Chapter 361 The Death of the Mad King, The Wild Red Iron Dragon
Thick, leaden clouds hung low, seemingly within reach, while cold wind and rain fell in a continuous drizzle.
Large raindrops struck the dragon's steel-like scales, shattering them and turning into finer steam due to the high temperature, which rose and spread along the outline of the dragon's body.
Gorsas was firmly bound by the Iron King's iron-like claws.
At first, he struggled and writhed frantically, roaring and howling with resentment and rage. However, when all resistance became meaningless, his anger began to dissipate slowly, and the intense bloodlust in his eyes gradually faded.
He stopped his futile struggle.
He raised his massive head, staring directly into the deep dragon eyes of the red iron dragon. His eyes showed no resignation or fear befitting a dying dragon; instead, they blazed with an even more intense hatred as he roared, "Damn bastard! My blood flows in your veins! Your power, your very existence, all come from me!"
"And now you turn around and want to kill your own source! You ungrateful wretch!"
The red iron dragon merely turned its head slightly, remaining silent. Its massive body stood motionless in the wind and rain, its calmness chilling.
At this moment, Gorsas's voice abruptly stopped.
On that fierce dragon face, a fawning and ingratiating smile appeared as if by magic, and his tone became unusually gentle.
"My dear son, I was just... I was too excited and said some nonsense."
He said, "Ungrateful? That's a virtue of our dragon race! You did very well, excellent!"
"Considering our blood ties as father and son, let me go. We can reconcile and go our separate ways from now on, how about it?"
"This wilderness can be ruled by my son and me together in the future!"
Hong Tielong remained silent.
Gorsas's smile froze, then melted away like ice and snow, his expression suddenly turning so gloomy it could drip water, and his tone abruptly changed again.
"You little bastard! Do you really want to hear me wag my tail and beg for mercy, crying and pleading?"
"Haha! Did my sweet talk just now make you feel good? No! That was just me being silly and teasing you!" His gaze turned fierce again.
"Don't think you've won just because you did that!"
"I swear! Even if I, Gorsas, fall to the deepest abyss, I will climb back! My son and I are destined to meet again one day!"
"At that time, I will not only snap your neck with my own hands! I will also listen to your painful screams and devour you piece by piece! I will make you feel endless pain!"
“.”
Defeated by his own offspring and suffering such a miserable end, Gorsas was filled with extreme resentment and humiliation.
He would sometimes beg for mercy in a humble voice, sometimes curse hysterically, and sometimes issue vicious threats; his mental state was clearly still in a state of chaos and madness.
Galos remained silent throughout.
But in reality, he did not deliberately maintain this posture.
At this moment, his heart was being burned and consumed by a raging fire.
It was not a physical flame, but a raging fire that suddenly ignited out of nowhere.
This rage contained an indescribable ferocity and madness, casting an indelible crimson hue over the edges of his vision, making the rain falling from the sky seem to have turned into viscous blood rain.
Deep within his ears, countless subtle and alluring whispers seemed to be constantly resounding.
They incited him to kill and destroy.
They urged him to unleash his most primal rage and tear everything in his path to shreds.
From the moment Gorsas began his rage, Garros was inevitably affected by it. Coupled with the intensity of the entire battle, he had no time or room to calm himself down and dispel this negative influence.
As time passed, the suppressed anger in his heart not only did not subside, but instead surged more and more fiercely, as if fueled by constant additions. However, it was temporarily suppressed by his strong willpower and hidden beneath a seemingly calm expression.
Now that the battle is over, everything has erupted.
This kind of deep, direct erosion of the mind is far beyond the scope of Wild Dragon's skills.
Without a doubt, this was caused by epilepsy.
In fact, it was precisely because of the mental interference of the mad fire on the attackers that the originally tight encirclement formation lost its coordination and they fought individually. Otherwise, the process of killing Gorsas by pooling everyone's strength should have been much easier.
Why do I feel such uncontrollable anger?
Galos struggled to gather his remaining rationality, trying to calm his inner turmoil and violence.
He lowered his head and examined his battered dragon body.
He was covered in a lot of blood, some from his own deep, bone-revealing wounds, and some from Gorsath. The scalding dragon blood flowed with the rain, and it seemed that some of it was seeping through his wounds and merging with his body in some way.
"The Mad Fire... it was transferred to me through Gorsas's blood?"
Hong Tielong sensed something.
He had a vague feeling about it.
With each close encounter with Gorsas, especially after being tainted by his dragon blood, the negative effects of this madness intensified, like a persistent, insidious infection.
I don't know when it started.
His dragon eyes had also turned blood red, indistinguishable from those of Gorsas.
The inner turmoil was raging and growing ever stronger, constantly assaulting the dam of reason.
