Chapter 423: Dragon Kingdom
With humanity's current population base,
it's not impossible for the entire nation to take up arms in desperation.
Although ordinary soldiers would just be cannon fodder,
millions of ants could still bury a god-level powerhouse.
If humanity was truly pushed to that extent,
then the Demon Race would probably need to mobilize the reserve forces of the Demon Continent to secure final victory.
But such a victory wasn't what Li Meng wanted.
A South Continent reduced to ruins would be worthless to Li Meng.
"Forget it. From now on, I'll only use physical strength and brute-force fighting aura."
Muttering to himself, Li Meng continued walking forward.
Although his body was gradually breaking down under the power of the Mad God,
fortunately, his flesh was continuously strengthening due to the presence of the Blood Moon.
As long as he bathed under the Blood Moon,
all the flesh and souls it devoured would be transferred to him.
As his body grew stronger, the rate of collapse would also slow down.
Brute-force fighting aura came from the Divine Child skill.
And the Divine Child skill resembled more a type of authority; it didn't consume magic power.
Authority consumed soul power, that is, spiritual strength.
"No worries. I'll just control my strength."
As the words fell, the space ahead suddenly shattered.
Li Meng stepped into a spatial rift that resembled a black hole.
---
South Continent.
Dragon Kingdom.
Capital city, Dragon King City.
The Dragon Kingdom was located at the northeast corner of the South Continent.
Its national territory was vast and boundless.
The longest distance from north to south was over five thousand kilometers.
From east to west, it stretched more than three thousand kilometers.
As the capital, Dragon King City was also a prosperous port city.
Dragon King City was built on a small island about three kilometers from the coastline.
It was connected to the mainland by a long stone bridge.
The bridge was named "Dragon Gate Bridge."
It was now afternoon.
Today, Dragon King City was bathed in bright sunlight, thriving as usual.
Looking down from the sky,
one could see the vast Dragon King City occupying every inch of the small island.
The coastline was completely encircled by tall city walls.
Beyond the walls stretched neat rows of red-roofed houses.
Outside the city, Dragon Gate Bridge was bustling with traffic.
Countless beast-drawn carriages dashed across the bridge.
The Dragon Gate Bridge was wide enough to accommodate six carriages side by side.
Besides the carriages, there were also numerous pedestrians.
Some were ordinary people coming and going from Dragon King City.
They moved in groups along both sides of the bridge.
Others were adventurers riding dodo birds.
The prosperity of Dragon King City couldn't be separated from the dungeon "Roar of the Sea Dragon King."
As a dungeon rated beyond S-level in difficulty,
"Roar of the Sea Dragon King" attracted a massive influx of adventurers each year.
The arrival of adventurers boosted the economy.
The booming economy gradually turned Dragon King City into a major seaport.
"So lively!"
On the street leading into the city, a teenage boy was walking while looking around curiously.
The boy was none other than Li Meng.
The bustling streets filled Li Meng with a sense of ordinary, everyday life.
"So these are the Dragonkin?"
Li Meng curiously examined the Dragonkin passing by.
Dragonkin closely resembled Drakonids.
They had dragon horns on their heads
and sharp, light-golden pupils.
The only difference from Drakonids was the addition of a lizard-like tail.
Drakonids seemed like a degraded version of Dragonkin.
Other than that, they didn't differ much from humans.
"Smells so good!"
The rich aroma of meat wafted through the air, enticing Li Meng to glance toward the roadside shops.
He stopped in front of a barbecue stall.
The dazzling array of ingredients made it hard for Li Meng to choose.
"Boss, ten portions of each item!"
The boss, who was grilling meat, froze for a moment.
He stared at the boy in disbelief.
"Kid, you sure?"
Li Meng sat down at a table outside the shop.
"Hurry up, I'm starving!"
The boss smiled and shook his head.
"Alright, just a moment."
Another big-eater who would probably stop after a few bites.
Let him eat; when he couldn't finish, he'd naturally stop.
"Here's ten portions of grilled Black Rock Fish!"
Before long, the boss brought over ten portions of grilled Black Rock Fish.
The Black Rock Fish was a small fish, each about the size of a palm.
