Chapter 154: The Power of the True Dragon, the Ice Crystal Flower, the Loquacious Witch

Red Fox Castle, reception hall.

A massive crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, refracting candlelight into dazzling beams through its transparent crystals.

Flames roared in the fireplace, logs crackling as they released the clean scent of pine.

Beia stepped in cautiously, gazing at the figure on the sofa, then bowed deeply and knelt on one knee.

“Great Sage, whose benevolence once warmed the southern lands like crimson fire, and whose brilliance shone like the morning star—your humble servant Beia William comes before you.” He spoke with the utmost humility.

“Rise.”

A familiar voice reached his ears, and Beia slowly lifted his head.

Under his hopeful gaze, the sage seated on the sofa revealed his true face—a handsome young man with black hair.

Wait, this face is so familiar… Could it be?!

In the next instant, Beia’s face drained of all color, pale as freshly washed linen, beads of sweat bursting from his forehead.

He recognized him—the sage he served was the very man who, after a clash at the Night Shadow Tavern, ordered his servants to beat him.

Oh heavens, I’ve just sworn loyalty only to discover I’ve enraged my lord beyond redemption—is there any servant more unfortunate than me?

“You seem nervous.”

Xia Mingyu gazed at the pale, trembling youth before him and asked softly.

“My Lord, when I met you at the Nightingale Tavern, I did not know your identity and insulted you—I deserve death a thousand times over!”

Beia trembled as he pressed his forehead hard against the floor, his back bent into a half-circle.

“How did your father, Lord Beren, die?”

Xia Mingyu fell silent for a moment, then changed the subject.

“A mad named beast came to our lands recently, killing many of our people. My father led our knights to fight it to protect our villagers, suffered grave wounds, and though the beast was lured away by Lords Luo Yi and Luo Lan, he still succumbed to his injuries.”

Beia answered immediately, respectfully and without hesitation.

As he spoke of his father’s death, sorrow crept into his voice.

“To die for your people—your father was undoubtedly a great lord. Even I hold him in deep respect.”

Xia Mingyu recalled the old man who had gifted little Haidun a bouquet of forget-me-nots at the infant honor ceremony, and sighed deeply.

He had seen the man only recently—now he was gone. Life truly was fragile.

“Beia, I hope you do not dishonor your father’s legacy—become a lord who cherishes his people as he did.”

Xia Mingyu placed his hand on the young man’s shoulder.

He knew that a few more words now could improve the lives of hundreds of thousands on the William lands in the future.

“As you command, my Lord.”

Though sorrow still lingered in Beia’s heart, his body had relaxed considerably.

He knew his lord, out of respect for his father’s honor, had let him off the hook.

“Raise your head. I imagine you are puzzled why your father ordered you to swear loyalty to me before his death. I will tell you the answer.”

Xia Mingyu slowly removed the Ring of Starfire, and the deep purple inscription emerged—Heir to the Kingdom of 1,409,670,292 Subjects.

“Aaaah!”

The moment Beia saw the divine blessing, he felt as if his eyes were being blinded.

He finally understood why his father had done it—he wasn’t just a worthy lord, he was the best father in the entire world!

Moments later, Beia stumbled out of the reception hall in a daze.

One reason was his mind still reeling from the shock of the fourteen-hundred-million blessing.

The other was that, just before leaving, his lord had advised him to stop pursuing Damien, find a wife, and ensure the William line didn’t die out—even offering to arrange the match.

Waaah, my beloved Damien—it seems I truly must leave you now!

Beia thought, heartbroken.

On the other side, after Beia left the reception hall, Kallen entered.

“Your Highness, I have completed my mission—I witnessed the executions of villains across all viscounties of the southern lands, ensuring not a single innocent suffered unjustly.”

Kallen knelt on one knee, gazing at the black-haired youth he hadn’t seen in ages, speaking clearly.

“You’ve worked hard, Kallen.”

In contrast to his stern demeanor before Beia, Xia Mingyu smiled as he helped Kallen up and pulled him to sit beside him on the sofa.

“Your Highness, I’ve heard of the Twilight Tea incident. Those damned Kelai merchants remain as evil and greedy as ever. I’m sorry I wasn’t by your side when you were in danger—I failed to offer even my meager aid.”

After some pleasantries, Kallen apologized.

No matter the reason, a servant’s absence during his lord’s peril was a grave sin.

“It’s fine. You were carrying out my orders,” Xia Mingyu said calmly.

