You're Buffed, Get in There!

The dwarven delegation was practically wiped out. This grim news was brought by the surviving Heji Stone. The dwarven vampire appeared before Anbaixiu as pale as a corpse, nearly scorched to a crisp by the first rays of dawn. The annihilation of the dwarven mission was an accident Anbaixiu had never anticipated. Earlier, he had been so preoccupied with shielding the elves that he forgot the dwarves could also run into danger. He supposed the harsh winds and sands had gifted them such rugged exteriors that he had subconsciously assumed they were far more capable of defending themselves. Judging by appearances really was the death of people. When Anbaixiu asked about the battle from the night before, Heji Stone trembled as he spoke. "A dragon! I swear I didn't see wrong—it was a real dragon!" Anbaixiu frowned at him. "You're a legend, aren't you? Is there any need to be such a coward?" Heji Stone, however, grew agitated. "You have no idea how terrifying a dragon is! My magic couldn't breach its scales at all, and its strength and speed far outmatched mine. It's a monster beyond resistance!" Panic plastered across Heji Stone's face, and recalling the scene from the previous night made him shudder from head to toe. The terrible dragon had circled through the sky, treating the dwarf iron guards around him like chicks awaiting slaughter, snapping them up one by one. Heji Stone had tried his utmost to cast blood magic, but against the beast, it was no different from tickling. He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he seemed to feel energy swirling about the dragon's body—much like that of a monk. The dragon scale defenses combined with a monk's ki defense had created a monster bordering on total magic immunity. The moment Heji Stone realized how bad the situation was, he had decisively chosen to flee. The legendary vampire had slipped straight into the shadows, making a beeline for Anbaixiu to beg for help. After listening to Heji Stone's account, Anbaixiu also felt a headache coming on. On this continent, dragons were creatures of ancient legend. Where on earth had this one popped up from? Could the dragon clan overseas be unwilling to accept their fate, preparing to launch a counteroffensive? That would be truly terrifying. Could the Nine Kingdoms combined even withstand a draconic invasion? Anbaixiu had no choice but to pull out his Necrotic Codex and send a message to that bone dragon lady. The dragons had been driven across the seas, and even their Dragon Tomb had been relocated. Although bone dragons were undead, they retained close ties with the dragon clan and ought to have access to some intelligence. However, Lady Canggu replied very quickly: [I've already asked around. Not a single dragon has returned to the continent—we haven't lost so much as half a wyrmling, and we have no plans to settle old scores.] [Tiga Ultraman: Could you ask a few more times? I've heard the dragon race is rather broad-minded in their affections. Could some dragon have secretly slipped back to the continent for an affair and left behind an illegitimate child?] The dragon clan's boundless amorousness was universally known; otherwise, kobolds would never have developed draconic bloodline sorcerers. The bone dragon lady seemed to think Anbaixiu's words made good sense. If an illegitimate child really had been spawned, those dragons who couldn't keep it in their pants probably wouldn't admit it anyway. If genuine dragon blood truly was involved, it had to be brought back, lest it cause misunderstandings. Leaving behind a quick [I'll go ask around again], the bone dragon lady logged off. Failing to get an answer, Anbaixiu had no choice but to wait. Things were getting tricky now. He had managed to preserve the elves with great difficulty, only for disaster to strike the dwarven side. Hoffman Ironfist was the Hand of the King, after all. His death would cause the negotiations to collapse completely. The dwarves might mobilize their army for an attack immediately—who would still bother discussing peace? "Head back to the desert first," Anbaixiu instructed. "Help stabilize the dwarf king and convince them to postpone dispatching troops while I deal with this dragon. Take the elves' conditions back with you as well, and see if you can sign a pact directly." At this point, Anbaixiu could only try to cut his losses. The terms had already been mostly hashed out earlier anyway, and he believed the dwarf king should be able to accept the same conditions. At worst, they could renegotiate the price. The only remaining problem was the dragon. As long as that issue was resolved, he should be able to give the dwarves an explanation. Having sent Heji Stone off, Anbaixiu was just about to study how to track down the beast when a draconic roar echoed from outside the castle. "No way—it came looking for me this quickly?!" The dragon's arrogance was somewhat beyond Anbaixiu's expectations. Anbaixiu flew outside the castle and looked toward the source of the sound, only to see a colossal red dragon circling in the sky. From head to tail, it measured an estimated thirty meters, and its wings were even more exaggerated, spanning at least fifty meters when unfurled. Though it looked somewhat misshapen and disproportionate, a potent dragon fear radiated from the beast, palpable even from several kilometers away. Heji Stone really hadn't lied. This truly was a dragon. Dragon fear could not be faked—it exerted an absolute suppression over lesser lifeforms, rendering weaker creatures utterly incapable of moving before it. Anbaixiu observed it carefully, and soon he sensed the aura of Hell. This dragon was actually connected to Hell as well, and by the looks of it, it seemed to be summoning a Gate of Hell. *Sigh, looks like I won't be able to wait for the dragon clan's reply.