novelraw Chapter 444: The Path of Evolution, Ultimate Dragon 12
Chapter 444: The Path of Evolution, Ultimate Dragon 12
Chapter 444 The Road of Evolution, Ultimate Dragon 12
"Your Majesty, this vast frozen plain will soon become a brand-new territory within the Aola Kingdom's map."
"You will be crowned the true Lord of the North."
"Ser Wilderness, convergence lands, Permafrost Tundra... from now on, the entire northern border will be shrouded beneath your dragon wings! Any existence that dares to oppose your will will be burned to ashes!"
Amid the swirling snow, the two young giants wore faces full of excitement and reverence as they voiced their admiration to their emperor.
In response, the red iron dragon only nodded calmly, his gaze sweeping across the boundless ice plain.
"Now is too early to talk about this."
"Wait until all the dust settles, until the Permafrost Tundra is truly under our control, then we'll speak of it."
His tone was steady, betraying no trace of pride or impatience.
Such a serene reaction only deepened the young dragons' reverence.They felt their king to be unfathomable, dignified, and inscrutable in his emotions.
"King, that self-proclaimed frost giant leader is dead, but he still had a sizable tribe of giants under him, and they've already united many scattered tribes and clans across the ice plain."
"What should we do with them next?"
Blue Dragon Heriam stepped forward one pace and asked softly.
After all, Dragonfang Fortress was just a forward outpost with limited forces; by themselves they could not easily contend with the still sizable frost giant contingents.
Garoth understood this clearly.
"The kingdom will immediately assemble a legion and march north to the ice plain to eliminate all dissenting voices and plant dragon banners across this land."
His voice was low as he spoke, his mind already on candidates, "That legion will include the two recently surrendered leader-level commanders."
He meant the Golden-Plumed Griffon and the Yaqi Serpentine Leopard.
Now was their chance to prove their value and loyalty to the Aola Kingdom.
With no Legendary powerhouse stationed here, these two ferocious magical beasts, each at life level 20—powerful though still below Legendary—combined with the kingdom’s legion, would be sufficient to sweep the Permafrost Tundra.
"We will do our utmost to provide all necessary logistical support and intelligence assistance to the northbound legion."
Blue Dragon Heriam bowed his head slightly as he pledged.
Garoth, however, shook his head slowly and said, "No, they will only handle combat execution."
"Formulating the overall strategy and coordinating command of the legion will be entrusted entirely to you, Heriam, with Kahir assisting you." Garoth fixed his gaze on the blue dragon and continued in a deep voice, "I want you to clear out the remaining giant forces, complete the unification of the Permafrost Tundra, and thereafter shoulder the responsibility of consolidating this territory as well."
Heriam barely concealed a tremor at being given such an important responsibility.
He hesitated slightly and said, "Your Majesty, those two leader-level commanders are far stronger than me..."
Heriam and Kahir were both currently level 16.
Thanks to the racial advantages of dragons, they could contend with ordinary level 17 or even level 18 ferocious beasts, but compared with level 20 beings the gap remained wide.
Moreover, the kingdom’s leader-level commanders possessed superior intelligence; they might not willingly obey commanders weaker than themselves.
Garoth’s gaze sharpened, seeing through Heriam’s concerns.
He asked in a low voice, "In our Aola Kingdom, what is the core criterion that measures status and determines rank?"
Red Dragon Kahir immediately raised her right claw and blurted out without thinking, "Strength! It's definitely strength!"
Garoth shook his head slightly, negating her answer.
Kahir flicked her tail in annoyance and began to rack her brains for another response.
After a brief moment, Blue Dragon Heriam raised his head and said slowly, "Your Majesty, it is your will."
"In the Aola Kingdom, nothing—no rule—matters more than your will."
Under Heriam’s anxious stare, the red iron dragon finally nodded in affirmation.
"You are correct."
"Since I have appointed you to clear the ice plain, this is within your authority. Do not forget why the kingdom is named Aola."
The Aola Kingdom reveres dragons and bases itself on dragons.
No matter how powerful a leader-level commander is, their value can only be manifested under a dragon's wings.
Besides, pureblood dragons like Heriam and Kahir were only a matter of time away from breaking into the Legendary realm, whereas other leader-level commanders, while possessing Legendary potential, might never take that step.
Legendary status is not easily achieved.
There are countless creatures stuck forever at the level 20 ceiling.
"As for getting those temporarily stronger magical beasts to obey your orders, that depends on your methods and wisdom."
"If you are incapable, there are other dragons within the kingdom who can replace you."
Garoth spoke candidly, offering both an opportunity and clear expectations.
He was willing to give the young dragons more chances, provided they displayed the corresponding ability and value to seize them.
Blue Dragon Heriam bowed his head deeply.