The boss had made a good profit off these.
The fish meat was golden and flavorful.
The rich aroma instantly boosted Li Meng's appetite.
He picked up a grilled fish and started chomping.
The crispy skin and tender meat made Li Meng's eyes light up.
"Totally worth coming here!"
Thinking this, Li Meng happily continued eating.
"Here's ten portions of Reef Clams!"
As Li Meng finished five Black Rock Fish, the boss brought over ten portions of Reef Clams.
The Reef Clams resembled river mussels from Earth,
but the meat was golden, plump, and pure.
Li Meng grabbed a clam and sucked the tender meat into his mouth.
The unique flavor made his eyes brighten.
"Golden Octopus, ten portions!"
"Yellow Eel, ten portions!"
"Dragon Snake Meat, ten portions!"
"Rock Crab Meat, ten portions!"
"Sea Cow Meat, ten portions!"
"Oh my god, how much can he eat?!"
As more and more grilled meats piled up on Li Meng's table,
other diners noticed this big eater.
No matter how much food the boss served, the boy kept eating.
Even though the table was stacked high with grilled meat,
the boy was devouring it at an astonishing pace.
And he didn't even look particularly muscular.
After eating so much, his stomach hadn't changed at all.
The barbecue boss was also dumbfounded by the boy's appetite.
Nearly twenty people's worth of meat!
Where was all that food going in his small body?
Though strong professionals tended to have large appetites,
it usually didn't exceed five times that of an average person.
"Boss, do you have any alcohol?"
"Y-yes, barley wine!"
"Bring a bowl!"
"Coming up!"
The boss, a little flustered, hurried into the shop.
Considering the boy's monstrous appetite,
he simply brought out a half-meter-tall wine barrel and set it next to Li Meng.
"All yours, drink as much as you like!"
He also handed over a bowl and ladle.
Li Meng scooped a bowl and took a sip.
It was slightly sweet, rich with the aroma of barley.
The taste was similar to rice wine on Earth.
While Li Meng continued feasting,
several ragged, dirty children wandered over.
They stood about five meters away, eyeing the food hungrily.
But they didn't dare approach,
because the boss kept glaring at them as a warning not to disturb his customer.
"Grrr..."
The children's stomachs rumbled loudly.
One kid even clutched his stomach in pain and squatted on the ground.
The sound caught Li Meng's attention.
He turned to look at the little beggars.
Seeing their tattered clothes, Li Meng sighed inwardly.
No matter how prosperous a place was,
there would always be people who couldn't stay warm or fed.
Even modern Earth was like that,
let alone a medieval world.
Li Meng smiled and waved at the children.
His gesture made their eyes light up,
but they hesitated, afraid of the boss.
"Come on over!"
Li Meng encouraged them.
A little girl finally mustered her courage
and ran over to the table.
Li Meng looked her up and down, a trace of surprise flashing in his eyes.
Smiling, he turned to the boss, who looked a bit troubled.
"Boss, I'll buy all your remaining ingredients. Bring everything out!"
Hearing this, the boss's face lit up with a smile.
If a bunch of beggars dined at the tables,
it would definitely drive away other customers.
But if the big eater boy bought out the place, there was nothing to worry about.
Maybe he could even close early today.
"Alright!"
Seeing the other kids still hesitating,
the boss glared at them.
"What are you waiting for? Come sit down! You're lucky today to meet a kind customer!
Don't bother the guest, sit at an empty table!"
The boss's words sent the beggars rushing in excitedly.
They crowded around a table, faces full of joy.
A kind customer?
Li Meng chuckled and continued feasting.
"Big brother, thank you!"
The little girl blushed and shyly lowered her head.
Her voice reminded Li Meng she was still standing there.
"Go join your friends. Don't overeat. Take whatever you can't finish."
The little girl beamed and nodded gratefully.
Then she ran over to the other table.
In the following time, the boss got even busier.
Although most customers had left,
the little beggars and that teenage boy were not easy to serve.
Even if the beggars couldn't eat much,
the boy said they could pack leftovers.
Meaning he had to use up all the remaining ingredients.
