With the addition of defensive and offensive arrays all over the ship, they had constructed an adept's tower system that was immensely flawed but barely functional.
Moreover, under Greem's careful and detailed commands, the entirety of the ship's resources and workforce were being utilized in the most logical fashion possible, turning into the most powerful support for Uzzah as she fought!
However, as the battle between Uzzah and the Fourth Grade elven Sword Saint intensified, this simplified tower system was starting to endure increasingly frightening energy backlash.
Every single mighty clash between the two Fourth Grades could trigger partial energy countercurrents in the pipes. These ordinary metals couldn't endure the corrosion and impact of such fearsome magical energies. Large numbers of leaks were starting to appear all over the ship.
Continuous energy explosions rang out from the insides of the ship. The harsh environments instantly killed nearly half of the goblins within the vessel. The remaining goblin engineers and technicians could only hide within the magical golems to survive within these areas.
Greem had to split his attention to direct the construction machines, welding and sealing the increasing leaks on the metal pipes even as he carefully managed the energy system of the 'adept's tower' to provide Uzzah with the maximum support he was capable of.
The metal pipes that had been distorted by the explosion, and that had lost their reparation value, could only be substituted with another temporary pipe that had been constructed on the spot.
As the battle continued, such improvisations and modified pipes started to increase in number, and the efficiency of the energy system in conducting magical energy began to decrease. In the end, some areas with severe leaks had become so terrifying that even low-grade adepts didn't dare enter them.
Even they would have a pretty high chance of dying if they were to enter these areas.
…………
The explosions outside occasionally spread into the corridors of the dragon's den.
The mountain where the den was located would also tremble every so often, sending dust and pebbles down from above. The corridors were filled with the musty smell of earth and stone.
All the magical traps had been swept away already.
The weakened Alice had barely managed to enter the den while leaning upon the shoulders of the other Fate Witches.
In all honesty, the hall in which the dragons slept and rested would have been as crude and ugly as the dens of ogres were they not decorated with shiny coins and gemstones.
Broken stalagmites and black stone walls could be seen everywhere in the abnormally large and spacious hall. But strangely enough, no bugs, moss, or lichen could be found. The floor of the room was piled full of shining gold coins, along with assorted gemstones, weapons, armor, and magical equipment.
All the witches and adepts that entered the den were stunned by this brilliant sight. Their breaths halted for a moment as they were overwhelmed with excitement. As noble adepts that stood above all worldly power, every single one of them had no doubt once gathered a shocking amount of wealth and resources. However, all that wealth was nothing compared to the scene before their eyes.
That pile of gold coins that rested several meters tall, enough to bury a strong adolescent male beneath.
The large magical gemstones that were hidden within the gold coins that steadily glowed with magical light.
The shining magical longswords and fancy armor, each with their own unique designs and elaborate worksmanship.
Even though dragons could not equip most of the magical items and weapons here due to their the size, this did not stop the passion of a dragon to hoard all the wealth and treasures in the world.
Planted at the top of this eye-catching and blinding pile of treasure was a magical staff of unique design glowing with prismatic light. The elementium rainbows created by the waves of magical aura were visible to the naked eye.
Even with her usual composure, Alice could not help but start breathing in short bursts at this moment.
Alice appeared to be so weak and old at this moment. Not only had all her hair turned silver-white, but her formerly smooth face and skin had also become wrinkled. Alice, who wasn't even a hundred yet, should be at the peak of her life; her appearance was that of an old lady at the end of her life.
If she were to stand at Endor's side, outsiders would only treat them as a pair of old sisters. Who could know that they were blood relatives separated by five generations?
With the methods available to the adepts, they could modify their body and looks through the use of magic, keeping themselves at their peak appearance as long as they weren't in the last vestiges of their life. It was only when their lives reached their end that their bodies would start to betray signs of old age due to the weakening of the soul and the fading of their magical powers.
A Fate Witch like Alice was a strange case. The magical power in her body pulsed with the strength of unrelenting waves, and her soul was potent and vigorous, yet only the life force within her flickered like an evening candlelight at risk of being extinguished at any moment.
It was this massive lack of life force that caused her soul to be incapable of getting the nutrition it required, thereby causing her soul to shrivel and dim.
The adepts might have thousands and hundreds of ways to obtain life force, but they would not help someone like Alice who had her life force devoured by Fate's backlash.
Fate was always fair!
It would take from you the most precious pieces of your life depending on how much you took from it.
During the last trip to the underground world, Alice's life force had decreased by forty years just to divine the mysterious item for that otherworldly existence. If she couldn't advance successfully this time, she would only have a month left to live!
Thus, Alice's excitement in seeing the Staff of Divination that could keep her alive was not something that outsiders could easily hope to comprehend.
"All of you, exit the hall now!" Alice barely stabilized herself in front of the pile of gemstones and nonchalantly spoke without turning her head, "Tell Greem to give me another two hours! If I don't come out in two hours…have him escape on his own!"