However, unlike Gorsas's outward madness, even though his heart was in turmoil, Garus maintained an unsettling calm on the surface.
This contrast between his internal and external appearance makes him seem even more dangerous.
"Bastard! What are you still hesitating about? Have you really been moved by that laughable pity and want to let me go?"
Gorsas continued his rant.
The words, filled with resentment and provocation, pierced Hong Tielong's taut nerves like needles, making him feel an indescribable irritation.
He wanted to act immediately and end Gorsas's life, but a sliver of clarity deep within him warned him against it.
Killing Gorsas on the spot might allow the Madness to penetrate even deeper.
“I, Gorsas, need no charity or pity! I swear, if I ever have the slightest chance, I will tear you to pieces! I will slaughter every single creature you care about and cherish! I will make you taste the most extreme pain in the world…”
Gorsas was interrupted before he could finish speaking by a low, suppressed dragon language that seemed to be squeezed out from the depths of his throat.
"So noisy!"
The last vestige of patience in Galos's bloodshot eyes finally ran out.
He could no longer suppress the turmoil of agitation and violence churning within him.
The dragon arm that gripped Gorsas's neck bulged with terrifying muscles, unleashing a burst of immense power. The sound of dragon scales shattering and tough flesh being forcibly torn apart echoed from between its claws.
"I will definitely come back!"
Gorsas's pupils suddenly contracted. With his last bit of strength, he uttered these few words filled with resentment. His giant eyes, which were gradually losing focus, stared intently at the red iron dragon that was so close to him. They did not close until his breath was completely cut off, as if he wanted to imprint the image of this patricide deep into his soul.
The unseeing stare was like adding fuel to the fire, making the anger in Red Iron Dragon's heart burn even more fiercely.
Simply breaking his neck was not enough to vent the violent emotions that were about to devour him.
Sizzle!
With a horrifying sound like tearing fabric, Garros's claws pierced deeply through the scales and flesh of Gorsas's neck.
He let out a long-suppressed growl and ripped Gorsas's head off his neck.
The scalding dragon blood gushed out like a fountain, only to be quickly washed away by the icy rain.
He casually toyed with the red dragon's head, which still retained its ferocious expression, while looking down at the headless dragon body falling into the muddy ground below, until a dull thud was heard.
After doing all this, a cruel look of satisfaction flashed in his blood-red dragon eyes.
Boom!
Just then, a thunderclap ripped through the dark sky, instantly illuminating the heavens.
The dragons and beasts, lying in different places and severely injured, barely managed to raise their heads and look up at the sky.
In their vision, the image of Hong Tielong holding the enemy's head, a fierce and menacing figure, was clearly reflected, and a chill involuntarily rose from the bottom of their hearts.
In their minds, the Iron King, though powerful and majestic, was not a cruel and tyrannical dragon.
However, at this moment, the Iron King, suspended in the wind and rain, showed no obvious emotional fluctuations on his face, appearing terrifyingly calm, yet exuding an aura of extreme danger and evil.
This feeling is essentially very similar to that of the previous manic Gorsas.
"Garos, his mind has been corrupted by the Mad Fire?"
Alberto the Golden Dragon's chest heaved violently as he struggled to breathe, this heavy thought surfacing in his mind.
Galos had briefly mentioned information about the Madfire to him, but had not explained in detail how it had such a terrifying mind-corroding effect.
It is estimated that even Galos himself was unaware of this before, and now he has inadvertently fallen victim to it.
at the same time.
The Iron King, standing in the sky, suddenly folded his enormous wings and swooped down in front of the heavily injured Golden Dragon, his massive shadow completely enveloping Alberto.
"Alberto."
He stared at the golden dragon, scrutinized it for a few seconds, and then suddenly asked, "Tell me, why didn't you use your life-saving scales until the very end?"
"Are you... hoping that I and the Mad King will perish together?"
"Are you trying to reap the benefits without lifting a finger? Or, deep down, do you secretly hope to see the bloodlines of both evil dragons disappear together? After all, you once said that you wanted to eradicate the scourge of the Mad King."
Alberto possesses a powerful life-saving scale. Although its power may not be a fatal threat to Garos in his current state, it can at least exert an effect equivalent to the Mad King's or Garos's own full-force attack.
It should have been able to turn the tide of battle or reduce casualties at a critical moment.
However, from beginning to end, the golden dragon never used this magic scale.
Hong Tielong's voice sounded as calm and steady as ever.
But beneath this calm surface, Alberto sensed a dangerous aura, as turbulent as the undercurrents of the deep sea.
In a daze, he seemed to see the familiar ally before him baring its terrifying fangs.
It was as if if one's answer failed to satisfy them in the slightest, they would be subjected to a merciless and fierce attack the next second.
