69novels Page 71
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"Call me 'sister,' you idiot! Where have you been all this time? Do you even know...?"
Casalos pressed forward, his outstretched head wrapping around her neck, their necks intertwined, chest to chest, making it impossible for her to continue her rebuke. Fiona was startled to realize that after so many years, the little dragon who used to be terrified of even a mere scorpion had grown bigger than her.
“You’re really strong.” Fiona softened her sweeping wings, one wing wrapping around Casalos’s back and pressing down on its wing, while the other wing cupped its back and patted it. Her tone became gentle: “It’s good that you’re still alive. That’s good.”
The golden dragon spread its wings and flew away. The sun elf, who could understand dragon language, dragged the onlookers back to the cabin, leaving the "narrow" deck to Casalos and the newly boarded dragon. However, some clueless individuals still inappropriately ran aboard and disturbed this rare moment of tenderness.
"Is that Casaloz?"
Two questions, uttered simultaneously by different people in different languages, rang out. Fiona retracted her wings and turned to sit beside Casalos. Casalos casually wrapped his tail around Fiona's long, sharp stinger and turned his head to look at the source of the voices. The one speaking in dragon language was a girl emanating a chilling aura, while the one speaking in elven language was a male half-elf ranger.
“This is Lothri Vilayal. You met her when you were little. She’s been learning from me all these years.” Fiona flicked her tail in annoyance, but she couldn’t withstand Casalos’s immense strength. She could only roll her eyes and introduce the person to Casalos: “This is Adonis, the legend of the Elf Tree. He’s the person in charge of the Harpists’ Alliance’s operation in cooperation with Lord Dracolnobaren. After learning about Lothri and my identities, he provided us with considerable assistance.”
Asgrass had endowed his children with powerful memories. The moment Fiona mentioned Lothley's name, it recalled the cold, chromium dragon that had stood not far from it in the Sacred Lands of Athelon. Nodding to the chromium dragon and the half-elf, it sensed a strange hostility from this person, but… he was merely a ranger who had reached the Exemplar realm. The "legend" Fiona referred to wasn't about his power level.
If there's nothing else going on, Casalos doesn't want to cause any trouble with the Harpists. At least, he can't afford to provoke these leeches in his current identity. He's still trying to figure out how to increase his reputation with the Harpists' Alliance. Things aren't going well in Westgate, and he hasn't been able to get in touch with Shadow Valley because of that crazy woman, Storm Silverhand. This might be a good opportunity.
After the Kingdom came to a stop, the crew ran out and chatted with the Harpists' Alliance. Surprisingly, they blended in without any barriers, proving that the attraction between these chaotic and silly people was undeniable.
Two days before the Dragon Conference officially begins, it seems that Dracolnobaren has no intention of revealing any specific information to Casalos and other "peripheral" participants. The crew of the Kingdom also don't know what the old golden dragon saw in the prophecy. They can only stay put and wait quietly. Casalos also has the opportunity to spend time with Fiona and have a detailed talk.
The two dragons recounted their experiences over the past few years.
When the Sacred Land of the Atheros was captured, Fiona returned to search for Casalos but was unable to find it due to Chassa's magic. She could only anxiously rescue two young Atheros nearby, namely Losley and another nickel dragon. She was then teleported to the Moon Forest near the Silvermoon Federation by the ancient tungsten dragon Yura Olsea, who had received the evacuation order. In order to maintain her focus and ensure the teleportation was completed, Yura Olsea was bitten in the neck from behind by an unknown ancient blue dragon.
After escaping, Fiona survived for a time in the Moon Forest with two young, different subspecies of Alphadramysaurus. Having fully mastered the last legacy of the old Supreme Dragon, Fiona decided to leave the forest and integrate into the Silvermoon Federation as a humanoid. The reclusive and evil Niel Dragon was very dissatisfied with this decision and one day ran away from Fiona's protection. In the end, Fiona had no choice but to embark on a journey with Lothley, mingling among the Silvermoon Federation as a typical adventurer, gradually adapting to life in a humanoid society.
