Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei Returns from the Elden Ring

"Is the Dragon King going to drag us down with him?" Shudeyaqi stood close to Ye Sheng, the signal cable between them already retracted into the receiver to prevent it from getting tangled in obstacles in the water.

“In the Dragon King’s eyes, we should be nothing more than small insects. Would you ask insects to be buried with you? I guess the explosion triggered other mechanisms in the palace.” Ye Sheng remained calm. “The Dragon King wouldn’t be so bored as to install a self-destruct device in his own home. It’s probably a defense system or an escape system.”

He had a flash of inspiration!

Perhaps we can go back to the palace to take a look. The palace has windows, but outside the windows are dark blue metal walls, which suggests that this room is likely not fixed to the dark bottom floor, but was originally in a place where it could receive sunlight, and was later moved by some kind of large mechanical device.

If the copper pot contained the Dragon King's egg, wouldn't that be a kind of escape device?

Imagine that one day in ancient times, a powerful enemy invaded Bronze City. Perhaps it was a powerful hybrid, or perhaps another dragon king. Norton, the King of Bronze and Fire, was no match for them, so he hid his egg in his palace and activated the alchemical machinery, hiding it in the deepest part of the city.

There were no weapons in ancient times capable of destroying such a massive metal city, and Norton himself was the pinnacle of the power of words using metal and fire; this place was absolutely safe.

Is it now some kind of reverse change?

Ye Sheng looked at the passageway leading to the main hall, and suddenly his pupils contracted.

Having lost communication, Lu Mingfei has now removed his diving helmet and is facing the tunnel alone, leaving his back to the two of them.

What is he doing?

Ye Sheng took a deep breath and checked the indicators on the helmet display screen one by one: external pressure, temperature, depth, diver's heart rate, and... oxygen content!

The oxygen level was slowly fluctuating, but it was actually rising, almost to the point where I could breathe normally.

The Bronze City did not initiate any strange "burial procedures" or "hidden energy on its back." It was reorganizing and connecting to the outside world. Air was indeed escaping rapidly under water pressure, but fresh outside air was also flowing in, perhaps through a crack in the mountain or through a secret ventilation shaft leading to the outside world.

"Aki, check the pressure inside the diving suit. You can take off your helmet now." Ye Sheng felt his heart pounding. He hadn't felt this happy even when he was being chased by the suspected Dragon King. They had been trained to control their panic and fear in dangerous situations, but they hadn't practiced controlling their joy.

Slaying dragons is like dancing on the edge of death; surviving is something to celebrate.

After checking that the pressure difference was within a safe range, the two of them, like Lu Mingfei, took off their helmets.

"Lu Mingfei, let's go back to the palace!" Ye Sheng called out to Lu Mingfei as he breathed in the rusty air.

But Lu Mingfei made a strange gesture; he turned around and gestured for the two not to get closer.

Lu Mingfei was the first to discover that oxygen could be breathed, but he didn't have time to warn the other two. Because of his exceptionally keen hearing, he could hear a heartbeat that gradually became clearer through the flooded passageway, sounding like a resounding, steady, and powerful drumbeat.

In the main hall at the other end.

"The Dragon King is not dead, and he has come out." Lu Mingfei said calmly, holding Chi Xiao in his arms.

Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya suddenly stopped in their tracks. They could also hear the heartbeat. Through the thick bronze walls and the passageway, the sound gradually rose, as loud as thunder, making one imagine the blood it pumped out flowing like a great river of thawing ice in the blood vessels, delivering tremendous power to every cell.

“There’s a path underwater. Let’s dive down and then retreat. On the surface of the river, we have superior firepower!” Ye Sheng made the decision immediately.

Lu Mingfei shook his head. "There's no way to escape. This is his home. Someone has to stay behind to cover our retreat."

"How will we know if we don't try?" Shudeyaki was also a little anxious. "Let's go together."

"Do you trust me?" Lu Mingfei suddenly asked.

Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya were both stunned, not understanding what the "S"-rank meant by saying this. As their comrades, they naturally trusted their junior.

"Trust," Ye Sheng could only reply, trying to calm Lu Mingfei down.

Lu Mingfei smiled slightly, "That's good, I will win!"

He lit up his golden eyes and activated Blood Explosion. In an instant, a second heartbeat, as loud as thunder, rang out in the bronze cave, no less powerful than the Dragon King's next door.

Even though they had seen those lava-like eyes before, Ye Sheng and Jiu Deyaji couldn't help but lower their gazes and feel short of breath.

But somehow, the panic in their hearts disappeared.

Yes.

They come from the most elite dragon-slaying school, whose mission is to kill all resurrected dragons!

Although the person in front of them had just enrolled, he was undoubtedly the most elite among them, an S-rank! His aura made it seem as if the four great kings were nothing to him, that he could handle everything with ease, as if it were an internship to earn credits.

