novelraw Chapter 503 503: Returning to the Ancient Tree, a Black Dragon Letter
Chapter 503 503: Returning to the Ancient Tree, a Black Dragon Letter
Little Loren stood atop the tree canopy, gazing down at the lush forest below. Silver scales shimmered within a crystalline membrane, gleaming brightly.
Recently, he had been troubled. Possessing no small measure of intelligence himself, he naturally perceived the current situation atop the Ancient Tree.
The Fire Wyverns were restless. In Blazefire Village, the Fire Wyvern Grimalkyne leader and the Fire Wyvern Grimalkynes of the Fire Wyvern guard unit waited within the shrine for the summons of their old father. Toward him—the second generation of an Elder Dragon who had not yet fully matured—they showed respect, but only that.
Overall, it was still because they had lost their backbone.
Little Loren had originally believed that after experiencing several previous events, even if he could not replace his old father's position, he would at least be able to maintain the Ancient Tree after Logan left. This harsh reality had dealt him a heavy blow.
Though he carried the blood of an Elder Dragon, he was merely an ordinary Sunblaze Dragon. When facing those ancient Elder Dragons outside the Ancient Tree region, he did not possess much of an advantage.
His azure eyes narrowed slightly. Gathering his energy, he concluded today's weakened version of Sunlight. Lying prone, he looked toward the luxurious "palace" behind him, wondering when he would finally be able to move into it.
Perhaps only then would he truly be able to lead the clan forward.
...
"Lord Tonkotsu, meow—has there still been no news from Astera? Will Boss Fire Wyvern return?"
A young member of the Fire Wyvern guard unit asked Tonkotsu with some concern, as he exercised by lifting an enormous stone mill.
Some of the hunters previously requisitioned by Astera had already returned to the Ancient Tree. They brought news that they had seen Boss Fire Wyvern in the Guiding Lands and learned that Boss Fire Wyvern had already selected a new nesting site there.
The Grimalkynes, who had originally been very excited, began preparing their belongings—packing up their possessions and tucking away the Terastal coating that the Wyverian scholars had developed over this period of tireless research—ready at any time to await Logan's summons.
Yet as day after day passed, not only was there no movement whatsoever, but even the returning Fire Wyverns brought no further news from there.
Under such anxiety, the Grimalkynes could not help but let their imaginations run wild, speculating that perhaps they had been abandoned. Otherwise, why had Boss Fire Wyvern still not come to bring them over?
As the backbone of the Fire Wyvern Grimalkynes, Tonkotsu was not so impatient. He always maintained one hundred percent trust in Boss Fire Wyvern. Since Boss Fire Wyvern had said that once the new nest was established, he would bring over a portion of the Grimalkynes capable of adapting to the new environment, then he would certainly not break his word.
And what it needed to do now was strengthen its own power—develop greater environmental adaptability, and endure a new evolution.
These past few years, the cat scholars had gradually returned after completing their studies on the Old World, and at last they had summarized a set of rules: the greater a cat's potential, the more, as its body developed and its strength increased, it could accept "the gifts of the gods."
Whether it was Terastal or ordinary flame enchantment, it could be far stronger than an ordinary cat.
It was in the midst of this overall gloom that the ultimate warning—hidden in the deepest reaches of every living creature's genes in this world—suddenly appeared. The air pressure across the entire Ancient Tree dropped in an instant. Even the Flame Rath couple, who would not show much reaction even when facing Elder Dragons, trembled slightly under this pressure.
Unmatched!
This was the only thought in the minds of all living beings on the Ancient Tree at this moment.
In the blink of an eye, the Ancient Tree fell silent. The instincts of living creatures made the usually active Fire Wyverns dare not make the slightest move.
Only when wave after wave of Radiant Crystal Butterflies flew out from the canopy, dancing in the wind across the sky, did the sunlight they blocked cast the Ancient Tree in a breathtaking splendor, as if welcoming something.
It had to be said that although Radiant Crystal Butterflies, as an insect species, did not truly occupy a very high ecological niche if one considered individual capability alone, their sensing ability was top-tier in the world.
When all living beings on the Ancient Tree were intimidated by that forbidden aura, they were able, in such a short time, to distinguish Logan's presence from that faint trace of aura. Yet the Radiant Fire Wyverns, who were likewise symbiotic partners, did not react until Logan drew closer and the aura became increasingly distinct.
