Chapter 169: Red Dragon? Successfully Escaped!

Roko looked at the place where that monster had vanished, a tired smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. This book first appeared on Daily Reading Novel Library, ttks. tw, providing you with an error-free and non-disordered reading experience.

"Master!"

Hart and Zewen finally reacted.

Ignoring their own injuries, they scrambled over to Roko's side and helped him up.

"Are you alright?!"

Their voices were filled with the relief and lingering fear of having survived a disaster.

"I'm fine—"

Roko waved his hand, pulled an Advanced Healing Potion from his bosom, and downed it.

A warm current instantly flowed through his entire body.

His pale complexion regained a hint of ruddiness.

"Quick—go check on the casualties of our brothers."

Roko said, panting.

"Also, tie up all those mercenaries who surrendered! Don't let a single one escape!"

"Yes, Master!"

Hart received the order and immediately went to make arrangements.

Zewen stayed behind, keeping a vigilant watch by Roko's side.

The battle was over.

The Blood Wolf Mercenary Group had been completely wiped out.

Except for a few who knelt and surrendered, the rest were all cut down on the spot.

Roko's side, however, had also paid a heavy price.

Over a dozen of the Storm Knights had died in battle, and more than thirty were seriously injured.

Seven or eight of the Red Leaf Forest Hunters had also sacrificed their lives.

This was the most tragic battle Roko had experienced since coming to this world.

He looked at those familiar faces lying in pools of blood, a sharp pain piercing his heart.

War, in the end, is cruel.

"Master."

Hart returned very quickly.

In his hands, he held a few items.

"We found these in the ashes of that mercenary leader's corpse."

Roko took them.

It was a map that had been burned until it was somewhat tattered.

A letter sealed with wax.

And a mercenary group badge engraved with the pattern of a blood wolf.

Roko opened the letter.

He was very familiar with the handwriting on the letter.

It was the personal handwriting of the Governor of Sunset Province, Marquis Archibald!

The content of the letter was very simple.

It was an order for the Blood Wolf Mercenary Group to intercept and kill Roko's caravan in the Black Mist Mountains, promising a reward of two hundred thousand gold coins.

At the end of the letter, it was specifically urged to do it cleanly and leave no evidence behind.

"Heh."

Roko looked at the letter and sneered.

"Truly, the more one tries to hide, the more one is exposed."

He carefully put the letter away.

This was ironclad proof!

Archibald colluded with mercenaries to attack a noble.

If this were brought to the King, it would be enough to get him into serious trouble!

"Clean up the battlefield."

Roko ordered.

"Treat the wounded and collect the remains of our brothers."

"When we go back, we will give them a glorious burial!"

"Yes, Master!"

Just as everyone began to get busy.

A Red Leaf Forest Hunter responsible for scouting ahead suddenly ran back from the depths of the mountains with a panicked expression.

He ran to Zewen and Roko, his face filled with unprecedented terror!

He pointed toward the depths of the mountains, his voice becoming shrill due to extreme fear!

"Ch-Chief! Master!"

"The, the road ahead—"

"The road leads to a—a dragon's lair!"

"What?!"

Roko and Zewen exclaimed almost at the same time!

A dragon's lair?!

Are you kidding me!

For the vast majority of people in this world, this term only exists in the legends of bards and ancient epics.

That is a legendary creature standing at the very top of the food chain!

It is synonymous with power and destruction!

How could such a thing exist in the Black Mist Mountains?!

"You—did you see it clearly?"

Zewen grabbed the hunter by the shoulder, his voice trembling slightly.

As a tribe that has lived on the edge of the Black Mist Mountains for generations, their understanding of this mountain range far exceeds that of outsiders.

He had only heard in the tribe's oldest legends that a terrifying giant beast, which even the gods feared, slept in the depths of the mountains.

But that had always been just a legend.

For hundreds of years, no one had ever truly seen it.

That was why the tribe's ancestors dared to open up this secret path that only traveled through the outer regions of the mountains.

