Ember Dragon

Chapter 862 Betrayal and Exile

However, things did not end as smoothly as Tiamat had anticipated. Under the influence of the Chaos Domain, even the black hole that was tearing through space was suddenly distorted.

Flesh, scales, and bones in mid-air burned fiercely, falling towards Tiamat like countless meteors, then coalescing in front of her and reshaping into the ferocious dragon body of Karex, from which raging winds surged forth.

At this moment, the body of this Lord of Flames was covered with entropy marks—his madness had rendered him unable to distinguish friend from foe. On the earth, the Purifying Fire began to devour his "believers," turning countless Dragon Worshippers into nourishment for Karix's rebirth.

"Kill you!"

"It hurts so much, it hurts so much! If I can destroy all of this, I can finally be free!"

Karex's eyes went mad, and he let out a miserable howl before charging recklessly toward the five-headed dragon's soul.

Tiamat's expression grew increasingly grim—He could not drag this out any longer; continuing to fight this madman would be harmful and pointless to Him.

It is important to know that rituals have a duration, and once the selected time frame is exceeded, the barriers of the material plane will be reshaped.

At that time, He will miss this once-in-a-millennium opportunity and completely lose the chance to descend into the material world.

Moreover, the gods would never ignore His arrival. Before this war, Tiamat allied with many lawful evil gods, the great demons of hell, and even made a deal with the demon lords of the abyss, paying a heavy price to have them shield her from the gods' offensive.

If too much time passes, those untrustworthy temporary allies will no longer be able to stop the gods, and His divine homeland will likely be attacked.

Tiamat knew that her time was incredibly precious, and every minute and every second she fought with Karex was sowing the seeds of future trouble.

Thinking of this, the hatred in His five vertical pupils became even more obvious, and His murderous gaze was cast towards the Burning Emperor in the distance, wishing He could tear him to pieces on the spot.

Damn alien dragon!

It's all because of him, that brat who's lived for decades, who ruined His millennia-long plan!
At this moment, Tiamat deeply regretted not killing her opponent when he was weak, otherwise she wouldn't be in such a predicament now.

"Your enemy is me!"

Karex's angry shout interrupted Tiamat's roar.

The Lord of Flames's ferocious head tore and gnawed, creating horrifying wounds on Tiamat's green dragon head. Little did it know that as the embodiment of poison, Tiamat's green dragon head's flesh and blood were filled with extremely terrifying toxins.

Karex's body turned black at a visible speed, its scales fell off, its wings were covered with dark purple blood streaks, and even its flesh began to rot, making it look like a corpse dragon about to decay.

"Tiamat!"

Karix's roar grew increasingly heart-wrenching, the flames of revival burning fiercely on His body, constantly forging new divine forms. However, the deadly poison was also rapidly spreading, causing half of the dragon god's body to rot while the other half remained intact.

Even so, Karax still pounced on Tiamat, swinging his enormous, flame-covered dragon claws toward Tiamat's white dragon head.

Tiamat gave a sinister smile, and the white dragon head suddenly opened its mouth, unleashing a torrent of frosty white cold water that poured down like a waterfall, instantly freezing Karix's dragon claws and even sealing off the surrounding space.

Karex roared to the sky, his madness flaring up, flames engulfing his body, a hurricane sweeping in to burn everything, melting away the frozen frost, and his dragon claws piercing deeply into Tiamat's neck.

"Thorn-"

Mottled gray-white scales flew through the air, and Tiamat's white dragon head howled incessantly.

However, Karix seized the opportunity, dragging his body, which was rotting in the poison, and transformed into a crimson afterimage as he swooped down recklessly.

The chaotic realm surrounding it is expanding and spreading wildly, contending with Tiamat's divine power domain.

Accompanied by earth-shattering roars, hisses, and howls, the two dragon gods, symbols of supreme power, grappled together in the most primal way. The aftershocks from their collisions shattered the space, and the divine blood seeping from their bodies nearly dyed the sky red.

