Chapter 436: DRAGON! DRAGON! (Request Subscription)

“Spit! Spit spit… spit!”

Blood-tinged saliva sprayed from his mouth; the armless warrior, too exhausted to remove his armor, collapsed backward and landed heavily on the ground.

Thud.

“Ha… ha…”

His right stump was crudely bound with scraps of cloth, barely stanching the blood flow, yet droplets still seeped from the grotesque wound.

After catching his breath, the warrior turned his head to look around; only when he saw others resting as he was did he finally let his tense heart ease.

“Phew… we’ve driven off another wave of enemies!”

“We held the line!”

Thinking of this, Radley broke into a genuine smile.

This place was Dawnvale Fortress.

An unremarkable fortress town a hundred li from Radiant Shengcheng, its permanent population never exceeding a thousand—barely a large town.

If Radiant Shengcheng was the Sun God’s earthly divine realm, the closest place to Him,

then this was the reality of the Sun’s faithful, the closest place to Solantis.

Most residents here were believers who longed for Solantis but, for various reasons, could not yet go there or settle within it.

Such small fortress towns were not uncommon nearby; again and again, believers who returned empty-handed settled here.

The faithful yearned for Solantis, unwilling to abandon their precious chance, always seeking an opportunity to enter.

But when the Cult of Lust and Desire sparked war, these “satellite towns” became the frontlines where both churches clashed.

Yes, the Cult of Lust and Desire claimed to have launched a “total holy war” against the Sun Church,

but—again, let it be clear—the Lust God is a demon, He is mad, not stupid.

The Cult of Lust and Desire did not launch a direct assault on Radiant Shengcheng; instead, they harassed and assassinated at fortress towns scattered beyond Solantis.

You want to counterattack?

Fine.

Let’s see how you respond!

Once nearly all fortress towns faced problems, the Sun Church quickly fell into a state of frantic scrambling.

This was the Lust God’s open strategy.

No matter how many Sun Church believers there were, they could not match the countless creations the Lust God had forged over eons in Shengshen Nation.

Those varied, mass-produced serpent creations could not reliably defeat their foes in strength, but in numbers, they had never lost.

Come on!

Hurt each other!

The Lust God only wanted to vent his frustration, to make a token show of face—he never expected the Sun Church’s reaction to be so fierce.

…

“Cough… hss!”

As the adrenaline from battle ebbed, Radley felt searing pain radiating from his arm.

He raised his left hand, struggling to remove his helmet engraved with the sunwheel emblem, revealing messy brown hair matted to his forehead with blood, and eyes bloodshot with exhaustion.

The emblem on the battered helmet confirmed Radley’s identity—he was a devout warrior of the Sun Church.

Just moments ago, using his refined swordsmanship and his mid-rank warrior’s strength, he had sacrificed only one arm to slay a high-rank Venomous Blood Serpent.

To other strong ones, this might mean nothing.

But to Radley, it was nothing short of a miracle.

Though his appearance was gruesome, his arm agonizingly painful, his body utterly drained… his heart was filled with unbounded joy.

This was a rare feat!

Beside Radley, in Dawnvale Fortress, there were many warriors as grievously wounded as he.

Priests ran back and forth, frantically treating the wounded, snatching them from Death’s grasp.

Though Death in this world was rather passive, always accepting fate, not every priest could cast resurrection magic—deaths still occurred.

They had just endured a brutal battle, barely driving back the demon’s minions and gaining a moment’s respite.

Yet none fully relaxed; no one knew when the creatures would return.

“This is the… eighth time, right? How many of these disgusting things are left?”

The berserker, freshly bandaged, muttered, prodding the grotesque serpent head beside his foot with his broken blade: “These bastards are vile enough already—now they’ve grown wings and become even more repulsive!”

The berserker’s words struck a chord; many nodded in agreement.

“Exactly!”

“Flying all of them is just unfair!”

“This is outright cheating!”

This was the collective sentiment of everyone in the fortress.