Could it be that the legend is true?

"It's—it's absolutely true, Master!"

The hunter was so scared he was about to cry.

"I—I saw it with my own eyes!"

"Right in front, in that largest valley!"

"There is a cave as big as a mountain!"

"The entrance to the cave is piled high with gold coins and gems like a small hill!"

"And—and there is a giant—a giant lizard covered in red scales, sleeping!"

"Every—every time it breathes, sparks spray out from its nose!"

Red scales!

Breathing fire!

A mountain of treasure!

Every characteristic pointed to a name that made one's blood run cold.

Red Dragon!

A type of chromatic evil dragon known for its greed, cruelty, and power!

The air froze instantly.

Everyone's face was filled with extreme fear.

The joy of defeating a powerful enemy just moments ago vanished in an instant.

Compared to a real dragon, what were Silver Grade Peak, what were Magic Warrior—all like children playing house, utterly ridiculous.

That was simply not an existence from the same dimension.

"How could this happen?"

Zewen muttered to himself, looking dejected.

"How did we end up here—"

He suddenly remembered something and turned to look at Roko.

"It was that ambush!"

"To counter-encircle that group of mercenaries, we deviated from the original secret path!"

"We broke into the true forbidden zone of death!"

Everyone's heart sank to the bottom.

Now, they were facing an unprecedented and deadly dilemma.

Should they turn back?

Or continue forward?

Turning back meant they would have to traverse that long and dangerous mountain road all over again.

With the wounded and the heavy caravan in tow, they simply didn't have the time.

Moreover, no one could guarantee whether that old man Archibald would send a second wave of pursuers.

But if they continued forward—

They would have to sneak past the eyelids of a dragon that could wake up at any moment.

How was that any different from walking to their deaths?

For a time, everyone fell into a desperate silence.

"Don't panic yet."

Just then, Roko's voice broke the chilling silence.

Although his expression was also somewhat grave, there was not a hint of panic in his eyes.

On the contrary, he was exceptionally calm.

"The more we are in a situation like this, the less we can afford to be in chaos."

He looked at the terrified hunter and asked in a deep voice,

"Are you sure that dragon is sleeping?"

"Y—yes, Master."

The hunter nodded.

"It is lying there, motionless, and its breathing is very steady, just like thunder."

"Very good."

Roko nodded.

He looked at Zewen.

"In the legends of your tribe, was it ever mentioned how long this dragon has been sleeping?"

Zewen tried hard to recall.

"The legends say that the giant beast only came here after the God Fall War."

"Because it was severely wounded, it chose this mountain range as its lair and fell into a long, deep sleep to recover its strength."

"God Fall War."

Roko silently repeated the name in his heart.

That was already thousands of years ago.

In other words, it was very likely that this dragon had been sleeping here for thousands of years.

"It hasn't woken up for thousands of years, which means its wounds are extremely severe, or it requires a very, very long time to recover."

Roko analyzed calmly.

"As long as we keep our movements small and don't take the initiative to provoke it, there is a high probability it won't wake up."

"Moving forward is our only choice now."

"This is a gamble."

"If we win the gamble, we can take the supplies and go home safely."

"If we lose the gamble—."

Roko did not continue.

But everyone understood what the outcome of losing the gamble would be.

That is, to be left with no bones remaining.

"I agree with Master Roko's view."

After a brief hesitation, Zewen was the first to stand up and express his support.

"We people of the Red Leaf Forest are never afraid of taking risks!"

"Rather than retreating in a cowardly manner, it is better to take a gamble!"

"That's right! We will listen to the Master!"

Hart also said loudly.

Not a single one of the Storm Knights raised an objection.

They had a near-blind trust in Roko.

"Good."

Roko nodded with satisfaction.

He knew his decision was very risky.

But now, there was no way back.

"Everyone, listen to my command!"

Roko's voice became incomparably serious.

"Wrap everything that can make a sound in cloth!"

"Wrap the horses' hooves in cloth as well!"

"From now on, until we walk out of that valley, no one is allowed to say a single word!"

