Coiling Dragon

by welyjesch

  His voice echoed in the sky.

  “Ah…ah….” Linley fell to his knees, powerless. He began to sob madly, but no matter how hard Linley cried, that kindly old man would never appear again.

  He had died and left forever.

  “Grandpa Doehring.”

  Linley felt more feeble and fragile than he ever had before. It was a spiritual fragility. No father. No mother. And now, even Grandpa Doehring, who had always been by his side, had left.

  The only one left by Linley’s side was Bebe, who had never even known about Grandpa Doehring’s existence.

  “Boss. Hey, Linley, Boss!” Bebe nudged Linley, somewhat frightened.

  Linley turned his head to look at Bebe.

  “Bebe.” Linley suddenly pulled Bebe into his arms.

  “Boss, just now, you were calling out for a ‘Grandpa Doehring’. Who is Grandpa Doehring? Just now, I sensed a terrifying spiritual energy burst. What was that?” Bebe was totally baffled.

  Linley’s heart was shot through with agony once more upon hearing Grandpa Doehring’s name.

  He lowered his head to look at the Coiling Dragon ring on his finger. But…Grandpa Doehring would never come out from it again.

  “Rustle.” Suddenly, a series of extremely light sounds could be heard. Linley turned his head to look.

  Within the giant craters created by the meteors, a violet-robed figure was struggling to crawl out. Not only him. The other five men were also slowly struggling to crawl out as well.

  Heavenly Meteor’s Descent – An earth-style forbidden spell.

  If a Saint-level Grand Magus were to use this spell, the six of them would have been dead without a doubt. But Doehring Cowart was a Saint-level Grand Magus who didn’t have a single shred of mageforce.

  Based on the laws of magic, mageforce was the generals commanding the army of soldiers known as elemental essence. Through mageforce, spiritual energy was able to command these soldiers to form powerful magical spells.

  What Doehring Cowart had done was to consume the spiritual energy within his very soul, using this powerful burst of spiritual energy to directly control the elemental essences and execute the forbidden spell, Heavenly Meteor’s Descent.

  But because he had no mageforce, even though he consumed all of his own spiritual energy, the power of Doehring Cowart’s spell was only 10% – 20% of a normal Heavenly Meteor’s Descent. Despite that though, even 10% to 20% of the power of a forbidden spell had smashed those six Special Executors to the brink of death.

  Watching those six violet robed figures crawl out, Linley’s heart was suddenly filled with unbridled, boundless, unquenchable rage.

  “Ah!!!!!” With a scream, Linley charged like a bolt of lightning towards one of the violet robed figures. The Special Executor, seeing Linley charge towards him, was so terrified that his eyes turned as round as the moon.

  “Ah!!!!!” Exerting force with his arms, Linley ripped the Special Executor into two halves with his bare hands.

  “Die.” Linley physically ripped off the head of another Special Executor.

  “Haaaargh!” Linley’s sharp claws pierced into the chest of a third Special Executor, ripping his heart out and crushing it to pieces with his claws.

  “Go die!” Linley latched onto the throat of the fourth Special Executor with his teeth, ripping his throat out.

  He wanted to eat their flesh and drink their blood!

  “Ah!!!!” Linley’s figure suddenly appeared next to the fifth Special Executor. The heavily wounded Special Executor, unable to defend himself, could only watch in terror as Linley ripped him apart into two pieces by his legs.

  As for the sixth Special Executor…

  “You…you…” The heavily wounded sixth Special Executor, upon seeing the terrifying scene before him, saw Linley charge towards him like a demon from the Infernal Realm. He was so terrified that his body began to shake, and then he collapsed dead from fear.

  Although the sixth Special Executor was already dead, Linley still smashed a vicious punch at his head, exploding it.

  Watching this, Bebe was somewhat frightened.

  The warriors watching from far away had been scared stupid as well. They had never imagined that a human could be so vicious, so brutal, so terrifying. This was especially true because of how Linley currently appeared. His body was covered in broken scales, and blood dyed his entire form red. Even his dark gold eyes were dimly flashing red.

