After feeling the information of the tree spirit in the inherited memory, I withdrew from my thoughts.
The branch of the tree spirit contained a lot of the original life breath of the tree spirit. Next to these two most important samples were the huge body of a Chimera, as well as the corpses of various natives in the magic forest, such as the half goat and others.
These were all "food" that I took from my own followers. For creatures like them, it was very normal to use the corpses of enemy soldiers as food on the battlefield.
Even the corpses of companions would not be spared. After all, waste is shameful. If they didn't eat them, would they bury or burn them like humans?
Isn't that a mental illness?
In fact, this is the thinking and living habit of most dark creatures. The habit of eating intelligent creatures is also one of the reasons why they are classified as evil creatures.
But I did not correct their thoughts. This is the rule of this world, which has existed since the existence of these creatures.
Soon, I adjusted my state as before and ordered the half-dragon Tuersen to be my guard. The other followers temporarily stopped expanding and followed to guard the core palace.
"Tuersen, any creature that attempts to enter the palace will be killed without mercy!" I looked down at Tuersen in front of me.
"Yes, Lord!"
Tuersen leaned over and replied. Due to his increased size, he could not kneel on one knee like before but could only bow down to salute.
As the heavy palace door closed, Tuersen was also very excited. He knew that Lord Barbatos's sleep was different from other true dragons.
Every time after sleeping, there would be an increase in strength. Tuersen did not think about anything else. He only knew that it would be the best result if Lord Barbatos became stronger.
Some priests from the surrounding clans also set up some warning defense magic around the palace to prevent creatures without eyes from disturbing it.
In the palace, I looked at the food in front of me and began to devour it silently. I wanted to become stronger!
---
In a swamp in the Sunset Mountains, two little black dragons that weren't as little as before were gnawing on the body of a Swift Wolf, and blood flowed down Emilia's mouth.
The changes in the two of them were obvious. The first was the change in body size. Among the two big dragons, Hannah was already a little over 14 meters in size.
And Emilia was nearly 16 meters in length. Unlike their brother, the appearance of the two of them was that of completely normal black dragons.
The black scales before also began to turn gray, and bones began to grow out of their heads in a fan shape, just like a skeletal dragon.
"Haha, I didn't expect Brother to be so... He didn't even notice us and went to sleep. Besides, that idiot is now on guard. No one dares to take care of us now!"
Emilia's fingers danced over the small magic beast crystals in her grasp, a satisfied smile playing on her lips. The weight of exhaustion from their grueling training under that damned half-dragon still lingered in her muscles, but for once, she reveled in the moment of respite.
They had endured relentless drills, honed their combat prowess, and then plunged into the depths of battle alongside other dragons—clashing against the forces of the Sea Races. Waves churned with war, the sky painted with the fury of dragons and the defiance of the ocean's denizens. Yet now, the tide of conquest had slowed.
Most of the Black King's aquatic forces had withdrawn, their focus shifting to guarding the teleportation formation to the Ghost Plane in the South Sea on an island. With the frontline stabilized, Emilia and Hannah had returned.
But unlike most dragons, they were not bound by strict command.
By virtue of their bloodline—sisters of the Black King himself—they moved with a level of autonomy few could ever dream of. Where others obeyed orders without question, they carved their own path.
And now they were back in training by the half-dragon.
Sometimes, when they were sleeping, that guy would drive a few magic beasts to make a surprise attack under the pretext of training their survival ability. Emilia was angry and used her dragon power to intimidate the other party several times, but the half-dragon didn't buy it.
The dragon power of that little dragon was not even one percent of the Black King's. Tuersen also knew the limit and never put them in danger.
Ultimately, she was the biological daughter of Lord Barbatos. However, it can be argued that every dragon in Castle Black is considered his offspring due to the presence of his void blood in their veins, except for a few.
But sometimes, as a punishment, he would personally practice with these two gals, and they were always bruised and battered, especially the unruly Emilia.
"Hannah, what do you think about the two of us leaving here to expand the territory?" Emilia suddenly asked.
"I don't want to go. It's too dangerous!" Hannah rejected the proposal.
"You are stupid. Now that Brother is asleep, we should take this opportunity to help him conquer more territory and let these fools know how powerful we are. Otherwise, they will only know that their master is Brother Barbatos and forget about us two Black Dragon Princesses!" Emilia said proudly.
Hannah was a little speechless. She thought Emilia was going to conquer the territory by herself, but she didn't expect that the real purpose was to please Brother.
Emilia still always called herself the Black Dragon Princess as if she were really Barbatos's child.
From the fact that she had been abused so many times and had never denied her identity, it could be seen that she cared about this identity.
This made Hannah very uncomfortable with the current Emilia...
---
While Barbatos was sleeping, the situation around him was extremely complicated.
At this time, in the magnificent palace in the capital of the Kingdom of Del,
Laysa was sitting on the throne and looking at the envoys below.
