Chapter 126: Reveal Yourself, Dragon!

"Boom! Boom!"

A sound heavy as muffled thunder rose—that was the sound of countless soldiers stamping the earth in perfect unison, their footfalls layered together.

Ergou had never before seen such a magnificent sight: a sea of people, every direction he looked nothing but a dark, dense mass of heads.

Yet not a single stray sound emerged; only beneath the ceaselessly waving great banner did the army begin to advance in perfect unison.

Seen from afar it was like a flowing black sea, corroding and swallowing clean anything that dared draw near.

The once-sparse mountain villages had at this moment been razed flat, all so the great army could form its battle array.

"So this is what an army empowered by martial artists looks like?"

Ergou couldn't help muttering to himself, then turned his gaze toward the most eye-catching spot of the entire army.

It was the very center, where a crimson banner pole stood.

Beside the great banner stood a mighty, dashing generalissimo. He wore dazzling silver armor and rode a tall, fine steed whose entire body was covered in a layer of scales, surrounded by countless equally imposing generals.

Ergou swore this was the most majestic horse and general he had ever seen, beneath the solemn atmosphere of this vast army.

He couldn't help but feel a surge of pride as well—Look! This was their Great Zhou! So great, so magnificent!

But the corner of his eye seemed to catch his father beside him looking somewhat dejected, and only then did he remember that their home was gone, and that for now they still could not leave.

His mood sank along with it. He unconsciously touched the strange scale on his chest; after a few days of handling it, he seemed to have discovered it was a treasure—perhaps…

At this moment, at the center of the army, beside the crimson banner pole.

A fully armored man whose face could not be made out asked the silver-armored general beside him: "General, the army is ready. Shall we begin pushing into the great mountain?"

Facing what seemed to be his deputy's question, the silver-armored man did not answer directly.

He seemed to gaze at the mountain range with slightly unfocused eyes, and laughed lightly: "Renqing, you're still so impatient. Do you really think that dragon could escape?"

"We've gathered the most elite prefecture of Great Zhou, every ounce of its strength—a full hundred and fifty thousand Three Limits soldiers—and we've also assembled a great number of major sects and noble houses."

"Whether they travel by land, swim through water, or fly through the sky, we have martial artists of every kind of power. A dragon without wisdom—what has it to run with?"

"Ah, not to mention having a Nine Limits expert like myself here. What is there to fear?"

"But General Zhou Li has already…" Hearing this, the deputy named Renqing began to speak with some worry.

"Don't mention any Zhou Li." The man waved his hand, cutting him off directly. "Just an Eight Limits fellow who bowed and scraped before that guy and got himself a fine post, that's all."

As he spoke he raised his head, gazing at his own palm, seeming somewhat intoxicated by the sensation of holding supreme power at this moment.

Such tremendous authority and strength, all gathered in his palm. If he didn't savor it a while longer, there would be no such chance again in the future.

Were it not for his fear of that one's power, he would even want to lead the great army straight at Tiandu and try his luck.

But he did not dare.

After savoring it a while, he finally spoke: "Begin. Order the army to clear away every obstacle along the way, step by step."

Then he muttered to himself: "Duanlong Mountain Range—heh, what a fine name. Today I shall make this mountain range live up to its name—the Duanlong Mountain Range that truly slays the dragon!"

"Dragon, struggle with all your might."

"Upon this stage built for you, show me your full power."

"Let me see whether you truly deserve that title, whether you can break through that binding!"

If possible, who knows—perhaps even that emperor's throne, I, Zhou Renyi, shall have a seat upon it!

That last sentence he did not speak aloud, merely recited it silently in his heart.

At this moment, that immense power had nourished the seedling of ambition into flame.

……

As the great army began to advance, in an instant everything changed. Dust rolled in billows, and countless ancient trees that had stood for untold years crashed down.

The earth split, the great mountains trembled, birds took flight in overwhelming numbers to escape, stirring up gust after gust of "whoosh, whoosh" wind.

The birds could escape easily, but the countless land creatures could not, and could only flee in helpless panic toward the deeper parts of the great mountain.

At this moment there was no longer any distinction of predator and prey. Wolves and rabbits, tigers and deer, wild boars, Laoshu and other animals no longer paid any heed to their former identities, all becoming one tide fleeing toward the depths.

At this moment, seen from afar, it was as if this lush green mountain giant had been surrounded by that endless black tide.

And as the black tide advanced, the emerald color of the great mountain began to peel away bit by bit, revealing the cracked, yellow-brown flesh beneath.

Before such a terrifying scene, Ergou—who had once been a villager at the foot of the mountain—had no choice but to move forward, swept along by the great army.

But they were common folk after all, merely trailing at the very rear of the army behind the likes of the former Squire Jia. This could be considered the final mercy of those lofty generals.

At this moment, Baichuan, who had just taken his leave from Huang Zhongtian, saw the scene before his eyes.

The earth trembled, great trees crashed down, countless wild beasts became a Beast Tide fleeing toward the depths of the great mountain.

In an instant, this dense forest had lost its former harmony; there was only the swirling dust and the ceaseless thunderous roars.

Gazing upon such a terrifying scene, Baichuan couldn't help sighing: "This will bring ruin to all living things."

As his words fell, a wisp of wavering flame slowly kindled in the Jiao Snake's pair of sharp eyes, signifying that the Jiao Snake had made ready for battle.

The next moment, scorching hot winds rose from all directions, surging upward, and in an instant the air above began to twist and warp.

Then the Jiao Snake leapt up, its massive pair of wings spreading as it soared skyward.

……

At this moment, at the center of the army, a martial artist with wings flew toward him—he was a retainer of Zhou Renyi's household.

He was seen fawningly handing Zhou Renyi a strange scale, saying to him: "General, it seems we have found a scale shed by that dragon. Please have a look."

It was a thick, diamond-shaped, strange scale, its color a blue-purple that shifted depending on the angle.

Zhou Renyi held the scale and examined it closely for a while, then praised: "Not bad."

Then he directly drew the sharp sword at his waist and slashed it down upon the scale.

"Clang—"

In an instant, sparks flashed and the sound of metal striking rang out.

Yet the scale remained completely undamaged, while a notch had appeared on the precious sword.

"Goodness, what terrifying scales!"

"My treasured sword, forged by the master craftsmen of Tiandu, couldn't even leave a scratch on it."

Zhou Renyi ran his eyes lovingly over the strange scale, one compliment after another spilling from his lips.

"Truly worthy of being a dragon's scale! This General has decided — once we catch the dragon, I must take its hardest, most precious scales and have a suit of armor forged for myself!"

"I hear the reverse scale on a dragon's body is the most precious of all, so I'll take that one and use it as the Heart Protector Mirror for my armor! Of course, don't worry, I won't leave you out, Renqing."

Listening to his general's words, the deputy general beside him gave not a single response — he seemed to have long grown used to it.

They hadn't even caught a glimpse of the dragon yet, but Zhou Renyi was already daydreaming about splitting the spoils afterwards, utterly disregarding the authority of the present Zhou Tianzi.

But just at that moment, high above the mountain range—

A slender figure rose from below, soaring up into mid-air, a ring of faintly visible crimson wind spirals coiling around it.

At this moment, the dragon that the great army had searched for a thousand years without ever finding—

Truly descended above the army…

(End of Chapter)