  “Boss, you…you…what’s wrong?” Bebe was worried.

  After Linley had brutally killed all six Special Executors, he suddenly sat down on the ground, his energy gone. He sat there, staring into nothing, with no clue as to what he was thinking.

  “Boss.” Bebe pushed Linley frantically.

  Linley suddenly raised his head, but he was unable to restrain his tears from coming out again. He then lowered his head, burying it against his legs and beginning to cry once more.

  …..

  Those six giant meteors had turned the entire area around for hundreds of meters into rubble. Those six violet-robed men had all been killed by that demonic freak.

  But then, that demonic freak suddenly put his head against his legs and began to sob.

  ……

  There were nearly ten thousand onlookers now, watching from hundreds of meters away. None of these people could understand what they were seeing.

  “That demon is crying?”

  All of them were astonished.

  “That demon seems…seems really sad.” A young person said uncertainly to a nearby friend of his. That friend started, then nodded slowly.

  None of the onlookers moved any closer. They had seen the terrifying scene of just moments ago. Even the combatants of the eighth rank knew exactly how much stronger this person in front of them was.

  “The demon is crying?” Yale, George, and Reynolds had just gotten here, having travelled quite far. Hearing these words, they all started.

  “Out of the way! Out of the way!” Yale shouted angrily.

  Immediately, the guards of the Dawson Conglomerate began to push aside the various onlookers. Yale, George, and Reynolds ran frantically towards the center of the battlefield.

  But upon reaching the epicenter, all of them were stunned.

  Everything within several hundred meters had been turned to rubble. Looking at the six craters, one could imagine how terrifyingly powerful those six giant meteors had been. And just looking at the corpses of those six men, one could imagine how brutal the person who had killed them was.

  The demon’s body, covered with broken scales, was sitting there, sobbing.

  Upon seeing Bebe by the side of the ‘demon’, and that adamantine heavy sword which had been tossed to the ground, Yale and the others became all the more certain that this was Linley.

  “Third Bro.” Yale, George, and Reynolds immediately rushed over.

  By now, Monroe Dawson had arrived as well. He immediately ordered his subordinates, “Quick, dispose of those six corpses, then leave immediately. Don’t let anyone know that the Dawson Conglomerate had anything to do with this.” As he spoke, Monroe Dawson immediately left as well.

  “Third Bro.” Yale, George, and Reynolds all called out with worry.

  Back during Linley’s assassination attempt on Clayde at Fenlai City, Yale had already guessed that Linley was capable of transforming into a Dragonblood Warrior. He had informed Reynolds and George as well. And now, seeing Bebe as well as the discarded adamantine heavy sword, they naturally were certain that this was Linley.

  Linley’s body shook slightly.

  Raising his head and glancing besides himself, Linley saw Yale, George, and Reynolds. Linley finally spoke. “You guys…”

  “Let’s go, quick.” Yale immediately urged. “You just killed Special Executors. If the Radiant Church finds out, it’ll be a disaster for you.” Yale immediately helped Linley up.

  Linley allowed himself to be raised to his feet.

  “Bebe. Let’s go.” Linle
y hugged Bebe, then headed out.

  Yale was startled, because he noticed that Linley didn’t pay any attention at all to his adamantine heavy sword. He couldn’t help but call out urgently, “Third Bro, your heavy sword.”

  “Heavy sword?” Linley turned his head. After a moment, he seemed to understand, and he walked over, picking his heavy sword up.

  Just then, the subordinates of the Dawson Conglomerate arrived as well, and they quickly disposed of those six violet robed Special Executors’ corpses.

  “What’s wrong with Third Bro?” George said quietly to Yale and Reynolds.

  Yale shook his head as well, confused. “No idea. Bebe seems to be fine as well. Why then does it seem as though Third Bro just suffered a worse blow than that time when he had his heart broken? He seems so downcast that it is like he has lost his soul.”

  Linley allowed the Dawson Conglomerate’s men to lead him away, as they crept away via small alleyways and arrived at a mysterious residence.

