Chapter 461: Spying and the Dragon

Luo De turned his head and saw a young human man with golden hair.

Though he couldn't compare to Luo De's looks, the man was still handsome—fair-skinned and delicate, like a pretty boy.

The man didn't look at Luo De; he casually draped his arm over Luo De's shoulder.

In his other hand, he raised his drink and smiled toward Lily across from Luo De.

"To you, Lily—thank you for your Glass Transformation and Wrathfire spells. Without you, slaying the dragon wouldn't have gone so smoothly."

"Mr. Kain? You flatter me. Thank you as well for the adventurers' active role in this dragon-slaying mission."

Lily's smile shifted from warm to polite.

Cool and distant, she showed more reserve than she had with Luo De.

Both took a sip.

Mr. Kain grew bolder, pointing to a table surrounded by several people:

"They're playing Lock Cards over there—want to join?"

"Sorry, I don't gamble."

"Oh, what a pity. It's such fun! Look—Layla Starword! Deepwater's most famous bard. Let's go see her?"

Hearing his rising tone, Luo De followed his gaze.

At the tavern's entrance appeared a tall, graceful woman, tiptoeing as if weightless, gliding in effortlessly.

She had long, pointed elven ears; her silvery-white hair was partly braided into an intricate plait, resting gently atop wings soft and rounded like clouds.

She was a Cloud Elf.

A faint white glow seemed to radiate from her, giving her an otherworldly aura.

Her face bore a gentle, warm smile as she waved to the crowd.

The moment she entered, she instantly drew the attention of some young patrons; after a brief stunned silence, they erupted into cheers!

They surged forward.

But several figures resembling bodyguards blocked them; beside her walked a middle-aged woman with a look of disgust—likely her agent.

Luo De raised an eyebrow.

So Layla Starword was some kind of star in Deepwater.

But not everyone was excited; most were seasoned veterans, merely smiling as they watched the youths' commotion.

Though young, Lily herself had little interest in celebrities.

She declined Kain again: "No thanks. My friend and I are just chatting here."

"Hmm, alright."

Kain looked slightly disgruntled, shot a hostile glance at Luo De beside him, and left with a scowl.

Watching his retreating back,

Luo De smiled: "Popular guy."

"Hmph. That guy did nothing during the dragon slaying—hid in the back and watched. If not for the other adventurers being decent, I'd have kicked him out already. Cloud Elves live in Cloudweave City up in the sky, yet some still want to come down and play. This sister really is beautiful."

"She's quite lovely, but not as cute as you, Lily."

"Thank you—you're handsome too!"

Lily beamed, returning the compliment freely.

Her two tiny, snow-white legs swung more merrily under the table.

"Now that the Deepwater dragon case is over, where are you headed next?"

She gave Luo De a cool wink: "To Shiying Town—Coral Bay's dark elves summoned two chromatic dragons. It's the far western frontier, with no one as skilled as in Deepwater. I've wanted to help you for ages, but the dragon slaying here took too long."

Luo De had been thinking the same.

Lily had just survived a dragon slaying, and her rank wasn't low—she'd reached mid-7th Tier.

That was a bit ridiculous.

Luo De and Lily had both advanced to 6th Tier together in Cuiyu City—and now they were at the same rank!

He'd had advantages—he'd used over a dozen Spirit Seeds.

He'd known Lily's talent was extraordinary; even Bahadur Magic Academy had resorted to underhanded tactics to revoke her enrollment, fearing she'd dominate the year.

But he hadn't expected it to be this extreme!

"I was just wondering how to ask you for help."

"We're friends, aren't we? Helping those in need is the very principle of our Hero Alliance."

Luo De smiled, about to speak—

Then his Spider Sense tingled with the sensation of being watched.

He whipped his head around and instantly pinpointed the source: a palm-sized crystal ball mounted on the backdrop behind Layla Starword's stage.

Ordinary, unremarkable—even no magical fluctuation detectable.

Luo De frowned and activated Insight Magic Eye.

The next instant, the crystal ball changed before his eyes.

A faint, hazy magical mist slowly dispersed, revealing a pale purple crystal ball filled with intricate, arcane magical circuits.

Worse still, Insight Magic Eye pierced deeper, driving straight into the crystal ball's core.

Luo De then saw what lay on the other side:

A massive dragon's head.

Covered in olive-green scales, crowned with raised horns, jaws lined with dense teeth.

Something was in its mouth—it idly chewed.

Its cruel, predatory green eyes stared coldly through the crystal ball, observing every scene it captured.

"Green dragon?"

Luo De was stunned—a green dragon was spying on them?

Before he could process it,

Suddenly—

The green dragon on the other side of the crystal ball snapped its head up in shock.

Their gazes met across the void; its evil vertical pupils shrank violently.

The vision cut off instantly—the spying link was severed.

Crack!

At the same moment, a jagged crack split the crystal ball from end to end.

Wild magical energy surged violently from within; the crystal buzzed, then rapidly shifted from pale purple to a dangerous crimson, visible to the naked eye.

All of this was masked by Layla Starword's singing on stage.

Lily's expression changed abruptly; she turned toward the stage corner—she'd noticed something was wrong.

But the change was too fast, too sudden.

The moment she realized it, the magical torrent inside the crystal ball was on the verge of explosion.

Thump—

A sharp, grating sound came from beside them—the high stool was about to tip over.

Hiss!

The next instant—

A shadow flashed violently beside her, gone in a blink.

Lily instinctively blinked—and when her vision refocused, Luo De was already on stage.

His thick right hand shot out like a tiger's claw, plunging into the solid wooden stage backdrop with a wet *plop*, then yanked hard, tearing out the embedded crystal ball along with splinters and broken decorations.

Lily's eyes widened, but her mind moved swiftly.

She snatched her staff from her waist and instantly cast a Magic Missile, blasting a hole through the ceiling above Luo De, revealing a starlit night sky glowing with luminescent stars.

Simultaneously, Luo De hurled the crystal ball upward—exactly through the hole Lily had created, sending it soaring into the sky.

Their coordination was flawless, completed in an instant.

"Hey! You—"

The haughty middle-aged woman, clearly the agent, spotted Luo De, turned pale, and pointed at him to shout.

BOOM!!

Flames shot skyward!

A violent shockwave shattered every pane of glass in the tavern; the explosion drowned out all other sound!

(End of Chapter)