The Heartbeat of the Cruel Elves

"It's not a mistake, it's just a misunderstanding."

"Of course - objectively, we have caused you offense and damage. Even if this is due to a misunderstanding, we still bear an unshirkable responsibility, so please allow us to make a grand compensation to your great highness as a token of our apology."

"No need for compensation." Unexpectedly, the dragon said in an unusually generous manner.

Li Yin and Du Feiya looked at each other again, as if they had not expected that the dragon would be so reasonable and not even ask for compensation from them.

This is totally inconsistent with the legendary dragon's love of treasure.

"It's not that I don't like beautiful diamonds and shiny gold coins." The dragon's voice rumbled.

"It's just that," it paused for a moment, its tone unusually serious and solemn, "you have earned my respect."

"Won respect?" Li Yin and Du Feiya looked at each other with increasing surprise.

Not really... They just explained that the whole incident was largely a misunderstanding, and they just clarified the misunderstanding. How... How did it rise to the level of respect so quickly? Wasn't the speed of this rise too fast? It's not even close to the truth?

"What I said is absolutely true." As expected, the dragon still said it very seriously.

"Human bugs, and elf bugs, you have proven your courage and strength."

"Of course, it is still too difficult for you to fight against a being as powerful as me. However, in today's battle, both of you have proved yourselves."

"You, human bug, are the bravest among all the armies." It looked at Li Yin, its voice loud and clear like thunder. "I witnessed your battle in the city. Many of my soldiers fell at your hands. You are the bravest warrior in this war."

"And you, dark elf bug," it looked at Du Feiya again and spoke with the same sincerity, "You have also demonstrated your intelligence and agility. Although your arcane attainments are poor, that is only by the standards of the dragon race. You fly around like a mosquito, and you are the only one who makes me feel a little distressed in this battle."

"In short, by the standards of your respective races, you have all proven yourselves to be true warriors."

The dragon judged the two people in an excited tone, and finally, it announced in an unusually generous manner:

"So, I decided to give you some leniency!"

Chapter 172 Generals and Soldiers

Li Yin and Du Feiya looked at each other again, each of them revealing an expression of joy that was difficult to conceal.

Although the sudden transition from a humble insect to a true warrior was strange, at last, according to what the great dragon said, it had completely forgiven their offense and had no intention of arguing with them, or even asking for any compensation from them.

"So..." the dragon's voice boomed. Li Yin and Du Feiya came to their senses and realized that the other party's speech had not ended. So with a sense of joy, they all pretended to listen attentively.

The Sapphire Dragon lowered its huge head from high in the sky, and its two huge vertical pupils stared at the two of them without blinking, and spoke solemnly:

"How do you want to die?"

Li Yin and Du Feiya were stunned for a moment, then they looked at each other again, and judging from the surprised expressions on each other's faces, they did not hear wrong.

Then, in an instant, the joy that had just appeared on their faces completely froze.

After being stunned for a while, Li Yin forced himself to squeeze out a smile from his stiff face and asked tentatively:

"You, what did you just say, Lord Dragon?"

The dragon looked at them quietly, calmly: "I say, how do you want to die?"

The little smile that Li Yin had just forced out disappeared in an instant.

"I-I don't quite understand, Lord Dragon."

"That's not hard to understand." The dragon's voice began to sound a little impatient, as if the other party's stupidity had made it lose its patience.

"Because of your bad behavior, I originally intended to give you, these despicable villains, the most severe punishment, letting you die in pain and without dignity."

"But now, the misunderstanding has been cleared up. Not only have you proven yourself to be a true warrior, you have also proved to me that you are not as bad as I previously thought."

"Therefore, by standing in the enemy's shoes, you have won my respect and made me change my original mind."

"Out of respect for a true warrior, out of respect for an opponent I have personally certified - I have decided to grant you the right to freely choose the way you want to die."

"You can choose for yourself the most glorious way to die among your race!" The giant dragon roared to the sky, its voice like a bell, and its majestic figure seemed to be bathing in the glory that descended from the sky.

After roaring, it lowered its head and said to the dumbfounded Li Yin and Du Feiya with a kind and friendly face:

"Now, make your choice, you two little bugs."

"You don't need to thank me or praise my kindness. This is an opportunity you have earned for yourselves." Its azure eyes looked at the two of them with encouragement, as if suggesting that they should deeply affirm and be grateful for their current "achievements."

It seems like it really thinks so...

Looking up at the giant dragon's huge blue crystal head, looking at each of its crystal scales and each cluster of crystal thorns that exuded seriousness, Li Yin was stunned for a long while, a few drops of cold sweat breaking out from his forehead.