The Fate Witches beside her nodded in unison before bowing and exiting the hall. Endor sighed before retreating along with the rest.
Berserk Witch Sofia and Icelady Snowlotus looked at each other at the entrance to the hall. They chose to guard the spot without another word.
The only remaining newly advanced witch turned to leave with a sorrowful expression. She ran to pass on the last message from her leader.
Poison Hag Endor paced about the entrance worriedly. Just then, the mountain trembled once more. The ceiling of the corridor they were in dropped even more dust and stone to the ground.
"No, I cannot just wait here. The two of you guard this place well. Don't let anyone interrupt Alice. I will go back up to help!" After leaving behind some simple instructions, Endor left the dragon's den. Her entire being boiled with a murderous aura.
Sofia and Snowlotus had both been revived by Alice through the powers of Fate after she had advanced to become the Witch of Fate. As such, their souls were bound tightly with Alice's own.
If Alice died, they died!
If Alice advanced, then their powers would improve significantly as well. It would greatly benefit their own strength!
That was why they couldn't help but be frustrated during this crucial moment in Fate.
"Snowlotus, do you think Alice can advance?" The uncouth Sofia couldn't help but lower her voice and ask in her frustration.
"A chance is always a chance!" Snowlotus calmly replied, "The powers of Fate can only point out the thread to allow one to escape death. However, whether one can grasp that thread and escape from the predicament depends entirely on their strength and luck. That is why there is nothing we can do to help her now. The only thing we can do is to pray for her and hope th
at she has good fortune."
Then, a desolate sigh echoed within this spacious and silent space.
Chapter 706 A Falling Out In The Dragonfligh
t
Garan Continent. The Central Mountains.
Dragoncliff.
As the center of the entirety of Garan, the Dragoncliff was undoubtedly isolated from the rest of the world!
Even when curious elves wanted to find the Dragoncliff, they would first have to traverse countless mountains and hills and pass through the territories and dens of many powerful magical beasts. That was why the existence of the Dragoncliff was only a beautiful legend in the hearts of most elves. Most of them had no chance of laying eyes upon it.
Naturally, the powerful military might of the Dragoncliff meant that they did not require the protection of the elves. A such, when Thunder Dragon Arms flared his broad wings and soared toward the Dragoncliff, he immediately incited commotion and chaos among the dragon flight.
The so-called Dragoncliff was just the massive caves that had been excavated into the towering cliffs.
As gregarious forest dragons, the green dragons liked to place their den in towering cliffs located in the center of vast forests. This way, they could prevent thieves and burglars from setting their sights on their hoard while also providing the flight with plenty of quality food.
The forest dragons comprising the green and emerald dragons could be considered the only dragon tribes in the entirety of the Faen Plane. Apart from that, multi-headed lizards and serpents also lived within some damp and dark swamps. These creatures also possessed some degree of dragon bloodline.
Sadly, serpents like these, with their inferior intelligence and beast-like behavior, would never be acknowledged by the dragons as their kind!
That was why the dragons, so used to seeing green and emerald scales, could not suppress their excitement when they saw a different Third Grade dragon covered in blue scales. The dragons all emerged from their dens.
For a moment, ferocious soaring dragons filled the surroundings of the towering Dragoncliff!
The commotion at the Dragoncliff quickly alerted the emerald dragons staying in the upper half of the cliff.
Several long dragon roars rang out as five mighty and muscular emerald dragons dove down from the cloud layer. They spread out their wings and firmly landed in front of Thunder Dragon Arms.
Two Fourth Grades, a Third Grade, two Second Grades…
Arms looked around and immediately figured out the strength of the opponent.
The few emerald dragons were shocked to see a dragon of a different kind, but they also put on an expression of caution.
"Tell us your name, friend from foreign lands!"
The leading Fourth Grade emerald dragon might have a higher grade than Thunder Dragon Arms, but it rarely saw a dragon of a different kind on this isolated plane. Even it couldn't help but be curious.
"I, Thunder Dragon Arms, am a Third Grade Dragon Lord from the Lance Plane! A while ago I heard that there were companions of ours in this rural place that had been lost beyond the glorious light of our great Dragon God. As such, I have particularly hurried here to guide you back to His embrace."
No one knew whether it was intentional, but Thunder Dragon Arms' voice had been raised to a deafening volume.
Moreover, his reply echoed and lingered in the air under the effect of sound magnification magic.
The faces of the two Fourth Grade emerald dragons tremendously changed when they heard the thunder dragon's words. They betrayed an expression of shock and solemnness in their large amber eyes.
Dragon God.
Every dragon felt a different way toward this mystery-filled word.
From the standpoint of their origins, all planar dragons were the citizens and descendants of the Great Dragon God.
However, the ability to bask in the glory of the Great Dragon God wasn't all that important for some dragon tribes that could live a life of leisure and luxury within isolated planes! In fact, some odd and alternative dragon tribes actively turned their backs on the Great Dragon God for all sorts of reasons. They chose to join the ranks of other powerful evil dragons or otherworldly powerhouses.