"Dear Queen of Del, you should know clearly that the Black Dragon has been constantly expanding its territory. Sooner or later, it will extend its claws into our territory. For the future stability of our Seven Kingdoms, please lead the Kingdom of Del to join our coalition!" a noble envoy dressed in luxurious clothes said confidently.
Laysa was mocking the other party's proposal. Their ridiculous and loose alliance was a joke in front of the Black King.
After all, no human knew how terrifying the Black Dragon was better than herself.
"Duke Tarax, don't you think that even the Holy Guardian Unicorn was defeated by the Black Dragon and the Magic Forest was completely wiped out? Moreover, he has hundreds of thousands of Black Dragon monsters under his command as only the vanguard. Legend has it that there are also many dragons enslaved by him. How can we deal with him? Do we have to use the lives of our soldiers and civilians to feed the Black Dragons and Black Dragon monsters?" Laysa looked at him with her luxurious cane.
"This..."
The messenger below was also a little uncomfortable. Their joint army had been invited many times, but Queen Del in front of them was unmoved. Could it be that Queen Del had really surrendered to the Black Dragon as rumored?
"Your Majesty, while the Black Dragon commands power, it is the Chromatic Dragons who pose the greatest threat. Their greed is insatiable, their cunning boundless. As long as they hold strength, they will stop at nothing to hoard wealth, expand their dominion, and tighten their grip over the world.
Look at the Crimson Tide—they surge forward with unstoppable force, claiming land as if it were their birthright. And the so-called great powers? They do nothing but flee, retreating like frightened prey. To them, we are insignificant—mere obstacles in their inevitable conquest. Sooner or later, they will come, driven by their unrelenting hunger, and when they do, they will not come alone. The Crimson Tide, the Black Tide, and the great players of the world will all converge upon us, and if we stand divided, we will be devoured in the storm of war.
Albit has already fallen to the Barbarine King, one of the great powers, a third-level legend whose ambitions stretch far beyond his current domain. Soon, he will cast his shadow over the Seven Kingdoms, tightening the noose, leaving us with no escape. If we do not act now—if we do not unite—then we will follow in the footsteps of Sarania, a shattered kingdom lost to history. The choice is ours: stand together or perish alone," the messenger tried to continue persuading.
"If you have no means to stand against the Black Dragon, then whether I join you or not is meaningless. If the Black Dragon, the Crimson Mother, or the so-called great powers decide to descend upon us, then so be it. Let them come.
We are but fleeting sparks in the storm, yet even the mightiest tempest cannot snuff out the will to live. Here, at least, we have moments of peace, days of quiet happiness before the inevitable and is that not the essence of existence? To cherish what little time we have, to stand unbowed even when the heavens themselves threaten to collapse upon us? If the end comes, let it find us unshaken—not as desperate souls scrambling for salvation, but as those who have lived, fought, and embraced their fate with open eyes and unbroken spirits."
"We can study its weaknesses together and finally solve it in a targeted way. The greatest weapon we humans possess is our own wisdom..."
But Laysa waved her hand dismissively. "Send this messenger out of the palace!"
Two warriors in heavy armor entered and made a gesture of invitation, but the messenger knew that if he did not leave, they would force him out.
Laysa did not believe a word of the empty rhetoric the messenger had just spoken.
In the presence of the gods of the skies, the so-called wisdom of humans was laughable. And did they truly believe that dragons were nothing more than powerful beasts lacking intelligence? Adventure novels were beautiful, but reality was cruel.
It was said that red dragons had no brains, but that was because they were too powerful, too arrogant. They disdained conspiracies and tricks, preferring instead to burn their enemies to death with their own dragon flames.
"Your Majesty Laysa, we actually have a plan!" the messenger gritted his teeth and said suddenly.
"What plan?" Laysa's interest was piqued.
"You must join us. We can reveal the specific content and strategy after signing the contract!" said the messenger.
"Send him away. I need time to think about it," said Laysa.
She planned to drag things out, exhaust the other party's patience, and extract more information.
As for signing a contract? That was impossible. She lived comfortably under the Black Dragon's rule. The last time, some of the inheritance of the Sarania Kingdom had caused the Del Kingdom significant losses.
How could they possibly stand against the Black Dragon? The stronger he became, the better it was for them—and that was precisely what they needed. Let the Crimson Tide surge, let the so-called great powers make their moves. None of it mattered.
She and her kingdom stood under the shadow of the Black King, a force beyond reckoning. Even in the worst-case scenario—if the Crimson Mother herself claimed victory—she would have no reason to challenge the Black King's domain. Some battles were fought between gods and monsters, while the pawns merely watched and endured.
The messenger had no choice but to retreat for now, planning to approach the matter again later.
---
At this time, outside Sunset Place, the silver dragon Jesinia was sitting by a river with the pixie Suna.
Gazing at the beautiful reflection in the water, Pixie Suna couldn't help but exclaim, "Jesinia, you are so beautiful!"