Those who disobey will be executed!

"Yes!"

The crowd responded in unison, but their voices were kept extremely low.

The team quickly made thorough preparations.

Then, led by Roko and Zewen, they moved like a group of ghosts walking on the tips of blades.

Silently, they crept toward that legendary dragon valley.

The closer they got, the thicker the faint smell of sulfur in the air became.

A terrifying pressure that made one's heart palpitate also permeated from ahead.

It made everyone's breathing become somewhat difficult.

Finally.

They arrived at a cliff edge that overlooked the entire valley.

When they saw the scene in the valley clearly.

Everyone gasped in unison.

They saw that in the center of the valley below, which was as huge as a crater.

A small mountain of glittering gold coins, gemstones, and magical equipment was enough to almost blind everyone's eyes.

And on that treasure mountain, which would drive any king mad.

A red giant beast, with a body as huge as a hill, was curled up and sleeping soundly.

Every scale on its body was like the highest-quality ruby, shimmering with a mesmerizing luster in the dim light.

It was the legendary Red Dragon!

That massive body, those ferocious horns, and that world-destroying pressure emitted even while it was sleeping.

All made everyone present feel their legs go weak, and Roko's heart was also beating wildly.

In his past life, he had only ever seen this kind of creature in games and movies.

Now, seeing it with his own eyes, he realized that such shock could not be described by any language.

At the same time.

A surge of uncontrollable greed welled up in his heart.

That mountain of treasure was simply too tempting!

If he could obtain it—

That would truly be a massive score!

It was not just him.

In the eyes of everyone around him, a complex light of greed and fear intertwined.

"Everyone, sober up!"

Roko roared fiercely in his heart, forcibly suppressing that greed.

He knew very well that the mountain of treasure was the deadliest of traps.

If they dared to move even a single gold coin from it.

The next second, they would be burned to ashes by that dragon's breath.

"Everyone, follow the plan and circle around the edge of the valley!"

"Move lightly! Do not make any sound!"

Roko issued the order in a whisper.

The team began to move cautiously.

They crept past the sleeping dragon on tiptoe.

Every step was taken with trepidation.

Everyone's heart was in their throat.

However.

Just as they were about to successfully bypass the entire valley.

"Hoo—"

A blast of scorching air suddenly erupted from the massive nostrils of the red dragon sleeping below.

Its eyelids actually twitched slightly!

Immediately after.

A low, rumbling growl like muffled thunder rolled out from its throat.

It.

It was waking up!

In that instant, Roko felt his heart stop beating.

It's over!

This was the only thought that flashed through everyone's mind at the same time.

Everyone froze in place, not daring to move a muscle, even subconsciously holding their breath.

Their faces were filled with despair and fear.

Time seemed to be infinitely stretched at this moment.

Every second felt as long as a century.

However.

The earth-shattering roar and destructive dragon breath they had anticipated did not appear.

The red dragon merely turned over impatiently.

Its massive body pressed down on the treasure mountain beneath it, causing a pleasant "clatter" sound.

It seemed it had only had an uncomfortable dream in its sleep.

Then, it shifted into a more comfortable position.

It rubbed its huge head against the pile of gold coins and began to snore like thunder once again.

A false alarm!

Everyone felt as if they had been fished out of water, their bodies soaked through with cold sweat.

They had walked before the gates of hell.

Roko let out a long sigh of relief, feeling his back icy cold.

He dared not delay any longer.

He immediately gestured for everyone to "move quickly."

The team moved with the greatest speed and the lightest footsteps.

They fled from this terrifying valley that they would never forget for the rest of their lives.

Only after completely leaving the range of that terrifying pressure did everyone dare to breathe deeply.

They had succeeded!

They had actually slipped out from beside a dragon's lair without a scratch!

This immense joy of surviving a disaster made everyone want to burst into laughter.

But they forcibly held it in.

No one could guarantee whether the dragon would suddenly chase after them.

Thus, they continued to advance without stopping.