* Anbaixiu couldn't just stand by and watch the creature finish the magical ritual. The location was far too close to his castle. Yet according to Heji Stone, this dragon was practically immune to magic. A mage like him going head-to-head against a dragon would undoubtedly get the short end of the stick. Just as he was pondering how to deal with the beast, Anbaixiu noticed Catherine appearing beside him. Mounted atop a giant eagle, she hovered in midair, her long gown already replaced by form-fitting emerald-green leather armor, giving her a valiant and heroic air. Catherine had also flown out to investigate after hearing the roar, only to spot the red dragon on the horizon. Astonished, Catherine asked Anbaixiu, "This dragon... whose money are you planning to make this time? You actually managed to pull out a dragon?" Anbaixiu: "..." This Elven Queen had developed a fixed stereotype of him. Whenever chaos erupted, her first instinct was that Anbaixiu had orchestrated it to turn a profit. "This dragon has nothing to do with me. It was the one that wiped out the dwarven delegation..." Anbaixiu briefly explained everything that had transpired, leaving Catherine with her jaw hanging slack, her mind instantly flooded with thoughts of dragons returning to the continent and sparking a Second Dragon-Human War. "Then what do we do now?" Catherine asked anxiously. "Naturally, we kill this dragon first. Regardless of whether it's an illegitimate child left behind on the continent by the dragons, this oversized lizard cannot be allowed to live." Anbaixiu's objective was clear: the dragon had to die. First, to give the dwarves an accounting; second, to deny Ryan any pretext to intervene in the City of Alchemy's free-for-all. Due to historical reasons, the dragon clan ranked even higher than the undead on the Ryan Empire's kill list. If Ryan learned that a dragon had appeared in the City of Alchemy, they wouldn't hesitate to dispatch troops, which would only make the situation far more complicated. "Catherine, I'm leaving it to you. Go kill this dragon," Anbaixiu said. "Huh?" Catherine looked at Anbaixiu in bewilderment. Why should she be the one to slay the dragon? This wasn't elven territory. "Didn't you hear me just now? This dragon's magic resistance is maxed out. A mage like me going over there would be useless. Aren't you a legendary ranger? Slaying dragons is right up your alley," Anbaixiu said. Catherine replied with utter seriousness, "An adult dragon stands above legends. Who told you a legendary ranger could slay a dragon? Dragons don't just have high magic resistance; their scales boast tremendous defenses against all sorts of weapons!" Anbaixiu declared with absolute certainty, "I've already buffed you. Go ahead with confidence—nothing will happen to you, I swear." A grueling future as a corporate drudge had already been woven for her, so Catherine wouldn't be in any mortal danger even if she stepped up to slay the dragon. Since that was the case, why should Anbaixiu put himself on the line? Anbaixiu met Catherine's gaze with the utmost sincerity. "Trust me. You can do it." Though Catherine didn't quite understand, when she looked back toward the red dragon, she felt the unmistakable stench of Hell. Under the dragon's control, a Gate of Hell was slowly swinging open, and hellfire began erupting across the distant ground. The moment she saw this, Catherine's eyes turned crimson with rage. So the previous Gate of Hell had been summoned by this dragon! The elves had fallen into an ambush and nearly suffered catastrophic casualties—Catherine had kept that grudge firmly etched in her heart. And for a legendary ranger, holding a grudge was far more than a figure of speech. Catherine drew her magical longbow and loosed an arrow toward the dragon. Brilliant starlight condensed along the shaft, propelling it past the sound barrier. The fiery-red dragon also noticed the lock of the starlight arrow and beat its wings forcefully in an attempt to evade. Yet the arrow actually curved in mid-flight, as if magnetized to the dragon's body; no matter how it dodged, it was struck by the starlight arrow in the end. This was a legendary ranger's "grudge." Once a ranger declared a party their favored enemy, they gained powerful counters against that foe, and this homing effect on ranged attacks was merely one of them. Most rangers could declare only a single favored enemy in their entire lifetime, but a legend like Catherine could alter her favored enemy designation to a limited degree. Having designated the dragon as her favored enemy, Catherine's attacks could not miss—the arrow carried a guaranteed-hit effect. Yet the moment the starlight coating the arrow touched the dragon scales, it rapidly dissipated. Though the arrowhead pierced through the scales, it did not seem to penetrate very deeply, amounting to nothing more than a superficial wound. Catherine's brows furrowed. She hadn't held back in the slightest with that shot, yet it had only inflicted a flesh wound. Something was very wrong with this dragon. Its defenses were far too absurd. Anbaixiu found it equally unbelievable. He had witnessed the power of that starlight arrow before; even a balor had been slain in a single hit. What was the deal with this dragon? Even true dragons weren't this tough, were they? Having taken Catherine's arrow, the dragon did not immediately pounce forward in a frenzy. Instead, it reached up with a massive claw, wrenched the arrow lodged in its chest straight out, and continued its magical ritual. A few seconds later, the Gate of Hell swung wide open, and countless demons poured out in a swarming horde. Then, Anbaixiu watched as the dragon plunged into the demon throng and began devouring the fiends in ravenous gulps. With every mouthful it swallowed, the dragon's body grew one size larger.