Chapter 148 True Dragon: The Last True Dragon Messenger [VIP]

"Why are you waiting for me? I am special to you?"

We were originally merely waiting...waiting for a force that would hear our voices...For centuries, our resentment remained unquenchable, transforming into undead spirits that roam the mortal world...New undead constantly joined us, and we amassed a vast power...But this is the power of death, and death cannot exert any influence on the mortal world unless the balance between life and death is broken...

"The balance between life and death has been broken?"

Xiao Yun spoke with great interest, his eyes fixed on the "Tower Master" who was wearing a disguised arm guard wrapped around his arm.

I have always restrained my power, but your light is too strong, like the sun rising in the darkness, attracting all these undead spirits wandering the world... To avoid causing more trouble, I have no choice but to open a channel for them to communicate with you.

The "Tower Master" raised his head and admitted it frankly.

“It’s you…”

Xiao Yun sighed.

[Don't worry, your conversation with the undead takes place in the dream channel. As the master of the dream, you have absolute control.]

"...Can you connect Yaris's dream to my dream channel? I want to see him, even if it's just in my dreams."

[Sorry, the master is currently in a state of "Magic Sleep". No force can actively approach him. We can only passively wait for his contact.]

"So what He said to me yesterday—"

[The cadres are all fake. After entering the "Magic Sleep" state, a protective barrier called the "Sleeping Barrier" forms on the host's body. No earthly power can penetrate the barrier and touch the host. Using magical means to attack the barrier will have its magic power absorbed by the barrier - even "He" can only move his body through the barrier.]

"No wonder the demons of the Twilight Kingdom say that the sleeping Yaris is a shining gem..."

Xiao Yun pondered for a moment and continued to talk to the undead.

"Since you are the undead spirits wandering this land due to unresolved resentment... could you please first introduce your main roles in life?"

"We...we are...we are the families of the young girls who, over the past hundred years, were unfortunately chosen and taken to the Imperial Palace, and have never been heard from again...We want to know the fate of our children...Our obsession with longing for our loved ones prevents our souls from dissipating after death, leaving us in this world with immense resentment and pain..."

"I see."

Xiao Yun sighed, "Selecting a girl every five years and sending her to the imperial capital might seem like a trivial matter to a city with a population of several hundred thousand, but it's a devastating event for the family of the unfortunate girl chosen."

"Yes... We cannot accept such a fate. We long to fly to the Imperial Capital as undead spirits after death, searching for our children... However, to protect the Imperial Capital, the Empire has erected nine layers of barriers, each stronger than the last. We, who have become undead spirits out of longing for our loved ones, cannot even pass through the first layer..."

"Wait a moment!"

Xiao Yun interrupted the undead: "You can't even pass through the first layer of the barrier, how do you know clearly that there are nine layers of barriers protecting the imperial capital?"

[Because... our core is a powerful ancient mage...]

"oh?"

(Finally getting to the point!)

Xiao Yun smiled slightly and sat up straight.

"I already know your general demands and specific ideas. Please have your core member come out to see me. I want to know who he is and what grudges he has against me. Why can't so many undead spirits gather here and enter the imperial capital, and can only wander here?"

【yes……】

The undead were in a commotion, and the figure of a white old man who could barely be seen in human form slowly appeared in front of Xiao Yunbai.

[Your Majesty, hello. I am their core. I lived in this land for over a thousand years as the last "Loong Messenger"...]

"Wait a minute! Loong? What did you just say?"

Yes, loong.

The undead repeated it in an extremely firm tone.

Six thousand years ago, after the fall of the Eternal Empire, the geographical isolation of the Great Desert of Death divided the newly born world from the ruins into two major continents: the East Continent and the West Continent. I'm not very clear about the situation in the West Continent, but in the East Continent...

According to records, during the Eternal Empire era, there existed an ancient demigod creature called the True Dragon (Loong) in the Eastern Continent. The long-standing magical tradition of "True Dragon (Loong) Messenger" originated from them.

They have slender and graceful bodies, with wings that reach all the way to the sky. Their heads are covered with beautiful horns and gorgeous manes. Their eyes sparkle, their bodies are covered with beautiful scales, and their limbs are short but powerful...

"you……"

Xiao Yun repeated slowly, his eyes falling on the "Tower Master" again.

I am not the loong he described. At least, not now.

Sorrow beyond words.

"What happened next? What happened next?"

Later... Later, civilization on the Eastern Continent began to recover, but everything related to Loong gradually became blurred... I remembered less and less about Loong... The sculptures that recorded Loong's image also weathered or were destroyed...

Over three hundred years ago, he suddenly appeared, claiming to be a descendant of the ancient creature represented by the ancient character "dragon." He appropriated the ancient character representing loong from the Eternal Empire's documents and, under the guise of restoration and preservation, altered the remaining ancient loong carvings to his liking.