"Ow—"

As Karax charged forward again, Tiamat's five heads rose in unison, and a vicious curse and a blasphemous whisper emanated from deep within her throat.

Millions of twisted figures of red, blue, green, black, and white dragons appeared in the sky, clinging to Karix's body like a leech—these were all creations of Tiamat's divine power.

They gnawed at His flesh and blood, prevented His rebirth, bound His movements, and formed chains.

The Chains of the Dragon!

As the Queen of the Five Colored Dragons and the Mother of Dragons, Tiamat theoretically possesses the ability to control all the colored dragons in the multiverse. She only needs to draw a small portion of the dragons' immense power to bind Karix.

Karix twisted and struggled frantically, seemingly trying to break free from the restraints of the five-colored dragon shadows. Each movement caused thousands of dragon shadows to disintegrate and shatter.

However, Tiamat's swarm of five-colored dragons was so vast that even she found it difficult to rid herself of it.

Tiamat unleashed her full power, using a torrent of divine energy to imprison Kazul in mid-air, preparing to banish him from the material plane.

"Click——"

With a series of crisp cracks, countless dense, spiderweb-like cracks appeared in the space around Karix, as if it would collapse at any moment.

But just then, a familiar voice came from behind Tiamat: "Your Majesty, are you satisfied with the gift I gave you?"

Tiamat's head turned stiffly, and she saw a ferocious red dragon with a face revealing white bones staring intently at her, its dark golden vertical pupils radiating surging battle intent.

That was Kazul, Tiamat's most "loyal" follower, and also the one who had just betrayed Him.

Tiamat roared, "Kazul, what reason do you have to betray me! Your bloodline and your power were given to you by me! I believe you know better than I do what happens to traitors—after all, you personally executed many of them for me!"

"Rather than a gift, it's more like you're cultivating a new body for yourself, isn't it?"

Kazul's tone remained respectful, yet it carried a hint of coldness, and even a long-suppressed smile, which surprised Tiamat.

Tiamat had always treated this ancient red dragon as a loyal hound she could discard at will, a tool she could use at will, and a shell that was about to be replaced.

This was the first time He realized the arrogance, greed, and disdain for everything that this red dragon, who was willing to give up its dignity and even its soul to become a god, possessed, and that it, like Him, would stop at nothing to achieve its goals.

In a sense, Kazur was indeed His most like-minded son.

“It seems I underestimated you,” Tiamat said coldly.

Kazul responded with a breath imbued with the power of a destructive god, and roared with all his might: "Your Majesty Tiamat, leave my body and get out of the Prime Material Plane—"

Now! The barriers between planes are about to completely collapse. With just a slight exertion, Tiamat and Karex will be expelled by the will of the material plane.

He, Kazul, then monopolized the divinity left behind by Tiamat, and subsequently killed the Burning Emperor, becoming a true god through a ritual.

Although the hope was slim, it was the best outcome he could find amidst countless desperate situations!

We absolutely cannot let this opportunity slip by!
"boom--"

With a deafening explosion, deep black flames tore through the sky, carrying divine power capable of destroying everything, and pierced towards Tiamat's back.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Kaisius also flapped his dragon wings and soared into the air. An extremely destructive and dazzling pillar of fire spewed from the depths of his throat, piercing through the sky for thousands of meters, and also crashing into the vital spot of the five-headed dragon.

At this moment, Kaisius's heart was pounding violently, the dragon crystal on his chest was flashing incessantly, and his whole body was emitting scorching steam, like an engine about to overload. He was clearly exerting all his strength, and the breath he exhaled was enough to easily destroy a city.

Although Kazul and Kaisius were mortal enemies who fought each other just now, they may also kill each other in the not-too-distant future.

But at least for now, they are allies with shared interests.

Tiamat stared at the two dragon breaths hurtling towards her from the sky, a hint of contempt and indifference in her eyes: "Insignificant mortals—you dare to be my enemy?"

His wings suddenly unfurled, and his immense divine power transformed into a despair-inducing barrier. The two breaths were completely unable to budge the barrier and were blocked from entering.