Since their last meeting, Pixie Suna had been following Jesinia, and the silver dragon had grown fond of the tiny creature.
At that moment, a tall man in a black cloak approached from behind Jesinia. She was not surprised. Turning around, she greeted him, "Barris, you're here."
The cloaked man removed his mask and cloak, revealing his features—a resolute middle-aged man with khaki-colored hair.
"Jesinia, I came as soon as I received your message. Is the Black Dragon truly that powerful?"
"Barris, though I don't want to admit it, I suspect that his strength has at the very least reached the level of an ancient dragon of legend,It seems to be level four, but I cannot be entirely sure as his breath and aura are quite challenging to interpret." Jesinia extended her hand and used magic to outline the Black King's appearance.
Barris furrowed his brow as he scrutinized the image before him, his voice laced with doubt.
"Why would a Legend Level Four remain in hiding for so long, only to emerge now? Perhaps you're mistaken. His immense size could be the result of an ancient time spell beyond your detection—that would explain why you can't decipher his breath or aura. And you know as well as I do that the Tal Plane could never produce three Epic-level beings within a mere hundred thousand years. That is beyond improbable—it is outright impossible!"
His gaze darkened as he recalled his past. "In my youth, I journeyed across the continents and even walked the lands of other realms. I have seen black dragons in the Material Planes, studied their kind, fought them even. But this one... this one is nothing like any black dragon I have ever encountered."
"Maybe you are right but it's definitely not a black dragon?" Jesinia knew that when Barris had just come of age and begun traveling the planes, he had encountered a mature black dragon. Yet, Barris had defeated the dragon head-on, using the powerful body and magic of a brass dragon. That alone was proof that his words carried weight.
"I'll see it myself!" Barris declared, preparing to leave.
Jesinia immediately stopped him and shared her suspicions.
"Damn it!" Barris muttered, feeling puzzled.
How could a silver dragon fall in love with an evil dragon? And be so devoted to him?
How had this damn guy done it?
Silver dragons were deeply committed to their emotions. Once they fell in love, they were practically hopeless. More than a hundred years ago, there had been a foolish silver dragon on Dragon Island who had fallen in love with a human. When the human reached the end of his life, the silver dragon had attempted to share his lifespan with him.
Such a thing was forbidden—not just by the Chromatic Dragons but also by the Metallic Dragons. The majesty of a true dragon could not be challenged.
In the end, the magic had been interrupted, the human had died of old age, and the foolish silver dragon had been forcibly taken back to Dragon Island and imprisoned...
Barris shook off the memory.
"According to the intelligence I've gathered over the past two days, the Black Dragon has fallen into a deep sleep. We can take this opportunity to act," Jesinia said.
"I won't attack the Black Dragon while he sleeps," Barris stated firmly. As a true dragon, he had his pride. What honor was there in attacking someone in their slumber?
"I mean we can find the Geraint siblings, examine their contract, and then make a decision," Jesinia said, a little exasperated. Did he really think she was that devious and shameless?
"Then let's find Geraint and Algerta first, and then we'll discuss matters with the Black Dragon," said Barris.
Jesinia sighed, sensing that Barris still didn't take the Black Dragon seriously and she can understand all that, as even she wouldn't believe herself if she had said the same thing to her past self. He wouldn't believe it unless he himself sees him feel that feeling of oppression..
But she had already done what she could. And explained it the best she could! How things would develop in the future was uncertain, and true dragon slumbers lasted for years. Perhaps this entire matter would be resolved long before he awoke...
With that, the two dragons and one pixie set off toward the distant Sunset Place.
---
Meanwhile, in the palace hall of the Del Kingdom, the envoys of the seven nations had gathered once more.
"Your Majesty Laysa, according to reliable sources, the Black Dragon has fallen into a deep sleep. Our opportunity has arrived!" an envoy said excitedly.
"A dragon that falls asleep never wakes? A sleeping dragon is not a dragon but a sheep?" Laysa said impatiently.
This man had been evasive long enough. It seemed she would have to force his hand.
The messenger gritted his teeth and said, "In fact, our seven nations have already found a way to deal with the Black Dragon!"
"What method?" Finally, something of interest.
Laysa appeared calm, but internally, she was already on high alert.
Her chance to infiltrate the enemy and gather intelligence had arrived.
"Angel..."
The messenger uttered a single word.
"Angel!" Laysa clenched the scepter in her hand.
---
Regardless of what was happening in the outside world, the Black King had few thoughts at this moment.
He had entered a deep transformation state. The materials this time were exceptionally potent, making the process unusually comfortable.
As time passed, I opened my scarlet eyes in the palace of Sunset Place nearly one month later.
In the dimly lit palace, a massive figure rose, the scarlet eyes on its three heads opening one after another. I shook my head, feeling an odd discomfort.
This transformation was far more significant than any previous one. I stretched my wings and examined myself. This time, my body had successfully surpassed the 80-meter threshold, reaching a terrifying 81 meters.
*****
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