"But," Li Yin swallowed and carefully took over the conversation, "Your Excellency Julong."

"'Stand on the enemy's side'... Why stand on the enemy's side?" He forced a sunny smile at the dragon with his pale face.

"I thought... we had already made peace, hadn't we?"

"Isn't this a misunderstanding?"

"I thought - no, I thought that even if we were not worthy of being your friends, we were not your enemies at all."

"No," the dragon suddenly opened its mouth and declared without a doubt, "We are the enemy!"

"Misunderstanding, of course there is."

"But objectively, we did fight each other."

"Although the misunderstanding has been resolved, it is not enough to end our war relationship. It only turns you from a despicable enemy into a respectable enemy."

The dragon's voice was like a bell, and the tone rose word by word as its mouth opened and closed, extremely high-pitched, and its azure eyes sparkled, brighter than ever before. Finally, it even roared in an impatient and fanatical tone:

"And, most importantly - among all these dark elf bugs, and their slave soldier bugs, there is only you, and you, the two of you -"

Its eyes were blazing. It first glanced at Du Feiya, then at Li Yin. Its azure eyes were like two extremely sharp swords, piercing people's hearts. Its solemn tone was like the hammering of an anvil, forging the words into a steel reality. "You have earned my respect. Only you are worthy of being called my enemy!"

What is it doing... Li Yin looked at the sapphire dragon with an enthusiastic expression as if it was about to put on armor, ride into battle and kill the enemy, and listened to its nonsensical words, and couldn't help but be dumbfounded.

"Oh no." Just when he was confused and puzzled, Du Feiya's anxious voice suddenly came through the mental link.

"What's wrong?" Li Yin asked in confusion.

"I forgot one thing—"

"Sapphire Dragons, they are all a bunch of military madmen, no, fanatical military fans."

"I'm not a military lunatic!" The Sapphire Dragon swung its tail and roared fiercely.

Since it could freely detect the mental activities of the two people, it was naturally easy for it to cut into their mental communication. Or rather, it didn't need to do so. Because the mental consciousness of Li Yin and Du Feiya was captured by it directly when they just emerged and before they had time to transmit to each other...

"Of course," Du Feiya said with a pale face, smiling cautiously, "Of course you are not Jun-Jun, please forgive me, I was influenced by the narrow-minded prejudices and stereotypes of our race, so I habitually used that kind of words. In fact, after seeing your heroic figure and appreciating your wise mind, I think you are worthy of your race. You are an excellent commander, an outstanding general, and a genius tactician!"

"Hmph," the giant dragon snorted coldly, "Stereotype? Habit? At least you, a little bug, have learned your lesson and repented in time. Well, I will be magnanimous this time and not bother with you."

"Yes, yes," Du Feiya continued to smile awkwardly and agreed in a low voice, "Your Excellency Julong, your broad mind is just as admirable as your command talent."

"I'm not saying that," the dragon smacked his lips, "during the battle in the square, if I had controlled Construct No. 103 to move five centimeters forward and ordered it to thrust its spear into the fleeting gap that appeared in 0.05 seconds, you—"

Its huge dragon eye rolled around and glared at Li Yin, "The powerful little human bug will be pierced through the chest by that wonderful blow and lose its ability to fight."

"And if those wretched dark elves lose their most powerful vanguard, the outcome of this battle will probably be completely changed!"

"Yes, yes," Li Yin smiled gently, "Of course you can do that. And with your smart mind, I dare to conclude that this is definitely not hindsight. You must have realized this fleeting opportunity at the time."

"But why didn't you do it then?"

Li Yin asked in pretended surprise.

This thought-provoking question immediately made the giant dragon involuntarily take a step back on all fours. Li Yin saw the giant dragon's azure eyes dim and shrink involuntarily, and then, from the depths of the darkness, a chilling murderous intent suddenly lit up that made his heart palpitate.

Li Yin's heart trembled, and he quickly answered on his own:

“I guess that’s what really happened.”

"In fact, you are so smart that you not only realize the correct solution to this battle, but also with your wisdom, I believe you have a thousand ways to win, not just this one. After all, you alone, oh no, one dragon, can easily destroy our entire army."

"But among these more than a thousand methods, you did not take any of them. This is not because of your kindness, nor because of your lack of execution, but because... you are too bored."

"A strong man like you must have few rivals. You sit alone on the top of the mountain, tasting both glory and loneliness... You have been seeking to defeat the enemy alone for a long time, and it is difficult to find a peer. Even you, with your calm and strong heart, have become a little restless. This is the loneliness that belongs only to the king."

