And how could Linley know what the situation in the clan had been four to five thousand years ago?
“It must have been due to the pressure of the entire race of dragons that our ancestors were forced to skimp on the details of this method of using live dragon’s blood to rouse the dragonblood in our veins.” Right now, Linley had no idea what he should do.
His ‘Dragonform’ was clearly different from the authentic ‘Dragonform’ which had been mentioned in the Secret Dragonblood Manual.
“I am far too mentally resilient. I really hope I’ll faint soon.” Linley was actually begging for himself to faint, as once he fainted, his pain would be over.
“Aaaargh…”
Linley’s entire body trembled once again. All ten fingers and all ten toes were suddenly wracked with a bone-deep pain, as his fingernails and toenails suddenly began to grow sharp, like miniature dragon claws. The pain of sharp claws forcibly growing out of his fingers and toes really, finally, caused Linley to begin to lose all consciousness.
As his head grew foggy, Linley’s eyes began to close, and then all consciousness fled.
“Thud.”
Linley’s body collapsed to the ground.
“He’s passed out.” Doehring Cowart stood next to Linley, watching him. He couldn’t help but let out a small sigh. “How bizarre. I can’t imagine how Linley’s ancestor, Baruch, could have developed such a strange ability of transforming into this ‘Dragonform’.”
Frowning, Doehring Cowart mumbled to himself, “Honestly speaking, it’s bizarre. It seems that, aside from the Dragonblood Warriors, there’re also three other bloodlines of Supreme Warriors. But when I had been alive, there was no such thing as a Supreme Warrior. But shortly after I died, these four bloodlines arrived on the scene.”
Despite his thousand plus years of experience and wisdom, Doehring Cowart was unable to puzzle out how and why this had occurred.
“If he was able to slay a Nine-Headed Serpent Emperor, then in all likelihood, Linley’s ancestor, Baruch, was no weaker than I was, and perhaps stronger.” Doehring Cowart knew full well how powerful a Nine-Headed Serpent Emperor was. Nine-Headed Serpents were an extremely formidable race of magical beasts, and for a Nine-Headed Serpent to receive the title of ‘Serpent Emperor’ meant that, without question, it was a peak Saint-level magical beast.
Even he himself would not have the confidence to say that he could slay a Nine-Headed Serpent Emperor.
“And that little Shadowmouse is no ordinary creature either.” Doehring Cowart turned his head to stare at the little Shadowmouse, Bebe, who was still lying and resting in that crevice his body had created earlier. “An Armored Razorback Wyrm is among the most powerful dragon-type beasts of the ninth rank, and this Sartius fellow was at the peak of the ninth rank. His dying blow should be able to shatter the bones and rend the flesh of magical beasts of the ninth rank, but somehow, this little Shadowmouse managed to survive it.”
Doehring Cowart couldn’t help but feel astonished.
In fact, he was starting to suspect…
“Could it be that this little Shadowmouse isn’t a Shadowmouse, and is actually a Stoneater Rat?”
Doehring Cowart knew very well that of the two major rodent-class magical beasts, the Stoneater Rats were far more populous than the Shadowmice. The weakest Stoneater Rat was of the first rank, while the most powerful was of the seventh or eighth rank. As for Shadowmice, although they started at the third rank, they also topped out at the seventh or eighth rank.
The advantage of the Shadowmouse lay in its speed and its sharp claws, while the strength of the Stoneater Rat lay in its defensive abilities and its sharp claws.
“The Stoneater Rat is physically small, but its defensive ability is the most powerful of any magical beast at the same rank. The defensive power of a Stoneater Rat of the eighth rank could most likely compare with the defensive power of an Armored Razorback Wyrm!” Doehring Cowart knew very well how terrifying Stoneater Rats could be.
Although physically small, the defensive power of its fur was formidable to an extreme.
Across all the myriad types of magical beasts, be it dragon-types, bear-types, serpent-types, or any other type, the tiny little Stoneater Rat had the highest defensive power at the same rank!