He solemnly vowed, "I will do my utmost and will not fail Your Majesty's trust and commission!"
Garoth nodded slightly, then issued specific instructions: "Remember, during the purge, screen and keep those frost giants who are more docile and easier to control, and eliminate those who are unruly and warlike."
He planned to employ a sort of genetic screening approach, attempting to tame and enslave some giants for the kingdom’s use.
Kahir, hearing this, immediately let out an excited low roar and said, "Leave the slaughter to me! I can't wait to see the ice plain bathed in the enemies' blood!"
Garoth then briefly explained a few more details.
With a whoosh!
He beat his vast wings that could blot out the sky, his enormous figure ascending swiftly until he vanished into the drifting snow, leaving only gradually calming vortexes of wind in his wake.
Flying southward, the surrounding environment changed subtly.
The Permafrost Tundra’s heavy, violent blizzard thinned into milder, gentler snowfall.
When Garoth crossed the convergence lands and officially entered Ser Wilderness airspace, only a few scattered snowflakes danced lightly in the wind.
He lowered his head to look down.
The ground here was still blanketed in winter white, but the thin snow could not hide the burgeoning life emerging across the wasteland.
"The northern threat has been removed. Begin preparations to assemble the legion and dispatch troops north to fully take over the Permafrost Tundra."
"Confirm the Legendary frost giant's death. We need no longer worry about the Divine Kingdom of Theo's surveillance."
Garoth relayed orders to Sorog, the iron dragon, through a mental link, then flew straight back to the rear-mountain training grounds in the Dragonback Mountains.
The battle with the Legendary frost giant had been little more than a warm-up, a light exertion for him.
The minor scale damage to his scales was inconsequential; he did not need special rest or recovery.
"Eye of Truth...."
Garoth took out the Legendary item he had exchanged for from Lothrian and cradled it in his massive claw, studying it carefully.
In his understanding, Legendary artifacts could be roughly divided into three categories.
First were weapons and armor directly used in combat, blunt and effective at immediately boosting fighting power.
The Joy of Ashes and the World Ripper he had previously faced belonged to this kind.
Second were advanced alchemical-industrial crystallizations, often state strategic devices—things like destructive siege cannons that could threaten Legendary beings, massive war golems, and magical satellites suspended in the heavens.
Third were curios with various special effects; they might not directly increase killing power, but in certain fields they could produce unexpectedly astonishing effects.
The Eye of Truth, the Hall of Heroic Spirits, and the Sash of All Beings Recognizing My Gold fell into this category.
At this moment, two crystal spheres, rotating around each other along a specific trajectory, hovered above Garoth’s claw, emitting a soft and mysterious glow that looked strange and wondrous.
He toyed with them for a moment, then without further hesitation began steadily injecting Dragon Qi into them.
Swish—!
The Eye of Truth’s rotational speed surged, becoming a blur, and the whole structure rapidly began to vaporize.
As it faded, its form gradually changed until it condensed into the outline of an eye.
Its color, structure, and pattern matched the red iron dragon’s own eyes exactly!
Finally, it dissipated entirely, as if merged into the air, vanishing from sight.
At the same time, with a burst of heat, the red iron dragon abruptly closed his eyes.
A few seconds later he slowly opened his lids again.
Within his deep jet-black eyes, countless intricate runes flashed and raced as if alive, rising and falling, making it seem as though a miniature evolving cosmos had taken up residence in his gaze, mesmerizing any who looked.
And in Garoth’s perception at that instant, the whole world had changed.
He scanned his surroundings; the familiar landscape appeared in a brand-new light.
The ground beneath his feet and the distant mountains were no longer opaque, solid obstacles; in his vision they became like transparent amber, their internal structures as clearly visible as a creature's vascular network. He could simultaneously see the surface and layer after layer of underground strata.
Countless brightly colored energy streams drifted through the air, vivid and dazzling.
Elements of the same attribute shimmered with their unique glows.
Earth’s ochre, water’s pale blue, metal’s silvery white, fire’s crimson... they interwove, entwined, and flowed, forming a grand, dynamic tapestry of energy.
Without consciously looking around, he could "see" the precise distribution and flow trajectories of various magical energies nearby.
Everything became unmistakably clear.
Then he focused his gaze on the heavy mountain before him; his dragon pupils narrowed slightly.
His focused sight easily pierced the now-transparent mountain and saw the broader world beyond.
The grand outline of the Citadel of Crimson Flame appeared clearly in his eyes; he could see the countless life-representing points of light twinkling like summer stars within the city, and could discern their energy strengths and contour features.
The defensive formation being constructed inside the royal city—its internal flowing energy runes and structural nodes—were all exposed to him.
He could even accurately spot relatively weak energy convergence points within.
"Interesting......"