The kind-hearted tungsten dragons spearheaded the "adventure," gradually building a good reputation. They were then proactively accepted by the Harpists' Alliance, becoming one of their secret members spread across the continent. And then... Fiona was inspired by Tom, the guardian god of paladins, and became a glorious paladin!
"Not Tarama, not Landis, and not Shimo?" Casalos's eyes widened, his head filled with question marks. A lawful, good tungsten dragon becoming a paladin was no problem, but the question was, how could it be Tom?
The rules of the gods have not yet been rewritten by the supreme god. The self-proclaimed righteous dragon god, the King of Good Dragons, is still imprisoned and has not yet switched allegiance to Tom. How dare Tom intercept the faith of the dragon god system and directly turn the good dragon into his holy warrior?
And not just one. Not long after Fiona became a Tom Paladin, Rosley was also inspired by Tom and became a Paladin as well—this was…
Chapter 221
A vicious dragon.
155. Current Status of Ethnic Groups
“Perhaps it’s because we’ve always been doing good deeds as humans.” Fiona couldn’t understand why a benevolent human god would care about two dragons, but it didn’t matter. They couldn’t understand the affairs of the gods, and the holy warrior power bestowed by the gods was indeed very useful for the survival of the Athena dragons. With a clear conscience, she accepted this divine grace.
Casalos pondered further, but lacked concrete clues and evidence, only able to speculate: after the Dragon Treasury entered its second phase, it never saw the dragon gods again. Perhaps the dragon gods had already foreseen the impending changes to the rules of the gods in the Kingdom of Heaven. These old fellows, who never wanted dragons to worship them as gods, had probably completely abandoned the Kingdom of Heaven—in the coming centuries, the dragons of the Kingdom of Heaven would completely forget most of the dragon gods who once existed. Ignoring the irrelevant factor of retconning, by the timeline of 5r, many dragon gods in the Kingdom of Heaven would only exist as a multi-dimensional, unified ancient dragon form, with almost no dragons remembering them.
Since the Dragon God could foresee such a future, it's understandable that Tom, who has taken on one of the main characters among the gods, would preemptively seize some of the Dragon God's faith. After all, the Atheros are a race without "father" or "mother" love, and they're not the five metallic dragons and five chromatic dragons that will be used as cannon fodder by Bahamut and Tiamat in the future.
Fiona and Lothrie, whose true forms are dragons and who have gained the power of paladins, are thriving in the Harpists' Alliance. As their status rises, they begin to roam the continent, punishing evil and searching for the survivors of the Athena dragons hidden in various places. Then, a prophecy about the Old Supreme Dragon begins to swirl in the Sword Coast.
“We investigated, and the prophecy is false… but it’s not much different from the truth.” Fiona sighed deeply. “You are the new Supreme Dragon, if the Atheros can have a Supreme Dragon in the future.”
In its final moments, the ancient Supreme Dragon reactivated the Mind Network and bestowed the power of form replacement upon all surviving Athenae, a feat achieved only by burning away its own dragon soul. Already severely wounded, it consumed its own treasure trove at the time of the handover and prepared to embark on the path of the Guardian—a path of sacrifice chosen by all dragons in their twilight years. As dragons approach their end, they can transform their dragon soul, body, and all their accumulated power into the environment—hills, mountains, lakes, swamps, and forests are common choices—using magic to create a safe haven for their offspring, protecting the eggs and the growth of the hatchlings. In fact, the earliest form of dragon inheritance is the instinctive teaching of offspring by fragments of the aging dragon's remaining dragon soul, transformed into a Guardian.
The Sacred Land of Athelon is actually the area created by each Supreme Dragon after it dies and becomes a Guardian. That is why it is a place where magical energy converges and fills the Dragon Treasury in a short time.
In its final moments, the Old Supreme Dragon burned away all the power it had used to transform into a Guardian, forcibly absorbing the power of past Guardians to create the miracle of bestowing a form change upon all the survivors of the Atheros. It had no energy left to carry out a prophecy that would witness destiny across time.
Finally, the prophecy about Casalos that resonated in the mental network was undoubtedly false. It was most likely a trick played by Tekovegal, who was chosen as the new Supreme Dragon but turned out to be a traitor.