“Bebe’s power should be at the eighth rank now. If he’s a Stoneater Rat of the eighth rank, I would find it conceivable that he could take a hit and not die. But he’s not a Stoneater Rat. A Stoneater Rat of the eighth rank should have golden fur.” Doehring Cowart’s mind was full of questions.
“Black fur and terrifying speed, and also such amazing defensive power? How bizarre.”
Suddenly, Doehring Cowart’s eyes glazed over.
A terrifying name suddenly appeared in the back of his mind!
“Could it be that this little Shadowmouse is… is related somehow to ‘that one’ in the Forest of Shadows, in the northeast of the Yulan continent?” Doehring Cowart was trembling with fear now. Back in the days when Doehring Cowart had been alive, in the Yulan continent, there were only two entities powerful enough that he wouldn’t have any hope of fighting against them.
In those years, Doehring Cowart really had been ranked amongst the top five most powerful figures in the Yulan continent. However, aside from the first and the second, there wasn’t much difference among the rest of the five in terms of power.
But the power of the number one and number two experts of the Yulan continent was without question.
As for who exactly was number one and who was number two, nobody knew for sure. One of the two was the pillar and foundation of the Yulan Empire. As long as he was alive, even if the Yulan Empire grew weak and decrepit, it would never fall.
And the other, was the one who lived in the Forest of Shadows.
The Yulan Empire had unified the entire Yulan continent, and had also initiated the Yulan calendar that year, year one. After almost ten thousand years, the continent had now fragmented to its current state, resulting in the two major alliances and the Four Great Empires. And even as far back as when the Yulan Empire had ruled over the entire continent, that human expert’s name had been famous throughout the world.
“That one in the Forest of Shadows is the undisputed strongest magical beast in the world. I heard that he is extremely fond of rodent-type magical beasts. Could it be that this strange little Shadowmouse was brought up by him?” Doehring Cowart was wondering to himself.
But Doehring Cowart also knew that the information he had about the experts of the Yulan continent was five thousand years out of date.
Five thousand years ago, the Yulan continent had exactly two ultimate super-combatants; one human, and the other a magical beast. The other Saint-level combatants could only admire them from afar.
But five thousand years later?
“Perhaps there have been mutations to the rodent-type beasts. That’s also a possibility.” Doehring Cowart consoled himself.
Doehring Cowart once again glanced at Linley and Bebe, then nodded. “A descendant of the Dragonblood Warriors, and a mutated Shadowmouse. What will the two of them accomplish together?” Doehring Cowart was rather excited to see. Perhaps, by Linley’s side, his future days wouldn’t be too lonely either.
The entire tunnel was absolutely silent.
The unconscious Linley’s body was still transforming, and the Dragonblood battle-qi was slowly gathering three inches beneath his navel, crystallizing into a pattern similar to that of a draconic crystal. Bebe’s wounds, in turn, were also slowly healing.
Three days later.
Linley opened his eyes and suddenly rose to his feet.
Right now, Linley was absolutely naked. All of the clothes he had previously been wearing had been torn asunder long ago by that first Dragonform transformation he had undergone. But now, after having returned to human form, Linley seemed no different from any other human.
“I’ve finally changed back.”
Although according to the Sec
ret Dragonblood Manual, a Dragonblood Warrior was able to transform back into human form, only after it actually happened did Linley feel at ease. After all, his ‘Dragonform’ and the authentic ‘Dragonform’ as described in the manual were different.
“Boss, you woke up.” That bright, chipper voice rang out in Linley’s mind.
With surprised delight, Linley turned his head to look, and as he did, Bebe jumped into his arms. Embracing Bebe, Linley finally felt that his heart was at peace. When Bebe had suffered that vicious wounding deathblow of the Armored Razorback Wyrm, Linley had truly been afraid.
He had been afraid that the little Shadowmouse he had grown up with was dead.