After Wan Gan unified the Eastern Continent, he named himself "Dragon Emperor" and completely covered the continent with his perception. Anyone on the Eastern and Western Continents who mentioned his name, even just the title "Dragon Emperor," would be perceived by him...

He is trying to emphasize his absolute authority. Only I know that he wants to use this method to bury loong. He must be able to think of him!

So far, He has been successful.

Three hundred years had led nearly everyone living on the Eastern Continent to believe He was a lie. They believed He was the dragon mentioned in the documents left behind by the Eternal Empire, a descendant of the Dragon God recorded in ancient mythology. Only the "True Dragon Messenger" knew He was a false dragon (dragon), not a true dragon (loong)... I was the last "True Dragon Messenger"... the last person on the Eastern Continent to know He was a false dragon, not a true dragon...

Having said this, the white figure of the undead shook violently, as if feeling the pain of death again.

"Go on."

Xiao Yun shouted.

【terribly sorry……】

The ghost of the undead mage who called himself the "True Dragon Messenger" stopped flickering with resentment.

[Magicians usually have a lifespan of hundreds or even thousands of years, so their souls are more resilient than ordinary people and can survive for short periods of time without their bodies... Moreover, I leave this world with absolute resentment and unwillingness...]

I hated Him, and I was determined to expose His lies and end His rule...

So I wandered the earth for a long time, constantly absorbing souls that shared my resentment towards Him... However, the power of the undead is the power of death, and death cannot have any effect on the living world... It is even almost impossible for the living to hear it...]

"I understand your pain..."

Thank you... Thank you... Thank you for your words... Just these words alone make us feel truly happy...

The undead trembled in response.

[Your Majesty, you are about to depart for the Imperial Capital. We beg you to open the nine layers of barriers surrounding the Imperial Capital so that we can enter and search for our loved ones... This is our only hope... Only by finding the souls of our loved ones can our obsession dissipate...]

"I try my best."

Xiao Yun looked at the undead with tenderness.

Thank you... Thank you...

The undead swayed like dancing flames, as if kneeling down to salute Xiao Yun.

The largest undead magician who called himself the "Messenger of the True God" was always looking at Xiao Yun quietly.

[Your Majesty, you possess the energy of the stars. You are the only force that can dispel darkness... I can sense that you will save the world in the future... Only you have such power... the power to save the world...]

"Now I just want to get to the imperial capital as soon as possible and save Yaris."

Xiao Yun said calmly.

At this moment, the darkness suddenly shook violently again, and the pale undead suddenly disappeared like candles in the wind.

“Who! Who is it!”

Xiao Yun shouted.

Following the shout, a ball of strange, sticky black-green light slowly appeared and condensed into a human shape.

[After hearing their cries, did you become filled with hatred for me and vow to rush to the imperial capital and destroy me immediately?]

"Even if they weren't here, I would still go to the capital to find you!"

[However, the world is full of lies, and the dead can lie too! What you see and hear may not necessarily be the truth!]

"But your rule did cause countless people to lose their loved ones!"

Xiao Yun's face revealed a strong murderous intent: "What's more, you captured Yaris!"

【All right. 】

The dark green light condensed into a human shape swayed slightly and quickly dissolved into the darkness.

Xiao Yun also woke up at this time.

The bright morning light shines on my face, making it a little dazzling.

On the other bed, Samit was still sleeping, his face filled with the happiness of being in love.

…

…

"Good morning, my Lord."

The servant walked into the room with breakfast and greeted Xiao Yun who had already woken up.

"morning."

Xiao Yun, who was tidying up his hair and clothes, nodded to the servant across the wooden screen.

The servant was immediately flattered: "Sir, please, please enjoy breakfast!"

——Only magicians can drive magic carriages, and in the True Human Empire, even the lowest-level magic apprentices have a higher status than ordinary people, not to mention that he is just a servant who is ordered to deliver breakfast to the magicians.

After breakfast was served, the servants hurried out of the room.

Samit had already dressed and straightened his appearance. He stood respectfully beside the table and introduced the special food of Taiki City to Xiao Yun.

"Your Majesty, the Taiki people, influenced by the southwest and southeast regions, tend to eat spicy food. Breakfast is usually a spicy, rich soup made with a variety of spices mixed with local vegetables, meats, and cheeses, served with stone flatbreads made with a variety of beans and flour."

"This thin pancake, which is only the size of an adult man's palm, is a stone pancake."

"Stone pancakes are a specialty of Taiki. They're made with a variety of local beans, soaked overnight, ground into a paste, and then mixed with flour. The resulting pancakes are baked on hot black pebbles, giving them a honeycomb-like surface."

“Locals tear the stone flatbread into small pieces and put them into spicy vegetable, meat and cheese stew to absorb the broth.”