On the ancient battlefield of dragon slaying, it was these heroes who repeatedly sent the resurrected reptilian monsters back to slumber!

"Don't waste any more time, senior." Wisps of scorching mist rose from Lu Mingfei's body, his voice deep.

Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya exchanged a glance, then simultaneously donned the specially made diving suits from the equipment department, began increasing the air pressure inside the suits, and then took one last look at Lu Mingfei before jumping into the water and beginning their descent.

Lu Mingfei turned around, gripped the Chixiao sword, and plunged into the floodwaters of the tunnel.

He finally had no more worries.

Emerging from the water on the other side, he slowly walked up the sloping floor of the main hall. The water level had risen to a certain height, and the snake-faced statues, some submerged and others half-exposed, had their silver eyes gleaming in the firelight.

Looking along the path that originally led to the Bronze Tree, a dazzling figure, seemingly encased in lava, stood at the end. The terrifying heat distorted the air, causing the rising flames and smoke to shatter and shimmer like his reflection on the water.

Chapter 29 Lu Mingfei's Will

Few people know that the King of Elden was quite cunning in his early battles.

Because he could be resurrected time and again by the Golden Blessing, Lu Mingfei always gained information through death whenever he encountered a powerful enemy. Once he had a thorough understanding of the enemy, he could strike at their vital points. For example, the Dragon Armor Tree Guardians, those tall cavalrymen clad in heavy golden armor, actually had very low resistance to poison. So Lu Mingfei collected poisonous flowers and made some poison powder to deal with them.

Such battles are unequal, but they always work.

In a sense, the shattering of the Law Ring was due to its imperfection, which was the fate of the world. Marika knew this well, and she also knew that even if many demigods wielding fragments of the Law fought each other, it would be difficult to change fate, because they were all within its grasp. Therefore, she sent the Faded Ones beyond the borders ahead of time to add some variables to the future destiny.

As the one who fades away, Lu Mingfei is active, while the enemies at the border remain still. By using movement to attack stillness, he always gains the upper hand.

And so, he and the temporary witch, Miss Melina, advanced toward the Golden Tree while using save-loading to defeat enemies.

Although he had learned what Melina was going to do along the way—to use her body as a spark to burn the Golden Tree—Lu Mingfei always felt that the girl beside him was not someone with a strong tendency to self-destruct.

If all else fails, we can search other places in the border region. Maybe there are other sources of fire. Lu Mingfei can just tie him up and throw him into the fire giant's cauldron. That way, we can complete the mission.

However, all of this is based on Melina's persistence and willingness to discuss and agree with him.

The laws have shattered, and the Golden Tree has grown thorns of refusal. Even if a quasi-king, bearing fragments of the laws, arrives at the royal city, he cannot enter to repair the broken magical ring. There is only one path: using those who can see the "illusory flames" as the spark, they can use the giant's flames to burn the Golden Tree, then release death to force it to open its seal, allowing the qualified to enter and save the borderlands.

From beginning to end, Melina carried this fate with her without ever doubting or fearing it. Therefore, she did not need to consult or communicate with the prospective king beside her, and would not say things like, "Hey, Lu Mingfei, do you think I should really jump into that fire?"

So, amidst the swirling snow, atop the cauldron that seemed to be at the edge of the world, she irresistibly caused the faded one to fall into a coma and be engulfed in flames.

"I've been watching the border, thinking that this world must be repaired, and that death must come equally to all... Are you ready? Are you mentally prepared to commit a grave crime?"

These were the last words Lu Mingfei heard Melina say before he fell into a coma. Years later, when he recalled them, he still felt a pang of regret. What kind of serious crime was this? It was just burning a tree. If he had chosen the power of the Mad Fire to burn down the entire world, that would have been a serious crime that required preparation and careful consideration.

But at that time he was too young and too cowardly. He didn't understand what everyone's words really meant, and he didn't know what his future would look like. He was easily frightened by words like "fate" and "world".

Therefore, he never had the right to choose.

After that, he became silent and strong, always wearing heavy armor and always traveling with many wounds, from Sky City to the Burning Royal City, and finally facing Radagan and the Beast of Elden.

During this time, he was never resurrected in the Golden Blessing again, and even when the dew in the Holy Grail was exhausted and his life was hanging by a thread, he never gave up.

He was holding back a lot of energy, wanting to prove something to someone.

I can be serious too. I can also fulfill some heavy yet great destiny. I am not a puppet manipulated by gods and laws, nor can I only defeat enemies through the blessing of gold.

If you just say, "I don't want to die," I will cut down all obstacles for you. What bullshit laws, what bullshit demigods, I, Lu Mingfei, am not much weaker than those things.