In raw strength, they feared none of the demon’s creations—even their overall power surpassed them!

Yet they fought so desperately for one reason alone—flight.

Not everyone possessed anti-air capabilities, nor could everyone fight effectively mid-air.

They lacked aerial power.

But the Lust God’s minions each bore a pair of fleshy membranes as wings, easily launching attacks from above.

This imbalance forced them into a grueling defense, costing them far more than they should have.

A squire bandaged a burn beneath his arm armor, then looked up at the sky obscured by crimson clouds and whispered: “If only the silver-winged celestial steeds from the holy scripture could appear…”

“Celestial steeds?”

The veteran sharpening his blade snorted derisively: “Do you know how many of them exist in the Lord’s divine realm?”

“Besides, we don’t even have a legendary paladin here! No one has the authority to summon them.”

Celestial steeds were indeed powerful, but they were not celestial beings easily summoned.

“I say, if we can’t get steeds, summoning a Thunder Great Eagle would be fine too.”

Another veteran wiped claw marks from his breastplate and sighed: “My grandfather said he saw them tear through storms—”

“And then wait for them to be corrupted by the demon’s flesh puppets into Rotwings?” The cold-faced priest interrupted, pouring the rest of his holy water directly onto the wound.

Sizzle—

The rotting flesh hissed upon contact with the holy water; the veteran gasped sharply, gritting his teeth: “Hss! Hey! Slow down, my dear sister, slow down! Are you trying to kill me?”

The priest’s expression remained unchanged, her voice calm: “Don’t worry, you won’t die. None of you will.”

“Stop fantasizing about sudden reinforcements—you know it’s unrealistic.”

As the priest’s blunt, dull words fell, a tense silence spread among them.

“…”

Radley fell silent too, gazing upward, noticing the sunwheel emblems on the fortress’s outer barrier dimming, emitting faint, strained hums.

Within the crimson clouds beyond, shadowy serpentine forms began to coalesce in clusters.

The next battle would come soon.

He hesitated, then burst into laughter: “Sister, don’t be so stiff! We’re just chatting, hahaha! Ouch, ow, ow—”

The priest shook her head, stepped forward to tend his wound, and said coolly: “Radley, you don’t look like the tough man you brag about.”

“Tch! So what if I’m tough? Tough men still lose arms!”

Radley grinned through gritted teeth, whispering: “Sister of the Church, please.”

The priest’s expression remained stern, but her voice softened slightly: “Rest easy. You won’t die.”

Once the first person broke the silence, others quickly joined in, clamoring.

“Exactly! We all know the situation—what’s wrong with talking?”

“We’ve got nothing else to do right now, and we’re not praying to the Lord—let us chat!”

The cold-faced priest pressed her lips together, a flicker of helplessness in her eyes, but ultimately chose silence, yielding to their wishes.

She didn’t truly mind their chatter—she only feared they’d grow careless and lose their fighting spirit.

But now it seemed… whether they relaxed or not, it wouldn’t change the outcome.

Perhaps this was their end.

Maybe in the next wave. Or the one after.

Yet no one fled. No one feared.

They came for their faith. They were willing to fight for their god’s dignity—even unto death, without regret!

“Perhaps we should discuss what true sky dominator exists.”

“Good, good! That’s a great topic!”

“Let’s do it!”

These warriors, lacking aerial power, found dark amusement in debating who ruled the skies.

“I say griffins! Their claws can tear through rock, they can be ridden, and there are plenty of them! If we had a full regiment of griffin riders, we could wipe out these monsters easily!”

“No, no, griffins still fall short. Their individual strength can’t match celestial steeds, not even the winged serpents, and even though they’re numerous, that still doesn’t make them superior to others!”

“I say it’s the Thunder Great Eagle! My grandfather said he saw them tear through storms—”

They argued fiercely, none yielding.

They weren’t truly arguing—just using the topic to vent their emotions; as long as the noise was loud enough, it was enough.

Were they fearless warriors?

To the world, they are.