  Book 7, Heaven and Earth Turned Upside Down – Chapter 24, Stillness

  Within the dark, quiet residence, there was only Reynolds, Yale, George, a few dozen female attendants, and a few dozen guards. All of them were here for Linley.

  Beneath branches of hanging grapes, George, Yale, and Reynolds were standing around a stone desk.

  “Boss Yale. What do you think is going on with Third Bro?” Reynolds face was filled with confusion as he said helplessly.

  Yale shook his head. “I don’t know either. It’s been ten days since Third Bro has come here, and in these past ten days, Third Bro hasn’t had any of his usual energy. He isn’t even training, nor does he joke around and laugh with us anymore. He’s always off by himself.”

  George nodded as well. “In the past, no matter what happened, Third Bro wouldn’t stop his training. But now he seems to have transformed into a totally different person.”

  “So who can tell me what exactly is going on with Third Bro?” Reynolds gnashed his teeth. “It would be great if I knew.” Yale sighed resignedly.

  The thing which hurt their heads the most was that they had no idea what had caused Linley to become like this. He no longer trained, nor did he joke around with the three of them. He was always off by himself, looking as though he had lost his soul.

  He had become like this for no apparent reason whatsoever.

  As the dear bros of Linley, how could they not be worried?

  “Third Bro must have suffered some sort of tremendous shock.” Yale sighed quietly. George and Reynolds were all startled for a moment, then they fell silent. They couldn’t help but think back to what they had seen that day.

  Thousands of observers surrounding a circular area where everything for hundreds of meters around had been reduced to rubble. Within that disaster area, those six astonishingly deep craters and fallen meteors.

  Linley, in full Dragonform, had brutally massacred those six Special Executors, then sat down and began to cry. He had been sobbing like a child. “I’ve never seen Third Bro this heartbroken, this fragile.” Yale said in a low voice.

  George nodded as well. “Third Bro is very tough. Even when he suffered heartbreak from breaking up with Alice, after completing the ‘Awakening From the Dream’ sculpture, he headed directly for the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts to engage in more training.”

  “Right. Even when his father died, Third Bro had managed to endure and hold on. But this time…” Reynold simply couldn’t understand.

  They were all certain that their beloved bro was in a fragile state right now, but none of them could find a reason why.

  Next to a murmuring creek in the back courtyard of the residence, Linley was sitting on top of a decorative polished stone. He stared at the creek, not moving.

  Bebe was standing on the stone as well, right next to Linley.

  Utter silence. The only sound that could be heard was the murmurs of the flowing water.

  Although Linley’s eyes were aimed at the creek, his thoughts were still with Grandpa Doehring and the time they had spent together.

  How he had played around with Grandpa Doehring as a child.

  How Grandpa Doehring had strictly supervised and trained him as a young man.

  In the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts, how Grandpa Doehring had lectured him time and time again to be careful without growing tired of it.

  With each memory swimming to the surface, Linley felt his heart grow still.

  “After my father died, I thought that I was now very lonely. But I didn’t realize that in reality, I was very fortunate. No matter what happened, Grandpa Doehring was always behind me, supporting me, consoling me, encouraging me, reminding me…”

  “But why didn’t I realize this in the past? Why didn’t I treasure the time I had spent together with Grandpa Doehring?” Linley’s heart was filled with agony.

  Grandpa Doehring had never made any excessive requests of him, but he had never considered about how Grandpa Doehring had felt. He hadn’t truly valued the time he had spent with Grandpa Doehring. Perhaps subconsciously, he had believed that Grandpa Doehring would forever be with him within the Coiling Dragon ring.

  “Coiling Dragon ring? Grandpa Doehring was always inside the Coiling Dragon ring by himself. It must have been very painful and miserable for him to always be alone in there. Grandpa Doehring probably also hoped that I would chat with him often, right?” Only now did Linley think of these things.

  But…

  In the past, Linley usually would only ask for Grandpa Doehring’s advice when he met with some insurmountable difficulties. He would very rarely actively seek out Grandpa Doehring just to chat.

  He only took, without giving back.