For example, the forest dragons of the Faen Plane enjoyed their carefree life in Garan where they had no natural predators. They chose to ally themselves with the forest elves and enjoy their offerings and care. These quiet days brought them much happiness!
In truth, under such circumstances, the emerald dragons were not that interested in the distant and mysterious Dragon God.
The forest dragons had lived in peace all these years.
Now, a messenger of the Dragon God had suddenly appeared. It was clearly beyond the expectations of the emerald and green dragons; they were stunned. They had no idea how to deal with this uncouth and uninvited guest.
Just then, wild winds blew as two dragons also descended upon the cliff, one after the other.
It was Third Grade Emerald Dragon Iritina and Second Grade Green Dragon Ohgu.
In all honesty, the sudden sight of a young dragon of a different kind was a shocking experience, be it for Thunder Dragon Arms or Emerald Dragon Iritina.
Iritina was surprised because she hadn't thought that there were dragons in the world apart from the emerald and green dragons. Meanwhile, Thunder Dragon Arms was purely surprised that such a pretty and seductive female dragon could exist amongst such a 'backwater' dragon tribe.
Both dragons locked eyes upon first sight and never broke eye contact. Their eyes were filled with not only shock and admiration but also a rare trace of wild amazement.
It was apparent that both dragons were extremely impressed with each other.
If there hadn't been so many dragons on the scene, then the two of them would probably have gotten together and started flirting!
For the remaining half of the day, the emerald dragons tried their best to invite Arms up to the upper layer of the cliff to be their guest in hopes of keeping him away from the younger dragons of the tribe.
However, the experienced Thunder Dragon Arms would never fall for such a trick. Instead, he patted his chest and started boasting about his exploits and adventures before Iritina, exaggerating every detail and blowing them up to ten times their original numbers. Arms even began to praise the beautiful and vast plane of Lance in order to conquer this cute female dragon.
A plane ruled entirely by dragons.
A land where every dragon was a lord of the plane, where every dragon ruled over vast lands, and where every dragon could do whatever they wished with anything they wanted in their territories.
Such amazing things could happen to dragons as well?
From now on, they would no longer need to toil and hunt in the Fantasy Forest. From now on, they no longer had to run around and work to collect wealth and gemstones.
All of these tasks would be delegated to the dragonborn servants. All they needed to do was snore and sleep. They would be able to feast as they wished when they woke up later, then take the time to enjoy the 'exotic beauties' offered up by their subjects.
Such a leisurely life might have appeared in the dreams of the Faen dragons countless times, but in reality, they were only ordinary members of the forest dragons. They still needed to sharpen their fangs continually and hone their hunting techniques, then use their hard work to exchange for 'meager' rewards from the forest elves.
Comparison only served to infuriate!
All the young emerald and green dragons couldn't help but start dreaming of life in Lance when they heard Third Grade Thunder Dragon Arms proudly describe each and every scene of his daily life.
The older dragons might have some desires for such a world, but they had experienced all sorts of things throughout their lives. They were somewhat doubtful of the words that came out of the mouth of this fellow that had appeared out of nowhere.
If Lance was truly as amazing as he described, wouldn't it be alright for him to hole up in there and enjoy his life
? For what purpose had he traveled tens of thousands of kilometers and passed through a planar barrier just to come here to Faen?
As for the glorious light of the Great Dragon God that Arms kept mentioning? The elder dragons didn't believe a single word of it.
The Dragon God was indeed a great existence!
It was the existence of the Dragon God that had allowed the dragons to become a dominant species that no one dared to trifle with.
Yet, as small dragons of a rural plane, the absence or presence of the Dragon God's light represented no difference to their lives. Why should they trouble themselves under such circumstances to pursue some radiance of the Dragon God?
Still, such narrow and limited thinking was fated never to be openly expressed to the rest of the tribe.
That was why the two Fourth Grade emerald dragons could not publicly expel the Third Grade thunder dragon, despite their overwhelming superiority in strength.
It had been only a brief moment, but the Third Grade thunder dragon had already roused the spirits and ambitions of many of the young green dragons. His proposition also moved several of the young emerald dragons.
In the end, Arms took out his trump card– the Dragon's Pact written full of the cursed vows of the dragons.
Though these green dragons weren't of the same line as the green dragons that had written the Dragon's Pact, the green dragon's aura within the pact was the same. With this pact–that could well be said to be an ace in the hole–revealed, the Third Grade thunder dragon decided to just publicly recruit volunteers and mercenaries that were willing to return to Lance along with him.
The price of recruitment that Arms offered was so generous that several of the emerald dragons were eager to go as well.
At this point, the Fourth Grade emerald dragons had no choice but to furiously expel the thunder dragon, even at risk of ruining their friendly relations. What the tribe leader of the emerald dragons never expected was the immense falling out that this Third Grade thunder dragon would cause.
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