As for its motives, who can know what this traitor is thinking? According to Fiona's secret investigation—or rather, the snippets deliberately leaked by Tom, who treated it differently—after the Athelonian race was wiped out, Tekowigal was sacrificed on the spot by Chassa to the five-colored dragon queen Tiamat. Tekowigal has now had its elements burned away by the fires of purgatory, its dragon soul devoured by purgatory, transformed into a giant purgatory dragon, squatting in Aphonas, the realm of the dragon queen, enduring endless torment while guarding the gate.
If Athena wants to seek revenge on Tekovegal, it must first cross the Dark Ridge into Aphonas, the first level of the Baton Hells, pass through the Bronze Fortress, climb over the Soul Barrier, cross the Maggot Hole, and ascend Dragon Cliff to enter the Dragon Queen's realm before it can meet it. In a sense, Old Cha has fulfilled his promise to Tekovegal to grant it greater power and guarantee that no dragon will cause it trouble afterward. Whether this is what Tekovegal wanted is unknown.
Although the prophecy was false, it was no different from the truth, because after this disaster, the only Iron Dragon with the hope of surviving to the Primordial Era was Casaloz.
In the battle at the Holy Land, all Iron Dragons were prime targets for the Colored Dragons' siege. The few Iron Dragons that managed to escape were severely wounded, afflicted with curses and other malevolent influences. Without the Dragon God's favor, their next slumber would be their end. They would never reach their primordial age again; under the influence of the curses and other negative effects, they had even lost the ability to reproduce normally. In recent years, several Iron Dragons had attempted to perpetuate their species by sacrificing two of their own, only to have the hatchlings from their eggs all become deformed, insane beings twisted by the power of purgatory. The Iron Dragon subspecies was essentially functionally extinct.
The supreme dragon of the Iron Dragon race can only be the Primordial Iron Dragon. Therefore, the only normal new generation Iron Dragon, Casaloz, is naturally the only successor to the supreme dragon. The false prophecy is equivalent to the truth.
"So, why did those surviving ancient dragons, archdragons, and primordial dragons stir up this prophecy controversy? What good will it do me, the sole heir, besides putting me on the fire?" Casaroz clicked its beak, narrowing its eyelids slightly, harboring some very bad thoughts.
“It’s no good for you, but what about for them?” Although reluctant, Fiona confirmed Casalos’s inner thoughts.
You're a traitor from the Iron Dragon family, and the Iron Dragons are practically extinct. You're just a fledgling dragon trying to claim the title of Supreme Dragon? Only the Iron Dragon can become the Supreme Dragon among the sub-Iron Dragons? What makes you think that? Do you really think we, the other subspecies of ancient dragon overlords, are pushovers...?
"Fortunately, not all ancient dragons want to become the ruler of the sub-dragons, and those dragons with ambitions also encounter considerable resistance. Without the restraint of the Supreme Dragon, it is not easy to make another family submit to them, let alone other sub-races."
Fiona lowered her head, her spiked tail thrashing nervously. There were already few survivors left—just a handful of ancient dragon overlords and elder dragons-elders—and they were embroiled in internal power struggles. Did the Atheros really have a future?
156. Intersecting trajectories
From Casalos's God-like perspective, the Aetherian race certainly has a future. Toril is merely a planet within the Celestial Sphere, and the Aetherian race thrives on other planets in the Celestial Sphere. Not to mention, the Nine-Headed Dragon God Io has sown the seeds of dragons in countless worlds across the multiverse, and on the Blood Isles of Io, the core world of the multiverse's dragon race, all dragon sub-races are incredibly prosperous.
But what does that have to do with the Atheros of Toril-Forgotten Realms? Since things have come to this, let's deal with the immediate problem first.
In short, the remaining overlords and promising ancient dragons of the Argentinian race stirred up a prophetic storm in their power struggle, putting Casalos in the fire while engaging in several battles among themselves, followed by several air raids and attacks by armies of otherworldly colored dragons. The four surviving Argentinian overlords from the Holy Land War all perished, and the number of ancient dragons plummeted to single digits… The Argentinian survivors, who had finally managed to reunite, ultimately disintegrated. The few remaining overlords and ancient dragons each went into hiding with their followers to recuperate. Meanwhile, the vast majority of the Argentinian survivors, the young Argentinians who lost their clans and families in the Holy Land War, became wandering ghosts on the continent of Faerûn, only able to continue hiding in humanoid communities thanks to the final gifts of the old supreme dragon.