Despite the excruciating pain from his injuries, Alberto replied, "I encountered the King of Mountain Giants while I was gathering intelligence in the northeastern region."
"After a fierce battle, in order to escape, I have exhausted the energy stored in my magic scales."
Among the map kings in the Northeast Wilderness region, the Mountain King is the most powerful and is a rising regional king seed.
After hearing that he had killed another Plague Dragon King, Alberto went to investigate, which resulted in a conflict and forced him to use his trump card.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner? Or ask me for help?"
Red Iron Dragon tilted its massive head, a gesture that seemed particularly unsettling at that moment.
"Alberto, are you doubting me? Doubting my abilities to deal with the Mountain King? Or do you think that I, an ally with the blood of a dragon flowing through my veins, am not worthy of your complete trust?"
He continued to ask questions, his tone becoming increasingly dangerous.
His blood-red pupils contracted slightly as he stared intently at Alberto, as if scrutinizing every subtle reaction of his prey.
Alberto the Golden Dragon took a deep breath and replied in a deep voice, "Garos, we are partners who have made a pact."
"But that doesn't mean I need to report every single thing I do to you."
“I have my own way of dealing with problems. I can solve troubles on my own and I am not used to relying on external forces easily. This has nothing to do with whether or not I trust them.”
Facing the Red Iron Dragon, whose condition was clearly off, he continued bluntly, "Garos, wake up!"
"You are being severely affected by the manic fire!"
"Never forget the source of your power!"
"Using reason to control power, that's the style of you, Garos. That's the Iron King I know. The real you will never be swayed by your rage!"
Upon hearing this, the red iron dragon's pupils suddenly shrank into dangerous vertical pupils, and a bright blood-red light shone forth.
His entire dragon face was instantly filled with a violent expression. With his current rugged and ferocious physique, coupled with this expression, he appeared even more evil and terrifying than Gorsas before.
"Garos, calm down!"
On the other side, Iron Dragon Sorog mustered his last remaining sliver of psionic energy and attempted to cast a mind spell to help Garros stabilize his mind, which was on the verge of spiraling out of control.
However.
The moment his psionic energy touched Garos's mind, it was like hitting an invisible yet incredibly intense flame, instantly incinerated and having no effect whatsoever.
"Shut up, all of you! Are you trying to teach me how to do things?!"
Red Iron Dragon let out a deafening roar, took a step forward, raised its claws that could shatter mountains, and aimed at the Golden Dragon's head!
The sharp, claw-like wind dispersed the raindrops on Alberto's forehead.
But just before the gleaming claws were about to touch the golden dragon's head, they suddenly stopped in mid-air.
Hong Tielong suddenly closed his eyes and began to take deep breaths, inhaling large amounts of air containing cold raindrops and exhaling them heavily.
He stood there stiffly, like a statue, his chest heaving violently, hot white steam constantly billowing from his nostrils.
It wasn't until several minutes later that the suffocating sense of oppression subsided slightly.
The red iron dragon slowly opened its eyes; the unsettling blood-red dragon pupils had faded, returning to their original deep black.
"Some of the manic fire transferred to me."
Galos's voice carried a hint of weariness, but more so a solemn tone. He slowly said, "It has a very strong influence on my mind. I cannot guarantee you that I can completely control myself at all times."
With his unwavering and resilient spirit forged through countless trials, he temporarily suppressed the erosion of the madness and regained his senses.
But he could still clearly feel a burning desire for destruction and slaughter accumulating within him.
More accurately, this fire did not reside in his heart, but burned directly in his spiritual world.
However, Galos did not show excessive tension or panic.
He knows his situation better than anyone else.
He firmly believes that given enough time, the negative effects of the maniac fire will eventually be overcome by his adaptive talents and become controllable.
He might even be able to tame this dangerous power and transform it into another powerful trump card.
“Garos…”
Iron Dragon Leticia caught her breath and looked at her powerful but now worrying offspring, saying, "I remember very clearly that the effects of the Mad Fire were subtle and gradually intensified."
“I believe your will is far stronger than Gorsas’s; you would never choose to embrace madness.”
"But that's precisely why you absolutely cannot let your guard down! Otherwise, you will unknowingly have your mind distorted and slide into the abyss."
Galos nodded slightly.
He said, "I understand the danger involved, and I know what I need to do next."
Immediately, he stood in the wind and rain, his gaze slowly sweeping over the wounded dragons around him and the lords under his command.
Gorsas's power is beyond doubt.
If it weren't for the strategy of overwhelming the enemy with numbers, Galos estimated that he alone would have had a hard time forcing Gorsas into his rage and ferocity state first.
Despite the attackers being affected by their rage-induced mental impairment, their coordination was almost nonexistent.
However, their presence did indeed cause Gorsas to suffer continuous wear and tear and accumulate injuries.