Garoth murmured, and the runic flows in his eyes seemed to quicken in response, as if the stars themselves were turning.
However, this extraordinary vision did not come without cost.
He could clearly feel his spirit being consumed, and a dry heat of discomfort began to surge in his eyes.
This suited him perfectly.
Maintaining the Eye of Truth’s activation, Garoth began his usual physical training.
To his surprise, because his eyes could now penetrate his own scales and flesh, allowing him to "see" his muscles, bones, and Dragon Qi flow from multiple dimensions with clarity, he could adjust each training movement and force application with extreme precision based on real-time feedback, making his workouts near perfect.
After a period, the discomfort in his eyes intensified into a burning sting.
This was the burden of prolonged, high-load use of the Eye of Truth.
Garoth was not alarmed; he was pleased.
While enduring the searing pain in his eyes, he keenly felt, through his innate talent, the possibility of evolution.
This meant that the Eye of Truth could indeed stimulate his visual organs toward a higher-level metamorphosis.
At the same time, an idea formed in his mind.
Collect various Legendary artifacts, especially those unique curios, select those most suitable for himself, and use them to continually trigger adaptive evolution—thereby steadily advancing toward becoming an Ultimate Dragon!
This notion did not arise from nowhere.
Long ago, Garoth had conceived a similar plan: using external objects to guide his evolution.
It had worked before, helping him achieve his Frenzied State and Bloodburst State.
But as he soared in power, most ordinary alchemical tools no longer affected him much; their stimulative effect could not match his rigorous training. Subsequent breakthroughs like the Dragon Pearl and Crimson Lotus Form had come from his own efforts.
Dragons rarely rely on external things.
This is because for truly powerful dragons, their own bodies are often more reliable than most external items.
Yet Legendary artifacts, especially curious ones, were different.
Their ordinary effects could still yield significant and lasting benefits even for a Legendary dragon like Garoth.
The only problem was that Legendary artifacts were extremely precious and rare.
"I now command the Aola Kingdom, with countless subjects under my rule. Ser Wilderness itself holds abundant resources."
"With the kingdom's continuing development, these can be converted into immense wealth. With patience and time, we will surely gather more Legendary artifacts."
Garoth was patient.
Time always sided with long-lived dragons.
As on countless previous days of grueling training, he silently endured the persistent stinging in his eyes, maintaining the Eye of Truth’s burden while continuing high-intensity physical training.
Pain and reward coexisted, and he delighted in it.
While Garoth trained at the rear-mountain of Dragonback, the external situation progressed steadily.
The Molten Iron Legion quickly assembled and marched north into the ice plain.
Although the Divine Kingdom of Theo tried to interfere and create trouble, the vast Ser Wilderness made direct intervention difficult. Moreover, with the Permafrost Tundra’s Legendary leader already fallen and thus no longer valuable to support, they ultimately had to give up on meddling.
Under Blue Dragon Heriam’s command and the ferocity of the Golden-Plumed Griffon and the Yaqi Serpentine Leopard, the Molten Iron Legion became an unstoppable force, gradually sweeping the ice plain.
Slowly, Emperor Garoth and the Aola Kingdom’s great renown spread across this bitter land like the wind over the wasteland.
The news of the Eternal Frost Sovereign Wolruk’s death had already circulated widely and severely undermined the resistors’ morale.
It’s worth noting that Wolruk had previously tried to quickly unify the ice plain by screening and recruiting tribes and clans willing to submit to a stronger power, which inadvertently saved Aola much of the work of identification and persuasion.
When the kingdom’s powerful legion arrived, many of those tribes turned and submitted en masse.
The vast majority of frost giants who chose to stubbornly resist were mercilessly annihilated by the legion.
Those naturally more timid or lacking fighting spirit were screened out and temporarily kept under Garoth’s orders.
Only a very few—either by luck or superior strength—escaped the purge and vanished into the endless, perilous cold seas, their fate unknown.
Time passed, and before anyone noticed, six years had quietly slipped by.
The Aola Kingdom grew ever stronger, not only consolidating its rule over Ser Wilderness but planting dragon banners across the peaks and valleys of the Permafrost Tundra.
Emperor Garoth Ignas, the red iron dragon,
also gained a representative new title.
Lord of the North!
Meanwhile, far away on the Arotala Continent,
the Luckbringer Alya wore a perfectly measured smile as she spoke quietly with several graceful, elegant elves.
A moment later, an elf with faint golden skin and the air of a leader stepped forward.
He handed Alya a perfectly round, ruby-red fruit.
"This is a small token of goodwill. Please accept it."
The fruit’s skin was smooth and glossy, exuding a tempting fragrance and a powerful, pure life-energy fluctuation.
"Thank you for your generosity. This gift is extremely precious."