Chapter 222
During the meeting, they awaited their demise.
Having lost faith in the ancient dragon overlords, Fiona, along with Lothley, shifted their focus to their humanoid identities while simultaneously searching the continent for Casaroz's whereabouts—since the traitorous new supreme dragon had made such a prophecy, it meant that Casaroz was at least still alive.
Casalos fled into the Underdark following the lava flow to escape the green dragon's pursuit, and Fiona searched for him for several years without success. Fortunately, as a young dragon, Fiona had begun to get used to the time perception that dragons, as long-lived species, should have. Several years was not a long time, and she never gave up.
News of a young Iron Dragon toying with Balagas "Flying Flame" in aerial combat spread like wildfire, and Fiona naturally heard about it as well.
Iron Dragon, and the age matched—who else could it be but Casaloz? Fiona then led Lothley towards the Dragon Coast. En route, news arrived of the Iron Dragon wreaking havoc in Westgate, further solidifying her belief that her target was correct. Unfortunately, despite her haste, she was too late; by the time Fiona arrived at Westgate, Casaloz had already departed. Then came the news of the Iron Dragon, Fang Dragon, and Bronze Dragon killing the Ancient Red Dragon that occupied the ruins of Mysdrano. When Fiona reached Mysdrano, Casaloz had once again vanished from the sight of Faerûn, only to reappear months later, suddenly leading a group of young sub-Iron Dragons to join the war against the Witch-King's invasion of the Land of the Strange.
Fiona, a rising star within the Harpists' Alliance, a dragon herself, and blessed by the gods, naturally attracted the attention of the Harpist Masters. After her fruitless search for Casalos in the ruins of Mysdrano, she accepted an invitation from a Harpist Master to undergo secret training in Silvermoon City, thus missing the golden opportunity to meet Casalos. By the time she completed her training, received the news, and arrived in Damara, Casalos was already engrossed in a fierce battle with Grommash Hellscream in the Dragon Vault, wandering aimlessly in the high skies for a very long time.
The tungsten dragon, who had been wandering the world with the chrome dragon, only encountered Kara and Azuthemis. To the dragon's dismay, the young anaerobic dragon and the geese dragon also could not contact Casalos.
With Casaloz nowhere to be found, Fiona, fulfilling her duties as a paladin and member of the Harpist Alliance, resolutely joined the war in Damara. The settlement of a group of young athelian dragons had an effect; more and more lone wolf athelian dragons who had lost the protection of their families and clans began to try to join this new group in Damara after hearing the news.
Perhaps these young remnants of the Atheros were not of interest to Chassa, or perhaps Damara's plans to return to Faerûn with Bahamut and Tiamat could not be affected. In any case, it did not launch any more attacks on the siege by the army of otherworldly colored dragons. Only a few colored dragons joined the expedition as individuals, fighting back and forth with Damara's Atheros.
Years passed, and the method of flight, which was more in line with dragons' instincts, had become widely known, just as Casalos had predicted. This technique wasn't particularly secret; as long as one could control their instincts, any dragon could learn it after a few glances.
It was only then that Casalos remembered that when the golden dragon Prishdu guided the Kingdom to its landing, it didn't swim like an ordinary golden dragon, but instead fully extended its ribbon-like wings and "glided" all the way. If it hadn't suffered severe mental damage, it would have noticed this much earlier.
In short, with the intervention of multiple forces, the war in Damara is in a strange state of equilibrium. Fiona arrived in the Border Forest with the Harpists Alliance when the old golden dragon issued a summons, and finally met Casalos, who came with the Kingdom.
Fiona also brought Casaroz both good news and bad news. The good news was that the old Iron Dragon, Kuitamiz, Casaroz's biological mother, was still alive, but that was all.