Many of Galos's effective damage came when Gorsas was distracted by other attackers.
In a pure one-on-one deathmatch, Galos assessed that his chances of winning were slim.
The best outcome would probably be being forced to use the Dragon Jade to recover their condition and then choosing a strategic retreat.
If, in the heat of battle, one loses their mind due to the madness of the flames and chooses to fight Gorsas to the death... then the one who will stand to the end today will likely be the Mad King, not him, the Iron King.
at the same time.
The other dragons either lay helplessly in the mud, or leaned against the rocks to catch their breath, or struggled to stand.
However, although their injuries looked shocking, thanks to the dragons' innate strong vitality and the Holy Spirit Deer's painstaking healing, as well as the fact that Gorsas's main target was always Garros, no one died on the spot and all survived.
Galos then turned his gaze to the non-dragon lords under his command.
The Holy Spirit Deer, having exhausted its life energy in the healing process, had fainted and was barely breathing.
Healing dragons and other powerful monster lords is no easy task; it is an extremely heavy burden for it.
The head of the amethyst dragon lion Ennus was collapsed and deformed, its face covered with congealed blood, looking miserable, but its chest was still rising and falling very faintly.
The tenacious life force of the dragon bloodline is revealed at this moment.
As long as it has a breath left, it is difficult for it to truly die.
Phoenix Angela appeared to be in the best condition. She underwent two rebirths, attacking Gorsas with self-destruction, dying twice, but not sustaining any further damage.
Finally, Garos's gaze settled on the Flower Lord, Sharl.
This exceptionally talented individual, who was highly likely to become the first legendary figure of the Ironforge tribe, was now lying quietly amidst a pile of rubble, his pupils unfocused and lifeless.
There was a huge, gaping hole in his chest, and his bones showed many unnatural twists and breaks.
He was already completely lifeless.
Without reaching legendary status or mastery, the human body ultimately appears too fragile in a war against colossal beasts of this level.
Moreover, neither the Arcane Knight nor the Border Walker path is known for its exceptional defense and survivability.
Charles died instantly from the deadly headbutt of the savage Gorsas.
Galos fell silent, his eyes gradually becoming bloodshot.
The emotional turmoil caused by the death of his lord fueled his rage, reigniting a furious fire within him and causing his eyes to begin to glow bloodshot again.
but.
Before the other dragons or their companions could offer any warning, the Red Iron Dragon took a deep, slow breath, forcibly suppressing its surging rage once again.
His tempered heart and his natural talent for adaptation allowed the madness to shake and test him, but ultimately it could not truly dominate or control him.
"Seraphina, take the Life Box and get to the battlefield as fast as you can."
Garoth gave the black dragon clear instructions.
Although Charles is dead, his soul is resilient and powerful, and should remain in his remains for some time.
If his soul is preserved in time using the Life Box, there may be a chance for him to be resurrected in the future.
"Sorog, Samantha."
Galos looked at his two blood relatives and said in a serious and low voice, "My mental state is very unstable right now. If I am stimulated by external factors, I am very likely to do something irrational with unpredictable consequences."
After thinking for a moment, he continued, "I will return to the border area first to concentrate all my energy and gradually overcome and adapt to the negative effects of the maniacal fire."
"During this period, all matters concerning the wilderness will be temporarily entrusted to you to handle."
"If you encounter any difficult or challenging problems, please notify me immediately."
After hearing his arrangements, Iron Dragon Leticia and Golden Dragon Alberto immediately added that they would help take care of the Iron Smelting Tribe.
"What should we do with Gorsas's remains?"
"Iron Dragon Sorog asked."
"We'll break it down into pieces and store it away; these are our spoils."
The remains of a mature dragon are extremely valuable, and given Galus's inherent pragmatism, they certainly cannot afford to waste them.
"I'll be back soon."
After a brief exchange, Hong Tielong left with his last words and didn't linger any longer.
He suddenly flapped his wings, and his massive body soared into the sky, transforming into a shooting star amidst the wind and rain, quickly disappearing into the vast rain curtain, and speeding towards the border area.
Returning to the borderlands was not only to deal with the erosion of the mad fire.
This life-or-death battle gave Garos a new understanding of power and death, and he vaguely touched the threshold of the path to eternal death. He needs time to digest and break through it.
His ideal outcome would be to successfully cultivate both the Eternal Death Path and, by controlling the Mad Fire, simultaneously embark on the Wild Dragon Path.
Wildness has significant side effects.
Gorsas's results are still fresh in my mind.
However, its power is undeniable.
After using the Dragon Jade, Garus's second life is actually weaker because he cannot activate the Crimson Lotus state. However, if he can learn the Wild state, he will undoubtedly gain another trump card skill.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