One Fire Wyvern after another surged up into the sky, weaving through the sea of crystal butterflies, excitedly welcoming the king's return.
This grand momentum shattered the Ancient Tree's silence, as if even the earlier gloom had been swept away.
The king had returned, and now they had their backbone.
The king had returned, and their survival was more assured!
Whether it was the hunting grounds that had been taken from them, or the living space that had been squeezed, they could reclaim them one by one.
To eat and drink their fill, to have a safe nest, to be able to incubate offspring in peace—and on that basis, if they could become stronger, so much the better.
This was the dream of most monsters in this world.
Logan—changed a little, especially that pair of wing claws that stood out so strikingly—crossed the sky with Aki. The Radiant Crystal Butterflies instinctively circled at his side, and the Radiant Fire Wyverns quickly parted to open an aerial passage. Like an honor guard, they watched excitedly as Logan descended at the top of the Ancient Tree.
As his aura withdrew, a familiar, resounding dragon roar rang out, drawing the resonance of countless Fire Wyverns. The Ancient Tree's branches swayed amid wave after wave of sound.
For a moment, even the cats—already accustomed to the Fire Wyverns' booming voices—had to put on earplugs, otherwise their ears would be injured by this resonance.
Little Loren stared blankly as Logan braced with his wing claws to absorb the impact. Within those lifelike crystal wing claws, even the blood vessels could be seen with perfect clarity.
Then he looked at his own wings—still only that single spine—and went somewhat numb, to the point that even the good mood of knowing his old father had returned was gone.
The news of Logan and Aki's return was like a bomb, detonating across the Ancient Tree.
Whether it was the Flame Rath couple, the shrine personnel, the upper ranks of Blazefire Village, or the Ancient Tree Hunters' Guild, all hurried over to confirm the current situation.
Just as the Ancient Tree was ablaze with excitement—and not long after the banquet had ended—Astera, which was in the process of reallocating personnel to several outposts, received a messenger clad in Kingdom Guard armor.
The Commander looked at the envelope in his hand, feeling as though that thin sheet of paper weighed a thousand pounds.
"Black Dragon…"
As the end of civilization, He existed among the populace—and even among hunters—only within myths and legends. Even when consulting the historical records of the Grand Library, it merely recorded that He had destroyed the ancient city of Schrade, reducing that once unrivaled civilization to ruin. The royal capital, hailed as the pinnacle of civilization, had been burned to ashes in a single night, forcing the vast kingdom to split—along the ruins of the Schrade royal capital—into the two eastern and western kingdoms that existed today.
His existence had always been confined to written records, and the Guild had made every effort to conceal Him. Thus, only a small number of high-ranking humans knew that He had in fact long dwelled within the ruins of ancient Schrade City—what was now known as Castle Schrade.
For this reason, the upper echelons of humanity had more than once organized elite forces to conduct investigations into Castle Schrade. Yet nearly all who entered vanished without a trace. Even the most elite hunting parties suffered catastrophic losses, and the few survivors kept silent about what had occurred within the ruins of the Schrade Kingdom.
A very small number of exceptionally powerful and fortunate hunters had managed to obtain materials shed by Him and used them to forge Black Dragon equipment.
However, whether it was the lingering power of the Black Dragon at work, or because such equipment should not exist in this world, every person who donned Black Dragon armor experienced various strange hallucinations. In the end, they all suffered mental collapse amid endless nightmares, ultimately either disappearing or descending into madness and dying.
And now, this creature that had existed only in legend had once again been observed in motion. Each of His appearances signified the destruction of a civilization, and this had triggered panic among the higher authorities.
The Kingdom and the Guild, considering that the Research Commission's hunters possessed repeated experience fighting Elder Dragons—and that, due to the Ancient Tree Wyverian alchemy, they had a large number of Terastal decorations—judged that in terms of equipment and overall capability, their strength far exceeded that of most hunting groups.
Moreover, the Research Commission itself consisted of elite individuals of immense potential drawn from various factions. Therefore, it was hoped that the Research Commission would lead the hunters back to the Old World, proceed to Castle Schrade, and together with the Kingdom's forces and other elite factions, drive out the Black Dragon, reclaim Castle Schrade, and reopen the passage between the two divided kingdoms.