"Easy now, don't eat yourselves to death. The guest said you could take the leftovers, but don't burst your bellies."
Seeing the beggars devouring the food,
the boss rolled his eyes.
Eating so fast they couldn't even taste the flavor—it was ruining his craft.
"Don't drink too much barley wine either; it hits hard later."
After a few warnings, the boss returned to the grill.
"Sorry, we're sold out for today!"
Later, many customers came,
but the boss turned them away.
"Boss, the bill!"
After eating for three hours, Li Meng was finally satisfied enough to leave.
Though he wasn't completely full,
he was tired of eating.
Even the best food would become cloying if eaten too much.
The boss walked over smiling.
"Young master, the total is 1,550 Dragon Silver Coins. I'll round it down to 1,500 for you."
Li Meng pulled out a Fire Crystal and tossed it to the boss.
The boss scrambled to catch the deep-red crystal.
Li Meng stood up and left with a big bag of barbecue.
Not far away, the little girl watched his departing figure with complicated emotions.
That big brother was special.
He had a pair of jet-black pupils.
Her ability didn't work on him.
Every time she looked into his eyes, her head hurt badly.
"I-is this a top-grade Fire Crystal?!"
The boss stared blankly at the flame-wrapped crystal.
It was only slightly bigger than a thumb,
but such a small piece of top-grade Fire Crystal was worth a fortune.
If sold to the Alchemists' Guild, it wouldn't fetch less than 1,000 Dragon Gold Coins.
That was 100,000 Dragon Silver Coins!
"Kids, I'll pack everything for you. Take it all!"
Jackpot!
The boss hadn't expected the boy to be so generous.
It was like a pie falling from the sky,
and it almost knocked him out.
Leaving the barbecue stall, Li Meng strolled casually down the street,
nibbling on the packed meat.
"Let's check out the Adventurers' Guild first!"
Li Meng thought to himself.
Xiao Bai said the mother dragon might be sleeping inside the "Roar of the Sea Dragon King" dungeon.
The mother dragon hadn't appeared for hundreds of years.
Only the royal family might know where she really was.
Li Meng glanced at the ground.
Dragon King City was built atop the dungeon.
From underground, he could sens
All dungeons originated from places where magic accumulated.
Magic accumulation was the basic condition for a dungeon to form.
[Master, that little girl is probably a Divine Child.]
Xiao Bai's voice suddenly sounded in his mind.
"Yeah, I know."
Li Meng had already noticed the Divine Child aura around the little girl at first glance.
Through system information, he also learned her Divine Child authority.
The little girl's authority was "Spirit Vision."
Although it had no combat power,
it could peer into people's hearts.
The little girl could retrieve memories by looking into someone's eyes.
[Right now, she's just a little beggar. Taking her would be easy.]
"Why should I take her?"
[Divine Child abilities are unique. They could be useful in the future.]
"Her authority is 'Spirit Vision,' pulling memories through eye contact. It's not very useful to me."
[She could become a Saintess for the Church of Light. It would greatly help its development.]
"Xiao Bai, it's terrifying if one person alone holds the truth."
If used well, "Spirit Vision" was indeed valuable.
But the girl herself was an unpredictable variable.
Divine Children like her rarely lived long.
Nobody liked having their secrets exposed.
Li Meng wouldn't kill her on purpose,
but he wouldn't keep her close either.
A normal, anonymous life was her best future.
Xiao Bai didn't argue further.
She never opposed her master's decisions.
The "Spirit Vision" authority was indeed awkward.
Throughout history, few Divine Children with "Spirit Vision" survived to adulthood.
Most died mysteriously when very young.
Many were even killed by their own parents.
"Xiao Bai, where's the Adventurers' Guild?"
[Just keep walking straight. You better take a beast-drawn carriage though; if you walk, you won't make it before dark.]
"Xiao Bai, have you been here before?"
[Yeah, I have seventeen split bodies operating in this city.]
Seventeen split bodies in Dragon King City?
Li Meng chewed on his barbecue, feeling speechless.
No wonder Xiao Bai lost her past memories.
Splitting meant splitting her soul.
With so many splits, no wonder her soul was in tatters,
and why she remembered almost nothing.