They fear no death, choosing to stand on the front lines against evil.

But in the hearts of these warriors, is there truly no fear at all?

Or is there some?

Only a very, very few can face death calmly; the vast majority cannot.

If so, why are those who die for their beliefs never lacking?

Fear does not mean one must flee.

Even afraid, they still bravely face death, choosing where to end their lives.

Some say true courage is facing fear after recognizing it.

These warriors, though not outstanding in strength, all deserve to be called brave.

“You fools! Talking nonsense!”

After arguing for a while, Radley, furious at the others’ absurd logic, turned to speak with the young man in the corner of the fortress:

“Hey, Faou! Say something! Those idiots actually claim griffins can mate with eagles! So stupid!”

This high-ranking paladin, skilled but silent, had arrived only recently and had not yet fully integrated into the fortress’s group.

Faou had been lowering his head, polishing his longsword. At these words, he looked up, thought for a moment, and said: “Perhaps… dragons?”

The paladin’s words woke the others from their argument; they nodded vigorously.

“Dragons? Oh! Yes, yes, yes! Dragons too! How could we forget those giant lizards!”

Dragons, a race that once ruled the world.

Though their former glory is gone, they still stand among the very pinnacle of the world.

“If only a dragon were here now, those damned servants of the evil god would’ve been wiped out already!”

“If only a dragon rider appeared, those bastards wouldn’t dare claim the skies!”

“Gentlemen, as I said before, dragon riders are rarer than griffin riders—how could one appear so easily… Huh!?”

As they spoke, suddenly, without warning, a change occurred.

Far in the sky, a grotesque crimson appeared—the crimson sky above the fortress suddenly ignited!

Not the pale gold of holy flame, but blood-red!

“That’s…”

As the crowd puzzled, the next moment, a deafening dragon roar tore through the clouds.

ROAR!!!

Immediately after, the piercing shrieks of the terrifying flying serpent swarm came.

Their grotesque scales melted and burned away, falling from the sky like dumplings.

“What’s going on!?”

Gulp.

Radley swallowed hard, clutching the sun amulet hanging on his chest—it remained inert.

Had the Sun Holy Flame descended?

Heavenly fire?

No… I feel no authority from my Lord…

The next moment, they finally saw the true form of the crimson shadow—a colossal dragon over a hundred meters long!

Its vast wings stirred a hurricane; each grotesque scale flowed with crimson patterns.

As the crimson dragon dove, countless flying serpents turned to ash in its breath.

“Good! Good! Good!!!”

“Reinforcements! It must be the Church’s reinforcements!”

“Purge all those damned monsters!”

Seeing the scene, the crowd erupted in cheers!

After holding out so long, they had finally found hope.

“That’s…”

Among the joyful crowd, only Faou’s expression was strange.

He wiped his eyes, gazing blankly at the crimson shadow in the distance, and an image of a white-haired figure surfaced in his mind.

“…Could it be you?”

“Lord Herbert?”

“Have you come to defend justice as well?”

His expression changed; his reverence for Herbert deepened.

No wonder he’s Lord Herbert!

A true model of a paladin!

…

…

“Charge! Charge! Charge!”

At this moment, the lord in Faou’s heart was gleefully piloting the dragon Feiji, striking back and forth through the enemy ranks.

“Valentina, Second Battalion Commander! Fire at the enemy!”

Valentina: ROAR!!!

Miss Hungry Dragon didn’t know what a Second Battalion Commander was—but she was having a blast!

Battle!

Awesome!!!

Behind Herbert, who was having the time of his life, the succubus and devil dressed as nuns exchanged a helpless glance.

They whispered to each other:

“Um… is he always like this?”

“You’re asking me? How should I know?”

…

At the very moment Valentina unleashed her brutality, Solanthis reacted.

They felt the unfamiliar Shi Shi fluctuation, their minds repeating one question:

“Is that… our ally?”

“Though it’s attacking the servants of Niyu, its brutality makes it feel anything but!”

(End of Chapter)