“Thank you for your forgiveness. I also have another matter to report.”

Moments later, a maid entered the reception hall carrying a wooden box.

Click.

The box opened, revealing a head with its features erased—smooth, flat, devoid of any facial contours.

No hair, no skin texture—like swollen parchment clumsily stretched over a skull.

“Ugh.” Xia Mingyu felt a wave of nausea rise in his stomach, as if he might vomit up his lunch.

“Quick, close the box!”

Seeing the prince’s pallor, Kallen swiftly ordered the maid to shut the box.

“Your Highness, this is the assassin who attacked Luo Yi and Luo Lan after they killed the named beast. He was a Hunter of Demons—extremely powerful. Even I barely killed him with Blacktail’s help.” Kallen explained.

“Your Highness, judging from his faceless appearance, I suspect he was artificially bred as an assassin.”

Hearing this, Xia Mingyu fell into deep thought.

Clearly, the sudden appearance of the mad named beast on William lands, the Kelai merchant Ekcus who brought Twilight Tea, and this faceless assassin—all were part of a deliberate conspiracy targeting the southern lands.

The only forces capable of breeding a New Moon-rank Hunter of Demons—and transforming him into a faceless creature—were few indeed across all of Sosia.

“Has the Glutton King, so high above, finally grown tired of the nuisance that is the southern lands?”

Xia Mingyu immediately thought of the Glutton King. After all, if the king’s goal was to create famine across Sosia, then the southern lands—the only region still abundant in food—were his thorn and his eyesore.

The moment he reached this conclusion, Xia Mingyu felt a crushing sense of urgency.

Even with his dual blessings elevating him to Morning Star rank, and a group of exceptionally gifted companions, he was still insignificant before the Glutton King, who possessed a dragon.

In this world, true dragons were not the weak, overhunted, poorly breeding creatures of Blue Star fantasy novels.

Here, true dragons were the undisputed synonym for supreme power, second only to the gods.

Each true dragon was born of the world itself—almost never through fleshly reproduction.

Even the offspring of two true dragons were not true dragons—they were only false dragons.

From the moment of their birth, true dragons were given names by the world itself—Valgaron, Ignio.

The reason true dragons were bound to the term “supreme” was that each one naturally ascended to the Seventh Rank—Sun Wheel Rank—as time passed.

Consider this: throughout all of human history, those who reached the Seventh Rank were exceedingly rare—each a legendary hero, a founding monarch, a supreme mage, or a divine-era champion.

In other words, the upper limit of humanity—and most intelligent races—was merely the lower limit of a true dragon.

Furthermore, due to their massive size—hundreds of meters at minimum—and their world-destroying dragonfire, true dragons surpassed all humanoid races in destructive power at the same rank.

A single adult true dragon, if it chose, could turn a city of a million people into a boiling sea of fire within minutes.

The reason Sosia, Milan, and Rhine were the three great human nations of the Western Continent was that each controlled a true dragon.

Sosia’s “Melted Gold Fire,” Valgaron; Milan’s “Sky’s Wrath,” Solirra; Rhine’s “Infernal Sin,” Ignio.

These three true dragons had each destroyed armies numbering in the hundreds of thousands alone, allowing the three kingdoms to endure for centuries—even when they occasionally produced tyrants like the Glutton King—thanks to the dragons’ might.

In short, the dragons always had their backs.

Xia Mingyu suspected this was precisely why the Glutton King could enact such insane grain tax policies without fearing execution.

“Your Highness, to ensure your safety, I shall temporarily reside at Red Fox Castle,” Kallen’s voice pulled Xia Mingyu from his thoughts.

“Haidun has just been born—won’t you spend more time with him as he grows?”

“For a child, I believe he needs a father with greater glory. When he grows older, he will understand me,” Kallen smiled faintly.

What if he never understands?

What if I don’t understand later?

Do you think that “Child of the King” blessing you wear came from nowhere? That’s your old man’s hard-earned favor!

Ugh, you’ve got to beat him early—otherwise, when he grows up, you won’t be able to catch him.

After Kallen left, Youde arrived, his eyes shadowed by dark circles, struggling to carry a box.

“Your Highness, here are the potions you requested—I guarantee they’ll exceed your expectations.” Wiping sweat from his brow, Youde spoke with confidence.

“Thank you, Youde. I’m looking forward to it.”