As Samit introduced the dish, he picked up the stone pancake and tore it into small pieces of appropriate size.

Xiao Yun followed Samit's movements and dipped the stone pancake into the stew. He found that the stew tasted really good, and the stone pancake was chewy when eaten dry and had a light nutty aroma. After absorbing the soup, it became softer and more chewy.

Then, Samit poured Xiao Yun a cup of amber fruit drink with a strange fragrance.

"This drink is a local specialty, fragrant wax water, which can soothe the mind and cleanse the mouth from bad breath."

"Fragrant wax water?"

"Fragrant wax water is a drink made from fragrant wax juice mixed with honey. Fragrant wax fruit is the fruit of the fragrant wax tree. The flesh has a rich floral fragrance, but the taste is sour and astringent, which most people cannot tolerate. Therefore, we squeeze the fragrant wax fruit into fragrant wax juice and mix it with honey to make a sweet and sour fragrant wax water with a fragrant aroma."

"oh."

Xiao Yun took a sip of the wax water and found that the fragrance of the wax water was somewhat similar to Rosamari, whom Yaris liked, and he couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

Samit saw Xiao Yun frown slightly after tasting the fragrant wax water, and thought that he didn't like the taste of the fragrant wax water. He quickly explained: "Fragrant wax water is a popular drink among ordinary people. It is normal for Your Majesty to find the taste difficult to swallow after enjoying such a rare delicacy."

"I have no complaints about the taste of the wax water. I frown because the scent of the wax water reminds me of his favorite flower."

"What flower?"

"Rosa Marie."

"Rosa Marie..."

Samit took a deep breath and said, "I've heard of this name. It's the favorite flower of the nobles of the Western Continent. It's called the Emperor of Flowers. It's extremely beautiful but also extremely delicate."

"Um."

Xiao Yun responded indifferently.

Seeing this, Samit complimented her, saying, "Your lover must be as beautiful as Rosa Marie."

"He is more beautiful than Rosa Marie."

Xiao Yun spoke slowly, finished his breakfast accompanied by Samit, put on his cloak and hood, left the room and started a new day's journey.

…

…

The Demonic Path Caravan raced forward along the spacious avenue known as "Emperor Avenue." During a break at noon, Xiao Yun suddenly whispered to Samit, "Do you feel it?"

"Feel what?"

Samit had a confused expression on his face.

Xiao Yun: "Someone is following the convoy."

"ah?"

"Of course you don't! You know nothing!"

Flora sat on Xiao Yun's shoulder and laughed loudly at Samit.

Samit's face flushed with embarrassment: "S-Sorry..."

Upon hearing this, Lily opened the carriage window and apologized to Xiao Yun and Fuluoer: "Sorry, we..."

"I'm telling you this because I feel like something might happen next... You might be able to take this opportunity to leave the team and pursue a new life."

"ah……"

Samit's cheeks suddenly turned rosy red.

"Your Majesty, this kind of thing..."

"Are you really ready to go to the imperial capital and face the test of life and death?"

“…”

Samit and Lily were silent together.

Xiao Yun watched the innocent lovers with interest - they were so young, full of unrealistic fantasies about the future, and their love was as pure as a fairy tale that only existed in stories.

"Once we enter the imperial capital, I will inevitably come into conflict with Him, and you—"

"sorry."

The two apologized together: "We, we..."

"So I suggest you take advantage of the chaos and leave the caravan, find a place where no one knows you and start a new life," Xiao Yun said with a smile. "You love each other so much that you're not afraid of death, so naturally you won't be afraid of unfamiliar surroundings either."

"Uh-huh."

Inspired by Xiao Yun's words, the young couple nodded repeatedly.

Looking at their passionate youthful faces, Xiao Yun somehow thought of Yaris again - although in his memory, Yaris always exuded a mysterious, dim, and suspicious demonic aura, and behind his brilliant and elegant smile lay the shadows of decadence and poison, just like the five thousand years of heritage of the Holy Family itself, and had nothing in common with the sunny and cheerful appearance of the two people in front of him.

(Perhaps, it is precisely because they have nothing in common with Yaris that I think of Yaris's morbidity, complexity, and enchanting beauty because of their health, enthusiasm, and sincerity...)

…

After the rest, the team continued their journey. When they passed a section of road with lush trees, they saw—

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Shadows suddenly emerged from the ground one after another, blocking the demonic convoy that was moving rapidly forward with its four wheels and the horses pulling it separated from the ground, floating faintly in the air.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

The mages who were guarding the convoy on both sides issued a hoarse warning.

The enemy's reaction was even faster.

After a hail of arrows, they rushed out from both sides of the road in a well-trained manner, holding sharp blades and slashing at the magicians.

"you--"

The guarding magicians were caught off guard and many of them were injured.