However, when the journey came to an end, the invincible Faded One, having done everything, turned around and looked around, only to find no one there. The person he wanted to prove himself to had long been buried in the ashes of the Flame Giant's cauldron.

......

So he actually cherishes the chance to start over. It's his chance to move forward again, no matter what lies ahead—a dragon, a god, or the end of the world.

In this desperate underwater bronze city, Lu Mingfei's fighting spirit was so high that it was blinding.

He held the Crimson Sky Sword horizontally in front of him, gently stroking the blade with his left hand.

At the border, weapons that do not contain elemental energy can be enchanted to increase their lethality. Lu Mingfei often performs this action before battle; now, even without the ability to enchant, the action itself can become a switch, a switch for "momentum."

As his fingertips left the sword's tip, Lu Mingfei's eyes were devoid of emotion. His gaze swept coldly over the monster prophesied to destroy the world, searching for an opportunity to attack.

The Dragon King was enveloped in scorching hot liquid flames, which were molten bronze that had been melted at high temperatures and emitted a bright light. He seemed to be enraged by Lu Mingfei's gaze. He raised his hand, and the molten lava-like flames, like a blooming, deadly flower, instantly expanded to a size more than ten times their original size, illuminating the entire bronze hall as bright as day.

In an instant, it was as if a volcano had erupted, with countless blazing flames spreading out like a net, enveloping Lu Mingfei.

It wasn't a simple splash; sparks first appeared out of thin air in the water-filled air, then it burst into flames and sprayed outwards.

Lu Mingfei had already dodged when the man raised his hand, but he hadn't expected that the other party could control the explosion of flames from a distance. The high temperature melted his diving suit. However, the material of the diving suit withstood the test, only tearing open as if ripped by the claws of a wild beast, without spontaneously combusting.

He silently examined the body's condition, his golden eyes showing no fluctuation, no panic, no pain, as if he were simply checking the extent of damage to something and then determining whether it could still be used.

Blood Burst is a strange skill; his body not only withstands high temperatures, but the dark red burn marks on his exposed skin are also slowly healing.

He turned to stare at the Dragon King, then suddenly crouched low, moving with the agility of a cheetah as he darted between the snake-faced statues, closing in on him. His best weapon was the Crimson Sky Sword, which required close-quarters combat.

Each time I stepped onto the bronze floor, the water up to my calves would burst open, the violent vibrations sending water droplets flying high into the air.

The Dragon King created a series of fire jets and explosions, all of which he detected and dodged in advance. However, he inevitably suffered burns from the high temperatures in several places.

Chapter 30 Fury

Facing the blazing flames, Lu Mingfei, holding Chixiao in both hands, approached the Dragon King. He couldn't see the Dragon King's body engulfed in flames, so he stepped forward, meeting the Dragon King's golden eyes that shone like the blazing sun, and thrust towards what might be the Dragon King's heart with a "piercing" motion.

As Chixiao's sword approached the Dragon King's body, it suddenly felt tremendous resistance and emitted a metallic clanging sound.

The sharp, teeth-grinding sound made it seem as if Lu Mingfei was attacking not a living organism, but a huge and sturdy bell.

Although the Dragon King is in human form, his body is covered with dense dragon scales, which, when pressed together, are harder than the blades of alchemical swords.

Lu Mingfei immediately noticed this. If swords and blades were insufficient to break through the enemy's form and defense, then the only way to make up for the damage was to strike! He moved his body in a footwork that drew an arc around the enemy, requiring the user to constantly change his posture and exert force while borrowing strength to ensure that the acceleration was tangent to the arc.

In terms of combat effectiveness, he moved to the Dragon King's side almost like a ghost, unleashing five slashes in an instant: diagonal slashes in four directions and a final horizontal slash.

The five deafening collisions, when combined, ceased to be harsh and instead sounded somewhat light and airy, like striking a singing bowl with a wooden stick.

Originally a continuous attack technique that would cause multiple wounds, Lu Mingfei controlled the slashes to strike the same point.

Surrounding the Dragon King was a certain domain, and those bronze fiery currents covered the Crimson Sky Sword with a layer of blazing red lava, making it impossible to tell whether the flames adhered to it or the blade itself had melted.

Lu Mingfei's hand gripping the sword hilt hissed under the hilt's intense heat, and trembled from the recoil caused by the continuous, full-force strikes.

He had to back down.

The Dragon King let out a furious roar.

Lu Mingfei knew that his combined attack had broken through the Dragon King's defenses at a certain point on his left arm.

"That's my brother's sword..."

The first time Lu Mingfei heard the Dragon King's voice, it was faint and distant, like a cold sigh in the snow of a desolate wasteland.

As the Dragon King's voice faded, a bright white light appeared in the bronze hall. The light did not simply illuminate; rather, it surged from all directions, above and below, enveloping everything.