During the battle in the Holy Land, Kuitamiz suffered a backlash from the Lock of Confusion. He regained consciousness in time during the fall, but happened to run into Chassa, who was flying in the sky overlooking the battlefield. He was hit by a spell cast by Chassa along his wing and was seriously injured. Kuitamiz was later rescued by the Primordial Tungsten Dragon and teleported out of the Holy Land.
The bad news is that the infernal power carried by the Chassa spell has completely invaded Quetamiz's body, damaging her bodily functions and eroding her life. After escaping, Quetamiz spends most of her time in a coma, and her condition deteriorates over time. Now, she's lucky if she's conscious for three days a month.
Chassa possesses divine power, and the remnants of its purgatory power are beyond the reach of mortals to eliminate; the fate of Quetamiz is already sealed.
"Mother……"
Casalos sat upright on a hilltop, staring blankly in the direction Fiona was pointing.
Because of the coincidence of its birth, Casaloz had never seen its parents since hatching. It originally thought that it was destined to be an orphan like the other predecessors who transmigrated into dragons, but it did not expect that Quetamiz was still alive, which was indeed good news.
“After things are settled here, I’ll take you to see Auntie, although she might not be able to wake up.” Fiona walked to Casalos’s side, gently rubbing her long neck against Casalos’s back.
"I will bring my mother back safely to the Darklands Dragon Territory and find a way to cure her."
“That is divine power, Casalos.”
"I know, but even divine power isn't invincible..."
157. The conference begins.
Casalos did indeed have the urge to abandon everything and head straight for Daenerys Targaryen.
Although it had never met the Dragon Mother Quetz, the lullaby it heard while still half-conscious inside the dragon egg, the dragon magic that constantly provided it with warmth and nourishment, the piles of metal ore after it hatched, and Fiona's care were all undeniable. All of these silently spoke of the Dragon Mother's love and care for it.
Even the chaotic red dragon has feelings, let alone the iron dragon, which strictly adheres to order and always builds its social relationships around family units. Casalos is grateful to the Dragon Mother, and also harbors some curiosity and fantasies, but its experiences and the nature of dragons prevent it from showing these feelings to the outside world.
But since Daenerys was still alive... Fiona managed to dissuade it from its impulse.
Although Quetzmitz's condition is poor, she will at least not suddenly pass away before her next intergenerational slumber. Fiona has hidden her well and left reliable dragon servants to take meticulous care of her. Casalos still has decades to meet her, to get to know and become familiar with this mother he has never met. Whether he tries treatment or accompanies her through her final moments, there is plenty of time.
The most pressing matter right now is the summoning of a large number of dragons by the old Golden Dragon—this is a direct warning from Tom, Fiona's guardian god: if the old Golden Dragon fails, the entire continent of Faerûn will be plunged into disaster. The Dragon Mother hidden by Fiona, the young Athena dragons of Damara, Toona and Razortooth of Sword Coast, and even the dragon lords as far away as the Thurte Peninsula and the Underdark will all be affected.
Well, another world-ending catastrophe.
Casalos found it strange that, apart from the magical ship, the Kingdom, it couldn't recall any information related to this catastrophe, which had been confirmed by the gods themselves. Not only was it absent from the secondhand modules translated in its previous life, but this apocalyptic disaster didn't even appear in the Kingdom's grand historical timeline. Could this mean that in the original timeline, the old golden dragon's efforts were successful, perfectly preventing the impending catastrophe?
The Forgotten Realms timeline isn't significantly affected by Casalos's "little butterfly wings" yet, and the Tournament of Dragons and what follows are unlikely to change much. So ignoring it probably won't cause any major problems... but who can say for sure?
Besides, since it's already here, it's not bad to contribute to the peace and stability of Faerûn, as it will eventually live on this land.
Furthermore, the Golden Dragon Drakornobaren family, the Claw of Justice, the future Silvermoon Dragon Queen, the Blue Dragonflight Overlord of the Enoch Desert, and the members of the Kingdom all possess extremely valuable faction reputation.
Chapter 223
It's often said that the martial arts world isn't just about fighting and killing, but about human relationships and social interactions; swords and magic, dragons, and taxis aren't really that different...