But they were strictly trained magicians after all, with physical strength and pain tolerance unmatched by ordinary people. After a brief moment of surprise, they immediately reacted and used black magic methods to fight against enemies that were dozens of times larger than themselves.

"--ah!"

"No--"

"you--"

Amidst continuous screams, the attackers' bodies exploded like balloons, and broken limbs and blood were scattered all over the ground.

(He's actually a black magician!)

Xiao Yun frowned.

He has no prejudice against the Dark Mage, but—

“…I can’t take it anymore! I’m about to vomit!”

Samit, who was seeing this hellish scene for the first time, lay on the joystick with a pale face, looking at Xiao Yun pitifully.

"You'd better hold it in!"

Xiao Yun said.

"But--"

Samit was about to beg.

"—What's going on?"

The guarding mages who had killed all the attackers noticed something unusual about Samit, and the leader approached them, "A mage apprentice on his first mission?"

"He's an incompetent apprentice."

Xiao Yun imitated the tone of the "Dark Night Mentor" and answered in a calm yet cold voice.

"Yeah?"

The magician who asked the question still had some doubts.

Seeing this, Flora flapped her wings and flew over Samit's head, kicking him hard on the head through his hood: "Idiot! Trash! Useless thing! You embarrass your master all day long!"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

Samit didn't dare to resist. He knelt at Xiao Yun's feet and begged, "Teacher! Please forgive me! Give me another chance!"

Seeing Samit being so cowardly and incompetent, the mage couldn't help but feel a little more sympathy for Xiao Yun: "It's better to throw away this kind of stupid and useless apprentice as soon as possible."

"I do intend to do so."

Xiao Yun ordered coldly, "Flora, stop. It would be a waste of my potion if you damaged his brain."

"Yes, Master."

Flora flew back to Xiao Yun's shoulder, and looked at the mage with her hands on her hips: "Why are you staring at me?!"

"Sir, your familiar...has a bit of a history..."

"I caught it a few days ago when I passed by the Twilight Kingdom."

"ah--"

Upon hearing this, the magician's attitude instantly became respectful.

You know, as an intermediate magician, he doesn't have the ability to enter the Twilight Kingdom, let alone capture the demons of the Twilight Kingdom to serve as his familiars.

"grown ups--"

"I'm not an adult. I'm just an ordinary junior magician."

"yes."

The mage lowered his head and said, "I am Carl, the man in charge of the convoy's security and protection."

"Claude."

Xiao Yun's voice was so cold that it sounded like an emotionless machine.

…

The incident of the attack ended quickly, and the magic convoy was on the road again, arriving at the Central Plains city of Seth before dusk.

The convoy was stable, Xiao Yun got off the car and prepared to rest.

At this time, the magician Carl, who was in charge of escorting the convoy, came to Xiao Yunbai with a magician who exuded a suspicious aura.

"Lord Claude—"

Karl saluted Xiao Yun and said, "Please allow me to introduce you. This is my mentor, Master Gawende, a senior mage of the Imperial Capital Mage Guild."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Master Gawende."

"In front of you, I am a humble apprentice."

Ge Wende bent down and saluted Xiao Yun.

"I'm just a—"

"Early-level magicians cannot enter or leave the Twilight Kingdom, not to mention that your familiar is the noble Flower Fairy Queen."

Gawende raised his head, revealing a wrinkled and dry face. "I can sense your strength... You possess immense energy..."

"You can sense my power, which shows that you are not an ordinary high-level magician."

Xiao Yun said slowly.

Gawende bowed his head humbly and said, "Before your radiance, which is like the sun, I am humbler than an ant."

"All right."

Xiao Yun stretched out his hand.

The extremely white, slender fingers with delicate skin and emitting fiery energy made Gawende and others gasp again, and they became more and more certain that the "Claude" in front of them who claimed to be an intermediate magician was the "person" they were thinking of.

"It is our honor to serve you."

Gawende said in a voice trembling with excitement.

"Perhaps."

Xiao Yun casually glanced at the sky that was gradually darkening: "Something will happen tonight..."

"Your Majesty... do you think we should..."

"I wonder why they are so fearless of death."

Xiao Yun said indifferently.

The system in his body already contains enormous energy comparable to that of a star. Not long ago, with the help of Yaris, he obtained the senior administrator privileges of the mysterious machine placed on the eighth floor of the God Tower. He also ended the civil war in the Solar Empire by his own efforts and became the true emperor of the Holy Solar Empire, obtaining a status equal to or even slightly higher than that of the Dragon Emperor, who proclaimed himself the only god of the True Human Empire.

Now, he doesn't need any hints, nor does he need to deliberately imitate His words and deeds. Just by the powerful aura he naturally exudes, he can make the magicians of the True Human Empire sincerely convinced of him and wishfully mistake him for Him!