“Bebe, are you okay?” Linley carefully inspected Bebe’s body. Upon doing so, Linley saw an unassuming scar directly on Bebe’s chest… but Linley could also tell that the reason this scar appeared unassuming was because the fur on Bebe’s chest was blocking much of it.
Bebe chortled, “I’m fine. How could I, Bebe, be afraid of a little worm?”
“Boss, hey! Your body no longer has any scars? Same with your face. You don’t have any scars at all, now!” Bebe suddenly said in astonishment.
Only now did Linley pay some attention to his own body.
“Ah, so this is indeed as the Secret Dragonblood Manual described. The first time one undergoes the Dragonform transformation, one’s entire body is transformed, and even the skin is changed.” Right now, there wasn’t a single scar anywhere on Linley’s body, and it was in perfect condition.
Sensing the boiling power now within his body, Linley couldn’t help but feel excited.
“What tremendous physical power.” Linley could feel that his current power was at least several dozen times greater than before. After having roused the dragonblood in his veins, the physical characteristics of his body had all been tremendously enhanced. Even in his human form, he was much stronger than before he had roused the dragonblood.
Clenching his fist and generating a field of Dragonblood battle-qi, Linley suddenly delivered a powerful punch to the nearby stone wall.
“Bang!” As though struck by a steel rod, a large hole was punched into the stone tunnel wall as rocks began flying in every which way.
“Sixth rank. Linley, in your human form, you already have the power of a warrior of the sixth rank!” Doehring Cowart flew out of the Coiling Dragon ring, laughing as he spoke to Linley.
Part V
The Godsword Bloodviolet
61
The Mysterious Magical Formation
Linley, too, could feel that his body was now far stronger than it had been in the past. Previously, his body had been that of a warrior of the fourth rank, but now, he had suddenly reached the sixth rank. This was the inherent ability of the Dragonblood Warriors. Thinking back to the pain he had just suffered to reach this, Linley couldn’t help but shiver.
“Linley, give your Dragonform a test,” Doehring Cowart said with interest.
“Boss, give it a test!” Bebe was excited as well.
Linley nodded slightly. He too wanted to get a sense of what level of power his body now possessed when under the Dragonform transformation. Immediately, Linley began to exert his control over the Dragonblood battle-qi that had been compressed into a quasi-crystal in his dantian, below his navel. Suddenly…
One stream after another of black liquid began to flow from his dantian to his body, his limbs, and his bones.
“Rrrrrgh.” Letting out a deep growl, Linley watched as a dense layer of small black scales began to sprout on top of his skin, while at the same time, a row of spikes began to appear on his back, and a long, iron-whip-like tail sprouted from his tailbone.
Compared to the Armored Razorback Wyrm, those spikes running along Linley’s spine were slightly fewer in number and slightly shorter.
“I feel as though my body is filled with limitless power.” Linley couldn’t help but begin to grow excited. He felt so incredibly powerful. The Dragonblood Warrior, one of the Four Supreme Warriors of the Yulan continent. He had just begun his training in this area, but he already possessed enormous strength.
The Supreme Warriors really lived up to their name!
“The power I have right now must be several tens of times greater than the power I had in my human form.” Linley stretched out his right arm, which was currently covered with scales, and saw that his fingernails were now as sharp as knives.
Linley suddenly leapt off the ground with a mighty kick…
As fast as a streak of fire, Linley charged into the middle of the wide cave, then delivered a powerful blow to the cave wall. With an earth-shaking sound, rocks begin to fall down from the cave walls. His arm pierced all the way into the stone wall, and to Linley, it felt as though it was as easy as piercing his arm into soft mud.
Such incredible power.
“Harrgh!” Letting out a loud, excited shout, Linley lashed out at the wall with two mighty kicks as well, immediately blasting a huge hole into it, causing rocks to rain down from even the ceiling.
With a kick of his legs, Linley sent himself flying in the air…
And then, with his twin fists, Linley gave the cave ceiling a mighty smash.