"So, when you noticed our appearance, you thought that even though we were so weak and powerless, our stubborn resistance and desperate struggle for survival could make you feel a bit of the long-lost joy of fighting. That's why you didn't use your brilliant strategy to directly defeat us and win this great victory. Because in your heart, you have never regarded us as real enemies. This is just a game, and we are just props in the game for your entertainment. Since it is entertainment, there is no need to pursue a quick end, but to try to prolong the happy time..."

"That's right, that's right." The giant dragon listened carefully to Li Yin's narration, his huge mouth stretched from ear to ear and couldn't close it. He nodded frequently to show his affirmation.

It coughed twice and said, "Your analysis makes sense. Oh, no, it should be said that it is indeed true."

"Little human bug," it looked at Li Yin with praise and said loudly, "I really have to look at your wisdom in a different light."

"These are just some petty cleverness, insignificant compared to your grand ideas." Li Yin bowed slightly, somewhat flattered and said.

"Since, in this case," he saw that the giant dragon was still grinning and nodding, and immediately decided to strike while the iron was hot, "Since you also agree, in your heart, you have never regarded us as your real enemies."

"Look... can you change your previous decision?" Li Yin rubbed his hands, put on an awkward smile of agreement, and spoke in a negotiating tone.

The dragon nodded happily twice again.

"No," it said firmly, snapping its jaws together.

"Why?" Li Yin was surprised. He had already done this much!

"What do you mean by 'it's already come to this'?"

"Could it be that what you just said... and your mental activities, were not from the heart, but just a superficial disguise?" The dragon immediately lowered its head with a fierce look in its eyes.

"No...no," Li Yin was stunned for a moment, then changed his words and waved his hands repeatedly.

"It's just...I don't understand..."

"Why is this so hard to understand?" The dragon widened its eyes and looked closely at Li Yin, seeming to be quite surprised. Then it stretched its neck, and its head returned to the air. It opened and closed its huge jaws and said carelessly:

"Originally, I did think that the dark elf bugs and their slave bugs, such ant-like existences, were not worthy of being my enemies."

"But, didn't I just say that?"

"You, a human bug, or you, a dark elf bug," it raised its left front paw, stretched out a claw, pointed at Li Yin, and then pointed at Du Feiya.

"I, the great Sapphire Dragon..." Li Yin heard it suddenly recite a long string of inexplicable and difficult syllables, probably hundreds of them, which made him dizzy. Then it said, "I recognize you."

"You are true warriors, worthy of being my..." again hundreds of awkward syllables, "enemies."

"Especially you," it suddenly turned around, stretched out its claws, and pointed at Li Yin again, "an excellent human bug."

"Because your speech just now touched my heart, it fully demonstrated your intelligence and profound understanding ability that far exceeds that of your own race. Now I recognize you even more!"

The two men stood there in a stalemate.

After being stunned for a long while, Du Feiya blinked, suddenly raised a hand, with a restrained smile on his face, and said weakly:

"Respected Lord Sapphire Dragon, I am very grateful for your appreciation. However, I am not a warrior, but a wizard, and a very 'poor' wizard at that." She emphasized this to activate the memory of the dragon in front of her, "Have you forgotten?"

She blinked at the dragon again and smiled awkwardly.

There had never been a moment when she felt so proud of her identity as a mage, and at the same time so satisfied with the evaluation of her "poor" identity as a mage.

Li Yin would also come to his senses immediately.

"Yes, yes, yes," he said repeatedly, "Your Majesty the Dragon, not only Princess Dufiya, but I am also a mage, not a warrior, and I am an even worse mage than Princess Dufiya. I assure you!"

"How can guys like us be called 'real warriors'?"

The giant dragon stared blankly at the two of them who kept nodding like chicks pecking at rice.

"What's right?" A thunder-like sound suddenly came from its dull nasal cavity.

"Humans, and dark elves, you are weak and ignorant two-legged insects."

"Is your definition of a warrior so narrow?"

"Does a warrior only count as one who wields a sword or a gun?"

"How can a warrior be so limited?"

"As long as you join the battle, you are a warrior. Moreover, in my opinion, a warrior who knows how to wield magic is a more capable warrior than one who simply relies on physical courage!" the dragon said firmly.

Chapter 173: Learning from the Dragon, a Good Example

"But," facing the dragon's unquestionable praise, Li Yin had a bitter face, drooping eyes and eyebrows, almost crying, "We are really not warriors, Lord Dragon."

Du Feiya also opened her two big violet eyes and nodded desperately.

"No need to say more!" The dragon waved its huge claws.

"I really don't understand what's going on in your mind, you little two-legged bugs." It retracted its big claws and scratched its forehead. The crystal claws rubbed against the crystal scales, making a crunching sound.

"Isn't it an honor for you that I recognize you as true warriors?"