During the two-day wait, two small blue dragon families from the Enoch Desert, three brass dragon families, three green dragons from the Border Forest, and two black dragons joined the fray. A scroll dragon, appearing out of nowhere, briefly showed itself before disappearing again, presumably to silently observe and record this grand dragon gathering. All sorts of dragons crowded the small valley, with the chaotic mix of red, brass, and copper dragons occasionally erupting into inexplicable conflicts. Even with the gold dragon's intervention, the fighting would still create howling winds and earth-shaking tremors. The crew of the Kingdom and the Harpist Alliance members huddled numbly in the encampment assigned to them by the gold dragon, a far cry from their youthful vigor and passion.
The conference finally took place as scheduled. After a boring opening speech, the ancient golden dragon Drakornobaren, who organized the event, invited its detective, the sun elf Valtan Hay Sylva, to give a full and detailed account of the investigation process and results.
"They only assassinated adult dragons, regardless of species. After killing the dragons, they only took the heads. It does sound like a terrible ritual." After listening to the sun elves' account, the blue dragon lord Sustherhiras spoke first: "But I don't see how this has to do with us. Drakor, it's just a few dragons that died. Is it really necessary to make such a fuss?"
“Yes, you arrogant golden dragons are just too nervous. This is probably some last bastard from Netheril causing trouble again. In no time, those seven crazy women will have them all wiped out. Why did you invite us all here?” Crimson Flood Nagast continued the Blue Dragon Lord’s words with a sarcastic tone: “You’re probably trying to set a trap for us, aren’t you?”
As soon as it finished speaking, the dragons started arguing noisily, each offering their own opinion. The metal dragon wasn't worried about what the gold dragon might do, but the colorful dragons present had always had this concern. Crimson wasn't even on the old gold dragon's invitation list; its purpose was simply to watch the show and, if the opportunity arose, cause some trouble.
"Silence!" Dracol suddenly spread his wings, whipping up a storm that swept across the valley, unleashing his full dragon might. As the highest existence in the Prime Material Plane, the Primordial Golden Dragon possessed immense power, even ordinary Primordial Red Dragons would find it difficult to withstand its might. Moreover, there were only a few Primordial Dragons present. With the old golden dragon enraged, the hall fell silent.
"I foresee something bad." It folded its wings back and calmly explained its motives: "What is about to happen is a great catastrophe. Indeed, under normal circumstances, the chosen ones of the Goddess of Magic, and those master harpists, should have already intervened, but as you have seen..."
Old Golden Dragon turned his head toward the Harpists' Alliance. The strongest among them was only at the Exemplar level, and any random young dragon was probably stronger than them. Don't be fooled by how level 10 or so PCs can slay gods and demons in tabletop games; that's all because there are many loopholes in the rules of the tabletop game, and it has nothing to do with the strength of the real world.
“Elminster is not in Faerûn right now. The red dragons of the Moonsea killed Hiron during their migration. Storm is meddling in the affairs of the nobles of the City of Glory. Archmage Kelburn, Queen Simb, and Lady Silvermoon are all tied up with their own complicated matters. Do you really expect to rely on these two-legged sheep?”
Casalos chuckled; this old female dragon was quite interesting.
"Unfortunately, although I foresaw something from the opportunities, I couldn't see it clearly—the decline of prophecy and the magic of opportunities has lasted for hundreds of years, as you should all be well aware of. That's why I've gathered you here to discuss and search for that mysterious guidance."
"I know you won't believe it, so I need you to come and witness the truth with your own eyes." The old golden dragon spewed long streams of flame from its nostrils, its molten gold eyes turning to the sun elf: "Come and hear the answer given by a true god!"
158. Abnormal
Old Jinlong wants to invite the gods.
Casalos turned to look at Fiona beside him: "Given the current situation in the kingdom, it seems that no dragon god will pay attention to the golden dragon. Who is the old golden dragon planning to invite? Could it be that it, like Fiona, has also been inspired by a human god or an elf god?"
