers of scorched earth, inhabited by countless living beings, all of whom had been completely submerged by Kazur. In the eyes of that ancient red dragon, mortals might only be considered a bunch of ants, but in the eyes of the Empire, these humans were all extremely valuable laborers.

All I can say is that this enemy has far exceeded their expectations; he's an absolute madman.

Dolo observed for a moment, then asked the messenger, "Didn't our scouts go deep inside to investigate?"

The messenger replied, "Of course there are, but the environment on the Seleucia Plain is extremely harsh. The ground is covered with scorching lava rivers, and the air is shrouded in volcanic ash. Ordinary creatures cannot survive in it and will suffocate within minutes."

Nowadays, that land is a forbidden zone for life; apart from fire elemental creatures, ordinary mortals simply cannot survive there.

Even at low altitudes, our scouts will find it difficult to cross this area. The air is thick with smoke, visibility is extremely low, and it's easy to get lost. We've sent out seventeen Crimson Scale Conquerors; only two have returned alive, and the whereabouts of the other fifteen are unknown.

Dolo frowned: "Don't our scouts all carry navigation instruments with them?" The messenger explained: "That land is shrouded in some kind of extremely chaotic field. Once we enter it, all our instruments will malfunction, and they might even explode on the spot, as if we've been caught in a magical turbulence."

The wyverns would also fall into a state of fear and panic, unable to orient themselves by instinct, and thus unable to cross this area that stretched for hundreds of miles.

"What about the teleportation spell?"

"Couldn't we just traverse space, penetrate this area, and conduct large-scale magical teleportation?"

The messenger shook his head with a wry smile: "The magic network in that area is far too chaotic. Space is constantly distorting and changing. Our spellcasters simply cannot determine the accurate spatial coordinates in a short time. It will take at least three months of preparation time to construct a complete spell model. By then..."

"By then, Kazul will probably have completed the ritual and brought the five-colored dragon queens down to earth."

Christina added with a bitter expression and a heavy tone.

Dolo, still somewhat unwilling to give up, pressed on, "Can't we break through from other directions?"
For example, by using the Kingdom of Kasander as a route, just like the story His Majesty told us about the Maginot Line, we could break through the defenses in the eastern forest, bypass the Doomsday Forbidden Zone, and directly attack the Red Dragon Cult.

The messenger said helplessly, "We have contacted the Kingdom of Kasander in the east and the Dwarven Kingdom of Moria in the south, but they have also discovered the existence of the 'Doomsday Forbidden Zone' at their borders."

I suspect that Kazul has already surrounded the entire southwestern Seleucia with lava and ash, isolating himself within it, blocking all surrounding forces, and completely abandoning all communication with the outside world.

George gazed at the magical image in mid-air and said in a deep voice, "Marshal Dolo, the situation is more serious than we anticipated."

It seems that the "Crimson Ember" never intended to confront us directly; he didn't even bother to assemble an army of mortals. The "Forbidden Zone of Doom" he created with his own power is the Red Dragon Cult's last line of defense.

Dolo's expression shifted between anger and uncertainty: "But we don't even know who the enemy is. Are we just going to stand by and watch Kazul complete the ritual?"

Just then, the divine advisor accompanying the army stepped forward and said calmly, "Kazul has not yet ascended to become a true god. According to our research, it is impossible for him to completely control natural disasters within a range of thousands of miles."

"Marshal Dolo".

Christina also stepped forward and said:
"Kazur established his own church a long time ago. He had many famous followers who walked the earth on his behalf and controlled natural disasters in various places. Perhaps these followers can become the breakthrough point for the allied forces."

Dolo pondered for a moment, sighed softly, and said, "I will issue missions to the Starfallers, sending them to the Forbidden Zone of Doom to gather intelligence and find a way to cross this area."

"Furthermore, I must report this matter to His Majesty Caesus." As he spoke, Dolo looked north, his eyes revealing a solemn expression.

The Burning Empire, the Anzeta Wasteland, Dragonblood Mountain.

"Your Majesty, the entire expeditionary force will exert all its strength and spare no expense to find a way to break through the Doomsday Forbidden Zone and completely destroy the remnants of the Red Dragon Cult."

"I know, go ahead."

Kaisius casually browsed the intelligence reports from the south, lost in thought: "End the old era, destroy the world, purge everything. Such familiar doctrine. Could it be that this ancient red dragon wants to seize Karix's divine position?"

His eyes flashed, and a strong killing intent appeared in his pale golden pupils.

Karax is the god of destruction of the dragon race, also known as the Lord of Flames, the Nothingness, and the Purifier of the World. His divine duties are fire, destruction, and revival. However, tens of thousands of years ago, this god fell into madness.

For Caesus, who possessed the Heart of Karix, his divine office was the most fitting and easiest to obtain.

However, he quickly rejected this idea. In the original storyline, Kazul devoured the other two ancient dragons, gathered the three divine bodies, and transformed into a three-colored dragon, but Tiamat took over its body.

Now, Tiamat has only this one anchor point left in the material world, and she will not let Kazul go no matter what—after all, this is her last chance to descend into the material plane.

"A forbidden zone from the end of the world?"

Kaisius sneered and slowly stood up, his massive body rising like a volcano: "This kind of thing can only stop mortals. I want to see how Kazul intends to stop me."

The Red Dragon Emperor suddenly spread his wings, and the divine power surging within him overflowed, turning into tiny particles of light that floated and swirled in mid-air, spreading an intense pressure.

Immediately afterwards, the entire Dragonblood Mountain began to tremble violently, and blood-red lava gushed out from the cracks in the rocks. Kaisius raised his head and let out a high-pitched roar.

A fierce red light tore through the clouds and pierced the sky, as if tearing a long and deep scar in the heavens. Its power was overwhelming, causing countless people near Dragon Blood Mountain to look up in awe.

"Long live His Majesty Cassius!"

"Praise be to the Emperor of Burning Ashes!"

"It is His Majesty! His Majesty has once again demonstrated his supreme power!"

It is said that whoever sees His Majesty Caesus breathe fire will receive great wealth for the following year!

The people of the Empire near Dragonblood Mountain were deeply moved, some even kneeling on the ground in devout prayer, and singing the stirring "Song of Kessius".

"Your Majesty has allowed mountain springs to flow down to the plains, and timely rains to nourish all things and every place."

Amidst the unified singing and illuminated by the firelight, the expressions of the imperial people grew increasingly devout and fervent, with wisps of faith rising from their bodies and drifting towards the distant Red Dragon Emperor.

Unlike those poor people who worshipped Kazul, these followers of the emperor would not be consumed by lava and ash. Kasius needed them as anchors, and they needed the Burning Emperor as their faith and the protector of the empire. (End of Chapter)