Alya, the Luckbringer, accepted the fruit with graceful composure and smiled.
She bit through the thin, cicada-wing-like peel and sipped the sweet, burning juice.
As the fruit quickly dried in her hand, a scorching yet exquisitely pure energy torrent surged into her throat and then swept through her limbs like a river breaking a dam.
Beneath her skin, a soft glow seemed to flow faintly, and the aura she emitted climbed steadily.
At last her life level stabilized at a higher tier.
Level twenty-four!
The fullness of power within her body made her involuntarily lift her eyes, joy brightening her expression.
After stepping into Legendary, each advance is never simple.
Alya’s innate talent was not outstanding among Legendaries, so much of her level increases depended on precious external resources. Fortunately, her unrivaled luck meant she always easily encountered, found, or was gifted rare treasures.
For example, the red fruit she had just consumed was called the Scorching Sun Fruit.
This was a rare delicacy that greatly benefited Legendary beings, produced only in tiny quantities within elf territories on the Arotala Continent. The cultivation method was a closely guarded elven secret, and the fruit was reserved for their own members, never exported.
Not long ago, while strolling in a forest, Alya had chanced upon a fierce magical beast attacking a lone young elf. She had driven the beast off and saved the child.
Later she learned that the child was the dearly beloved offspring of a powerful local elven lord who had wandered off while playing.
As a token of gratitude for saving his heir, the elven lord had generously gifted her the Scorching Sun Fruit.
Alya’s own accumulation had also approached a tipping point; after consuming the fruit she smoothly broke through to level twenty-four.
Yet alongside the joy of advancing, a shadow rose in her heart.
"Aola's main state... Emperor Garoth Ignas... Regent Sorog..."
Her thoughts drifted involuntarily to the far-off Atlantis Continent, the realm she was preparing to return to.
About six years earlier she had received a message from her church inviting her to visit an emerging dragon nation rising in Ser Wilderness.
Curious about a new state established by dragons, she had agreed.
Just recently she had completed her affairs on Arotala and was preparing to head back to Atlantis, planning to stop by the Aola Kingdom on the way.
On a whim before leaving, she requested more detailed information about Aola from the church.
When she read the documents carefully, she discovered that Aola's predecessor had been the Molten Iron Tribe!
And she herself had taken a Legendary artifact from them.
"I took the Hall of Heroic Spirits to prevent this powerful artifact from falling into evil hands and causing carnage. It was safer for me to hold and oversee it."
Alya reaffirmed the righteousness of her actions inwardly.
"However, those greedy, resentful evil dragons will view things in the narrowest way, believing I harmed their interests."
"After all these years they have formally invited me to visit the kingdom."
"There are probably ill intentions behind that invitation. Most likely they want me to hand over the Hall of Heroic Spirits, or perhaps there’s a deeper malice."
She calmly analyzed the situation and judged her conjecture reasonable.
Now she faced three choices.
One: avoid meeting them.
With her powerful luck attribute, she could simply evade them; if she wished, the red iron dragon emperor might never see her face.
Two: attempt to reconcile.
Proactively returning the Hall of Heroic Spirits, offering sufficient compensation and sincere apologies, might appease their anger and end the grievance.
Three: eliminate future danger permanently.
Act preemptively while the red iron dragon is not yet beyond control—strike first and extinguish him.
To be frank, deep down Alya did not fear the current red iron dragon.
No matter how strong, he had only recently become Legendary; his kingdom lacked deep foundations, and with the emperor dead it would likely fragment.
Moreover, she had accumulated many Legendary artifacts over the years.
Among Legendaries of her tier, few were wealthier than she was, and with her high level and specialized divine arts she was not weak in combat. She had little reason to fear a level-21 evil dragon Legendary.
"Lady Alya, you seem troubled?"
The elven lord beside her was perceptive and noticed her momentary distraction, asking gently.
"Indeed, a small vexing matter has arisen."
Alya came back to herself and turned to the experienced elven lord, asking, "With your wisdom, how would you deal with a potential adversary who has not yet truly matured but may become dangerous in the future?"
The elven lord pondered seriously for a moment.
Then a smile spread across his handsome face as he replied slowly:
"If it's not an irreconcilable hate, then paying a reasonable price to win them over and turning a potential enemy into a friend is a good option."
"One more friend means one fewer enemy."
He paused, his voice calm, "Of course, we elves live long and have witnessed too many rises and falls."
"There are times when we know the importance of killing danger in its cradle, even if it requires taking risks."
This elven lord had lived nearly a thousand years and was powerful and widely experienced.
He was also a lord of the Nausil Empire, holding high status.
To the young Luckbringer, his advice carried significant weight.
"Thank you. Your words have been most enlightening."
Alya’s eyes gleamed as she contemplated the counsel.