  “Why is it that only after I have lost, that I now understand how to cherish?” Linley’s body began to tremble. How he hoped that Grandpa Doehring would return and would be by his side again.

  Unfortunately….

  This was impossible.

  Grandpa Doehring was dead. Dead and gone forever.

  Linley could feel his heart clenching, as though it were contorting. His entire body was convulsing with pain. But there wasn’t a hint of pain on Linley’s face.

  Deep in Linley’s heart, he even began to think…

  If he could just die now from the pain, then he would have escaped from it all.

  “Boss.” Bebe’s voice rang out in Linley’s head. Linley turned to look at Bebe. Bebe’s beady little black eyes were staring at Linley, a look of concern in them.

  “You…you are thinking about that Grandpa Doehring again?” Even Bebe only learned after Doehring Cowart’s death that Linley previously had a ghost Saint-level Grand Magus by his side.

  Linley nodded.

  Bebe mentally spoke to Linley. “Boss, can you…can you tell me all about that Grandpa Doehring?”

  Looking at Bebe, Linley nodded slightly, then reached out and held Bebe in his arms, hugging him. He began to tell Bebe all about Doehring Cowart. “That year, I was eight years old. There were two Saint-level combatants who had appeared at Wushan township….”

  Standing outside the gate to the back courtyard, Reynolds and the others quietly watched as Linley hugged Bebe while seated on that smooth, polished decorative stone.

  “I feel extremely miserable myself, seeing Third Bro like this.” Reynolds sighed softly.

  Yale and George were both silent.

  “We have to think of something.” George’s eyes suddenly sharpened, became fierce. “No matter what, we can’t let Third Bro just collapse like this.”

  Yale and Reynolds both nodded.

  “Second Bro, do you have any ideas?” Reynolds and Yale looked at George.

  George said, “We have no idea what has caused Third Bro to become like this. But there are a few things that we can extrapolate.” George said gravely, “Third Bro’s clan was the Dragonblood Warrior clan. As a clan which once dominated the entire world, the members of the clan naturally wish to revive their clan to their former
glory.”

  Yale’s eyes lit up. “Right. Third Bro values his clan highly. For the sake of acquiring his ancestral heirloom, the warblade ‘Slaughterer’, he was even willing to auction off ‘Awakening From the Dream’.”

  “Exactly.”

  George nodded. “My theory is, the reason why Third Bro was always so hard on himself in training was because he had something important to him that was driving him. Most likely, restoring his clan to its former glory was that motivating impulse. Third Bro has worked hard for so many years now. He definitely wouldn’t give up that easily. We have to use this to agitate and encourage him.”

  “Agitate him? Would that work?” Yale was a bit suspicious.

  George said helplessly, “Do we have a better method of helping him?”

  “We’ll use this method.” Reynolds harrumphed. “I can’t stand watching Third Bro continue to act like this any longer. Let’s go. The three of us will go talk with him. Let’s see what exactly is going on.”

  “Fourth Bro, let Second Bro do the talking. The more you talk, the more you screw things up.” Yale reproved.

  Knowing his own temperament, Reynolds nodded. George, Yale, and Reynolds looked at each other, then walked towards Linley.

  After listening to Linley’s story, Bebe was quiet as well. He was also very heart-sick, heart-sick for Doehring Cowart’s death. Suddenly, Bebe felt people approaching them from behind. He leaped out of Linley’s arms and looked towards that direction.

  It was Yale, George, and Reynolds.

  But right now, having just finished the tale of Grandpa Doehring, Linley was lost in his memories once more, and didn’t even realize that people were approaching him.

  Yale, George, and Reynolds glanced at each other, all sighing internally. Linley was an expert. Normally, Linley probably would’ve noticed the three of them before they had even entered the courtyard. But now, all three of them were right behind Linley, and yet Linley didn’t react at all.

  “Third Bro.” Yale spoke.

  Linley trembled, then slightly turned his head to look at the three of them. His eyes were very calm. “You guys came.” After speaking, Linley turned his head back towards the creek, continuing to stare at the water.