However, Kazul did not give up. He knew this was his last chance. Once Karex was banished, Tiamat would concentrate her power to seize his body, and he would only suffer the tragic fate of being annihilated.

"Tiamat!"

Kazul roared in fury, ramming his flesh and blood against the barrier, tearing at it with all his might, and actually managed to rip open the divine power barrier.

"Once I drive you out, all of this will be mine! Mine!"

Kazul's eyes flashed with a fierce light, but he didn't notice Tiamat's lips curling up into a mocking smile.

Suddenly, an enormous dragon claw formed from divine power appeared out of thin air, grabbing the ancient red dragon, which was over a thousand meters long, and rendering it unable to move.

Tiamat.

Kazul roared in resentment, but to his surprise, he found that the power within him was as if it had been completely drained, and he could not release any of it.

How can this be?

Tiamat merely sneered: "Kazul, all your power comes from me. Did you think I wouldn't have laid a trap for you beforehand?"

Instantly, hidden runes appeared on the massive body of the Primordial Red Dragon, flashing with five-colored light—that was Tiamat's divine power binding it, fixing its body in space, like a lifeless puppet unable to move.

Meanwhile, another dragon claw reached into Kazul's body and pulled out a semi-transparent, red dragon-like phantom from it.

That was Kazur's soul.

Kazul was furious, his face contorted in rage, but he could only watch helplessly as his soul was gradually ripped from his body.

"Stop struggling. This is your fate, Kazul."

Tiamat's cold voice echoed in the sky: "You were born for this. Everything you have experienced, whether joy or sorrow, has been carefully orchestrated by me."

"The entire meaning of your life of over a thousand years is to cultivate a suitable body for me and to dedicate yourself to the revival of the Five-Colored Dragon Clan."

"Don't worry, your soul will soon be cleansed, and I will make you a member of the divine kingdom so that you can continue to fight for me."

Hearing Tiamat's harsh words, Kazul's expression became increasingly ferocious. In the end, he let out a bitter laugh, his mouth almost stretching to his ears, revealing a mad smile.

"In that case—my beloved, supreme Your Majesty, please accept my final sacrifice!"

Before he finished speaking, His soul rapidly expanded and flickered, like a balloon about to burst.

Kazul laughed almost maniacally, his voice wild and chaotic, like a howling gale: "Hahahaha! I feel it! This is what it feels like to be in control of everything!"

Tiamat, are you afraid?

"you--"

Tiamat's tone betrayed a hint of panic.

Kazul was willing to sacrifice his own soul to launch a self-destruction!

"boom--"

The next moment, accompanied by a deafening explosion, Kazul's body exploded completely, and the destructive power stored within him poured out like a tsunami. Ashes spread wildly, and the surrounding space was distorted by this power. It was as if a hole tens of thousands of meters in diameter had been blasted into the sky.

Kazur died just like that.

Even at the very end, this ancient red dragon was still frantically pursuing that supreme power, unwilling to become a puppet in Tiamat's hands.

This seemingly loyal chosen one of the gods was actually Tiamat's greatest "rebellious son," even surpassing the likes of Cassius.

Even Tiamat's divine power barrier was shattered by the desperate attack of a top demigod, and her soul was severely damaged, covered in scorch marks.

Kazul's self-destruction also shook the seal on Kazul. Taking advantage of Tiamat's severe injury, the crazed dragon god broke free of the dragon's chains and pounced on the soul of the five-headed dragon.

"Go to hell!"

As Kazul frantically tore at Tiamat's head, a "crack" sound echoed through the sky. Tiamat's white dragon head was unexpectedly ripped off and fell to the ground.

The released divine power instantly froze several mountain peaks, turning them into snow-capped mountains.

"Karics!"

Tiamat let out a painful roar, and four extremely destructive dragon breaths erupted, piercing through Karix's chest.

But the Lord of Flames didn't care at all. He used his huge dragon claws to grab Tiamat's black dragon head and stabbed his sharp claws into her eye sockets, tearing out the eyeballs that were dripping with mucus, blood and fibers.

(End of this chapter)