It was half right; the old golden dragon indeed received no response from the dragon god. The millennium-long war between dragons and giants tens of thousands of years ago made the dragons reflect on the necessity of the dragon god, and they ultimately decided to abandon their faith in the dragon god, only worshipping the dragon god as a role model for their race—which was exactly what the dragon gods hoped for—thus beginning the era of dragon civilization, and the Faerûn cult of the dragon gods began to fall silent.
The dragon age of Post-Faerûn was destroyed by the dragons themselves in wave after wave of dragon frenzy. The dragons that exist today have long forgotten the civilization and glory of that era, but their attitude toward the dragon gods remains unchanged. There is only reverence but no connection forged by devout faith, so it is naturally no longer possible to invoke the dragon gods.
However, the old golden dragon did not intend to invoke the god himself. It gazed at the sun elf Valtan Hay Sylva, and upon receiving a nod of approval, declared a temporary recess to await the god's arrival. Invoking the god was a significant matter, and the dragonflight naturally had no objections. The sun elf then withdrew, burned incense, bathed, and changed into a set of finely crafted, light-colored grey robes. The front and back of the robes were embroidered with a semi-circular golden disc carved into a sunset, from which sunlight filtered through the dappled light filtering through the trees, shimmering in the deep red, purple, and orange hues of the sunset's afterglow.
As the sun set, the dragons, their followers, and the harpists reunited in the valley, surrounding the sun elves in deep prayer.
The prayer was chanted from the mouth of the sun elf, and the slowly setting sun, like the holy emblem on the sun elf's robe, was half-hidden behind the dragon's spine mountain range. The sky was dyed with the glow revealed by the robe, and a sacred and magnificent aura spread out, sweeping over the dragons. Even the ancient golden dragon couldn't help but hold its breath and put down its arrogance.
A huge, strong white stag emerged halfway from the rosy light, glanced down at the assembled dragons and the sun elf kneeling in prayer, then strode joyfully to the ground. The divine light emanating from its body was like a torch, and Casaroz felt a warmth. His nearly shattered spirit and dragon soul seemed to bond together more tightly—the Dragon Treasury seemed to have stolen something back from this unique divine light, but Casaroz couldn't figure it out, and the true source of the light remained oblivious.
As the white stag landed, the being who bestowed divinity upon it appeared out of thin air. It was a silver-haired elf clad in magnificent robes of blue, green, white, and gray, possessing characteristics of both male and female elves. One eye was covered by an eyepatch, while the remaining eye held a constantly swirling gray mist, like a vortex swallowing both the future and the past. A dazzling yet obscure holy light emanated from it.
Raberas Ennoris, giver of life to all children of Corilon, lord of the Continuum, sage at sunset.
The one-eyed deity stood before the kneeling sun elf, surrounded by a horde of dragons, his tiny body seemingly more imposing than the dragons themselves. He looked down upon the dragons and spoke calmly: "You do have some brains."
If these words had come from a mortal, they would have been a blatant insult to the dragon. However, under the influence of divine power, even the proud golden dragon could not voice any objection, instead taking it as praise, a personal compliment from a deity.
Whether it was the influence of the primordial power or the Dragon Treasury's recent habit of stealing divine power at every turn, Casalos had a particular feeling: it seems that all the gods before the turmoil were like this! Mortal beings were merely playthings for the gods to amuse themselves, and the chosen ones were just pawns that were occasionally chosen by them.
Vartan was able to successfully invoke the incarnation of Rabelas not because he was one of His chosen people, but because the impending events were a headache even for the gods.
"The answer you seek lies to the west. Go, fly over the forest, fly into the wastelands of Eta, and you will see it all."
Chapter 224
The source of it all!
"Damn the riddle master," Casalos cursed inwardly, only to find the dragons already spreading their wings, stirring up a chaotic storm as they soared into the sky, turning towards the direction the god had indicated. This included the ancient red dragon Crimson, who would never even acknowledge the elven god.
Charm spell, a charm spell of divine power!
All the dragons were conscious, but none of them realized they were being influenced, and they would never even question it—isn't it normal to take the advice of a god?
Only Casalos remained conscious under the influence of the Dragon Vault or the Primal Force, but it could not show it and could only take off with the dragon flock, flying together towards the Enoch Desert.