“Bam!” The ceiling of the cave cracked like the shell of a turtle, and one giant boulder after another began to fall down from the ceiling. But Linley wasn’t afraid in the slightest. These boulders wouldn’t do any harm at all when slamming into his body. The black scales protecting his body right now were far more powerful than even the jadestone armor his Earthguard spell provided.
“Swish!” “Swish!” “Swish!”
Linley’s body transformed into a vicious black blur. Sometimes he would land on the ground, while at other times, he would rise into the air. Sometimes, he would use all of his strength while smashing his legs into the wall with ferocious kicks, while at other times he would viciously pummel the cave ceiling with his fists and allow the rocks to fall on his body.
After a while…
Linley landed on the floor, then directly leapt to the tunnel entrance.
“Grandpa Doehring, what do you think?” He asked.
Most people would find it very difficult to accurately assess a warrior’s strength unless a battery of tests was used. Linley, at least, didn’t have the ability to make this assessment. But the highly experienced Doehring Cowart should have been able to estimate his strength through the destructive power he had just unleashed.
“In terms of power alone… you should have just crossed over the threshold of being a warrior of the eighth rank.” Doehring Cowart seemed a bit uncertain. “But your movement speed was very fast. Perhaps you have inherited the high movement speed inherent to Armored Razorback Wyrms. Your speed should be on par with highly agile warriors of the eighth rank. As for your defensive abilities, there’s no way for me to judge at this time, since there was nothing to see.”
Linley nodded slightly.
He knew that this Dragonform of his had some sort of connection with the Armored Razorback Wyrm, so it made sense that this Dragonform of his was similar in many ways to the Armored Razorback Wyrm.
“For the Dragonblood Warriors of our clan, the more powerful one is, the less of a difference there is between the three forms. Right now, I’m a warrior of the sixth rank, and so my Dragonform can reach the early eighth rank in power. According to the books that I read, once a Dragonblood Warrior has reached the early ninth rank of power in human form, then in Dragonform, he will possess the power of an early Saint-level combatant. But once his human form reaches the Saint-level, then in Dragonform, he will still only be a Saint-level combatant. His battle ability, however, will be somewhat improved.”
Linley was quite clear about the nature and origins of the Dragonform ability.
The purpose of assuming the Dragonform was because early on, a normal human being would not be able to utilize all of the power held within the dragonblood in his veins. Only after using the Dragonform would they be able to summon forth all
of their power.
But once they reached the Saint-level, and had totally mastered and harnessed the effective power of their dragonblood, then when they assumed the Dragonform, their increase in power would be fairly small.
“Linley. Hurry up and dispose of the corpses of those two magical beasts. The two of them have a Saint-level magicite core and a draconic magicite core of the ninth rank,” Doehring Cowart immediately urged.
Linley’s heart suddenly shuddered.
Cores of the ninth rank and Saint level?
Linley knew that the value of a magicite core of the ninth rank was worth up to five million gold coins, an incredible amount of money. In Fenlai City, some of the relatively large clans’ entire net worth might be around that much.
But the core of a Saint-level magical beast? That was a priceless treasure.
“Right.” Maintaining his Dragonform, Linley immediately rushed over to the Saint-level Violet Tattooed Bear’s corpse. Because Linley had caused so much damage to the walls and the ceiling, even the Bear’s corpse had been buried under falling rubble.
With a wave of his black-scale-covered right arm, Linley knocked over ten large pieces of rubble away, revealing the Saint-level Violet Tattooed Bear’s upper torso and head.
Using his set of two knife-sharp claws, Linley directly tore at the Saint-level Violet Tattooed Bear’s fur.
“Oooof!” Linley used as much force as he could, but the Saint-level Violet Tattooed Bear’s fur wasn’t damaged in the slightest.
“Linley, this is a Saint-level magical beast. Even under the effects of the Dragonform, you are only a warrior of the early eighth rank. If you want to split open this Bear’s fur, there’s no way you can do it alone.” Doehring Cowart laughed.
Linley was forced to admit that this was the truth.
Coiling Dragon_Book 1 of the Coiling Dragon Saga Page 53