Xia Mingyu opened the box eagerly as he spoke, revealing a full crate of vials filled with pale blue liquid.

He had asked Youde if there was a potion to rapidly restore mana, and Youde had stayed up all night to brew this mana potion—capable of swiftly restoring mana for mages and Morning Star Qiangzhe , and aiding beginners in sensing mana during meditation.

Without hesitation, he picked up a vial, pulled the stopper, and drank it all at once.

The taste was surprisingly pleasant—like drinking an energy drink from the Blue Star.

The moment the potion entered his throat, Xia Mingyu felt a cool sensation flood his mind, easing the dull, drained fog that had plagued him from daily mana depletion.

“The effect is good—but,” Xia Mingyu frowned slightly. He could feel his mana had recovered by less than one-tenth.

“Sage, what’s wrong?” Youde asked, tense with worry.

“I’ll need about fifteen vials to fully restore my mana,” Xia Mingyu estimated, gazing at the crate filled with potions.

"I’ll need about fifteen bottles to fully restore my magic," Xia Mingyu estimated, looking at the box filled with potions.

He had originally thought this box of potion was plentiful, but now it seemed it would barely suffice for one or two mana restorations—assuming no tolerance developed.

“Wise One, your internal mana reserves are simply too vast; even thirty bottles of standard market-grade mana potion would still fall short of fully restoring you,” Yude said, helplessly spreading his hands.

Thirty bottles? How many times would I have to rush to the toilet each day!

Xia Mingyu’s lips twitched; he realized the quality of mana potion needed improvement.

Otherwise, his kidneys might fail before he even produced enough food.

“Is there any way to increase the mana restoration per bottle?” Xia Mingyu asked.

At this, Yude fell into deep thought. He opened his personal alchemy tome and studied it for a long while before answering.

“Wise One, I’ve already reached the limit of my potion-making technique. To further improve quality, we must turn to the ingredients.”

“The core ingredient of mana potion is Ice Crystal Flower—a bloom that grows only in extreme cold, and whose potency rapidly fades once removed from such an environment.”

“Even with your reputation, the Ice Crystal Flowers I’ve acquired for potion-making are the finest in Dusk City—yet they retain only four-tenths of their full potency.”

“If I could obtain Ice Crystal Flowers with full potency, I could confidently double—or more—the quality of the mana potion,” Yude said.

Yet after giving this answer, an air of helplessness crept over his face.

After all, even when merchants pluck Ice Crystal Flowers in the Northern Lands and immediately seal them in specially crafted ice vaults, then race to Dusk City on horseback, they still retain only four-tenths of their potency.

To preserve full potency, he’d have to live in the Northern Lands and distill the flowers the moment they’re picked.

Ice Crystal Flower… Xia Mingyu recalled how, during his travels through the Northern Lands with Dolovi, he’d once seen small flowers with petals resembling ice crystals, lying in the snow—he’d even complimented their beauty then.

He took Yude’s alchemy tome and examined its illustration, confirming that the flower was indeed the Ice Crystal Flower.

If he plucked Ice Crystal Flowers in the Northern Lands and stored them in the Linking Space, then retrieved them in Dusk City, would their full potency be preserved?

“Yude, I’ll find a way to secure the Ice Crystal Flowers. Go get some proper rest—you’ve worked too hard.”

Looking at Yude, who had nearly turned from a monkey into a panda, Xia Mingyu felt a pang of guilt. He reached into his pocket and placed a few silver sols gently into the man’s coat.

“To serve you is my lifelong honor and joy—please continue to command me freely!” Yude replied.

After silently watching him depart, Xia Mingyu returned to his bedroom, lay down on the soft bed, and pulled the covers up.

“Starfire Link, activate.”

In an instant, his consciousness spun wildly.

The Northern Lands.

Across an endless expanse of snow, a knightly girl with blue hair and emerald eyes walked beside a woman with pale hair.

Yet the knight girl seemed to resist the woman, quietly pulling away—only to be immediately chased down and affectionately hugged around the arm by the woman, grinning.

“Little Dolochi, where are we going now~?”

“Wow, this earring is so pretty—who gave it to you?”

“Little Dolochi, do you have a boyfriend? Tell me, sister’ll help you vet him. And wearing such tight clothes—aren’t you worried it’ll stunt your chest development?”

Dolovi listened to the witch’s endless barrage of questions, her head buzzing—she almost wished she could draw her sword and kill the woman right then.

(End of Chapter)