[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-ember-dragon":3,"chapter-ember-dragon-ember-dragon-chapter-438":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Ember Dragon",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},1161974,1504,"Chapter 438: You Are Not Loyal Enough!","ember-dragon-chapter-438",438,"\u003Cp>Chapter 438: You Are Not Loyal Enough!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Huff, huff.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Damn, that NPC was terrifying! I’ve never seen fire damage that ridiculous before.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She looks like a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, but she almost wiped out all the elite players who passed the trial!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Still, thank goodness.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The [Royal Authority] guild player pulled out the ring clutched tightly in his hand, exhaled onto it, and wiped it clean. His bloodshot eyes gleamed with excitement and exhilaration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Got my treasure.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hehe, the server’s first purple-tier item—I’m going to strike it rich!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I wonder how much President Overlord will reward me this time. Maybe enough to live comfortably for the rest of my life!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was already lost in a fantasy of wealth and success.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, the [Royal Authority] guild had a history of such events.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During the beta test, President Overlord had spent 100,000 yuan to buy a full set of rare equipment from a guild member.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Swoosh—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, he felt a scorching heat behind him, and his clothes began to burn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No... no way.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sense of dread rose in his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He trembled as he turned around, his face paling instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A red-haired, golden-eyed girl appeared, stepping through the rift in space. She hovered in mid-air, looking down on him, her flame-like hair swirling wildly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flames encircled her, and ashes floated around.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The meaning in her gaze was clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Emperor Cassius once said,\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Theft is strictly forbidden within the Empire.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The player muttered in disbelief, \"How does this NPC have such a large range of activity...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She’s supposed to be the boss of the Tower of Blighted Flame! How can she show up here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But, unwilling to let go of his impending fortune, the [Royal Authority] player went all in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He clutched the ring tightly, his eyes bloodshot, veins bulging on his forehead as he desperately defended himself:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"D-Don’t come any closer!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This isn’t theft!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What players do in the game can’t be called stealing! Where’s the admin behind you? I’m filing a complaint for consumer fraud!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Misha coldly observed him, the flames around her intensifying into a fiery vortex.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her lips moved slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Unforgivable.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Boom!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the next moment, fierce tongues of flame surged out like a giant serpent, engulfing the player entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the flames dissipated, only a small pile of ashes remained on the ground, scattered by the wind. Left behind was a single, gleaming golden ring—the [Noble Efreet Ring].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hmph, fool.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Greedy and ignorant fools like him are no different from those northern nobles. Dreaming of becoming Dragon Pact Sorcerers? Ridiculous.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Misha beckoned with her hand, and the precious ring was enveloped in flames and floated into her palm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She once again stretched out her hand, tearing open a fiery spatial rift, and returned to the Tower of Blighted Flame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Holding the ring, Misha softly declared, \"The sinner has been punished accordingly.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let this be a warning to you all.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Additionally, I am Misha, the Pact Sorcerer of the great Emperor Cassius, and his executor within the Tower of Blighted Flame.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes, ma’am!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We will obey your orders!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the fate of the thieves, the remaining players quickly pledged their loyalty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But they couldn’t help feeling relieved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I knew it—there’s no such thing as a free lunch. It was a trap!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah, good thing I didn’t try to grab any gear.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"More like you couldn’t get any.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Man, Dragon Pact Sorcerers are crazy strong! This damage is insane.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hehe, I saw something was off and stayed calm. Now I’m about to advance!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah, we’re about to gain this incredibly powerful class!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The players began envisioning their bright futures. With such a powerful class, they could soar to new heights.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the eager gazes of the players, Misha looked around and spoke again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As you can see, Dragon Pact Sorcerers possess immense power, all bestowed by the supreme Emperor Cassius.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Every Dragon Pact Sorcerer is a servant and executor of His Majesty, blessed by the great Red Dragon.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her fingertips ignited with flames.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For us, the most important thing is absolute loyalty.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the players, Summer Night Autumn Rain beamed with joy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had guessed correctly!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected, being a contract-bound servant required loyalty—a defining feature of the Ember Empire’s series of classes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example, data collected on Dragon-Oath Paladins revealed that players in the \"Cassius Fan Club\" dealt higher damage than average players.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Misha continued, raising her slender hand as if to point to the crowd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Therefore—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The players eagerly awaited her next words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You are all disqualified, except for these three.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The players were thunderstruck. They looked around and saw only [Summer Night Autumn Rain], [Art Is Explosion], and [Love Dragons Like the Wind] with golden flames above their heads.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They began shouting in disbelief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What for?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This isn’t fair! Do it over!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I didn’t steal anything, and I passed the trial!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yeah, why aren’t we allowed to pass? We didn’t do anything wrong!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And what about those three? Do they have special privileges?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The remaining dozen or so players erupted into chaos. After all their hard work passing the trial, they were devastated to be hit with such news.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Naturally, they were indignant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Misha, however, remained expressionless as she asked, \"Are you certain you did nothing wrong?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your lack of loyalty to Emperor Cassius is your mistake.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The players were dumbfounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Misha continued seriously, \"During the earlier chaos, only these three Starfallers remained unaffected by external temptations and paid their respects to His Majesty’s statue.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The rest of you, though you didn’t steal, simply stood by and watched.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You didn’t even bother to kneel before Emperor Cassius’ statue!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of absurd reasoning was this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Misha’s \"soul interrogation\" left them speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The disqualified players were indignant, feeling cheated for being eliminated over \"insufficient loyalty.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some players clutched their chests, feeling intense regret.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had seen Summer Night Autumn Rain and the others kneeling before Cassius’ statue earlier but dismissed it as fan-club fanaticism.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If only they had knelt, they would have passed too!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe there was still a chance?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking this, they decided to try their luck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Emperor Cassius!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several players simultaneously slid to their knees before Cassius’ statue, wailing comically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Please, ma’am, don’t eliminate me! I’m very loyal!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Long live Emperor Cassius!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"His Majesty is our eternal sun!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other players, stunned for a moment, quickly followed suit, afraid of being left behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For the great Red Dragon’s vision!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We could never repay Emperor Cassius’ kindness, even over lifetimes!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Glory to the Ember Emperor!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But their antics failed to impress the Dragon Pact Sorcerer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Misha shook her head, finding their behavior disgraceful and disrespectful to Cassius.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Leave this place.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I see no loyalty in your eyes—only greed and lust for power. You are unworthy of becoming Dragon Pact Sorcerers.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Misha’s voice was cold as flames reignited in her hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Get out.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the threat of fire, the players reluctantly left in tears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As for you... follow me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your loyalty has passed my test, and I will take you to meet His Majesty.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three remaining players were ecstatic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only had they successfully advanced, but they were also about to meet Cassius.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the current Ember Empire, such an opportunity was incredibly rare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During the beta, players could meet Cassius with a few coins by exchanging for a [Mysterious Invitation] and visiting him as a mysterious merchant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, the towering emperor resided permanently in the Steel Dragonwing Palace, and not even mountains of gold could buy an audience.\u003C\u002Fp>",1252,"2026-06-03T12:47:02.951Z","2026-06-03T12:47:07.061Z",1,"novelbin.me","7514cc9a6caba572d5de9ebe940893a36986d87a25a8687d80ccafc3de0795ec","ember-dragon-chapter-321","ember-dragon-chapter-320",603,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fember-dragon-cover.jpg"]