Chapter 108: Adult Pearl Dragon

The night over the Fallen Star Sea, under the water‑soft kiss of moonlight, the ocean seemed draped in a veil of mysterious silver; the surface glittered like countless tiny silver flakes flashing.

The ship Ao Duo Li floated above the deep waters, and an incredibly noisy clamor rose from the deck.

"Ah, that's it—joy and wine, that's what the sea needs most!"

Ao Duo Li cheerfully raised a large mug of beer, gulping it down into her tiny stomach; the deck was ablaze with light, and countless invisible magical servants carried cups and delicacies, weaving through the air.

At this moment a massive dragon had already regained its true form, its huge body pressing against the deck's prow, creaking "creak," its jaws wide open as it savored the sweets offered by the invisible servants.

"I think so too—food truly is the greatest invention in the world."

Naimi Xisi squinted his eyes, savoring the sweetness in his mouth; it was no waste that he had used the six‑ring divine spell 【Heroic Feast】 to conjure these illusory delicacies—delicate macarons, refreshing mango mille‑feuille, exactly matching the flavors in his memory.

Of the three, only Jia Fu Na Si sat with a cold expression, disinterested in revelry or bustle; for her, the bare minimum of survival was all she pursued.

In fact, the sun‑elf grew irritated watching the two squander spell slots; what if an accident struck? In the Fallen Star Sea, anything can happen! As if confirming her thought, the water beneath the ship rippled, and several massive tentacles rose up from below.

Jia Fu Na Si's gaze hardened as she grasped the Lesser Artifact "Scorching God's Breath" at her waist, yet the dragon on the deck remained unfazed.

"Don't worry, that's my Magic Net."

Naimi Xisi replied nonchalantly, causing Jia Fu Na Si to blink in surprise; indeed, the massive tentacle shrank as it reached the deck, finally becoming a tiny Hu Meng.

Peng Peng, having seen the raven transform into such a domineering deep‑sea squid earlier that afternoon, kept clamoring, begging the dragon to let it also experience becoming a giant creature.

Annoyed to the point of distraction, Naimi Xisi casually cast a transformation spell on it, turning it into a level‑10 Infernal Giant Octopus.

Because the transformation could not replicate the Infernal Giant Octopus's surface flames, Peng Peng was free to glide unhindered through the deep ocean.

"Hmph!" Jia Fu Na Si snorted, understanding what had happened, "Unreasonable! I hope once we enter the ruins, your foolish intellect recovers a bit."

Neither Ao Duo Li nor Naimi Xisi reacted to the sun‑elf's anger; Naimi Xisi even more so, regarding the precious combat resources in her eyes as something he could never exhaust.

For ordinary people, using a six‑ring divine spell to cook food in a crisis might be inadvisable, but does Naimi Xisi care? He does not.

Six spell slots may seem trivial—a level‑11 cleric might fizzle after casting one, yet he has as many as thirty! Still, Jia Fu Na Si's complaint isn't unreasonable; in Frelen's daily adventures, a spellcaster's spell slots are famously scarce. Most spellcasters count them in single digits, and restoring slots requires at least eight hours of sleep, making teams extra cautious about slot allocation.

Perhaps a third‑circle mage revels in hurling Fireball, but after expending three Fireballs, his third‑circle spell slots are empty. Soon the party encounters a treasure laced with magical traps; lacking third‑circle slots, they cannot cast Dispel Magic and can only stare helplessly at the loot.

It is this mindset that makes Jia Fu Na Si disdain their behavior. Little does she know, Ao Duo Li is genuinely clueless, while Naimi Xisi exudes confident composure.

The sun‑elf rose from her seat, returned to the cabin to rest; after the afternoon's fierce battle, she felt a bit weary.

She lay on the bed, moonlight filtering through the glass into her pupils; she absentmindedly traced the sword in her hand, silently gazing at the moonlit sky.

"Na Si. Jia Fu Na Si, you used that sword again today."

A faint female voice reached Jia Fu Na Si's ear; the sun‑elf's eyes darkened at the young voice.

"I'm sorry, but that deep‑sea squid is too strong."

Before she could finish, the voice cut in: "Jia Fu Na Si, do not fall into temptation. You don't need it; it is a lie spun by an evil spider. Every use only drags you deeper into that endless abyss."

Jia Fu Na Si gave a wry smile, didn't argue further, and whispered, "I understand, Ilisui."

Then, hesitantly, she asked, "Are you… okay?"

The voice smiled gently, "Don't worry about me, Jia Fu Na Si. You know what my fate is; I am already a shadow of the future, but the true Ilisui still awaits a knight to rescue her."

"Promise me, at least until the end comes, take care of yourself, okay? My knight."

The sun‑elf closed her eyes in pain, released her grip on the Scorching God's Breath, and whispered, "I promise you." The voice vanished, silence fell, and only a gentle sea breeze with a faint salty scent soothed Jia Fu Na Si to sleep. —The next day, after eight hours of sound sleep, the three's combat resources were fully restored.

Here one must praise the greatness of the Magic Net profession system; whether a level‑1 mage or a level‑17 top spellcaster, after expending their power they can fully recover after a simple eight‑hour sleep.

The ancient Magic Net, with its boundless compassion, treats every citizen fairly.

When Jia Fu Na Si emerged from the cabin, Naimi Xisi gave her a strange glance; for some reason, ever since he first saw the sun‑elf, he's felt an indescribable odd sensation.

He had also probed her memories, finding nothing odd—yet that was the strangest part.

He couldn't even locate the origin of the Lesser Artifact "Scorching God's Breath" in her memories.

That's why he was especially surprised upon seeing that Lesser Artifact.

"Alright, we should dive. Big guy, are you sure you want to stay in dragon form?" Ao Duo Li asked, a bit surprised.

Naimi Xisi hummed, offering no answer; of course he would stay in dragon form, because in human shape he can't swim! Naturally, no one besides the great White Mystery would ever learn such an awkward reason.

He lifted his dragon head proudly, saying, "This way the tiny ants of the deep sea won't overestimate themselves and try to challenge a True Dragon."

Ao Duo Li shrugged; most marine creatures indeed flee instantly upon seeing a True Dragon, though some powerful monsters might feel provoked and go berserk. "Alright, let's get in the water," Jia Fu Na Si urged, her face icy.

The dragon beat its wings, its massive body plunging into the water; its dim yellow vertical pupils opened, and under the spell's power it breathed in the water as if a fish.

Juan Ce Long is a skilled swimmer; although Naimi Xisi had never entered water, he instinctively flicked his fish‑fin tail, propelling himself rapidly. His shining scales glittered even in the dark abyss, attracting many fish, but they scattered in terror the instant they saw a True Dragon.

Ao Duo Li was not to be outdone; as a Naga descendant, her swimming was among the best. Though she lacked a fish‑fin tail, the surrounding water propelled her from behind, moving her at great speed toward the Dulaia Trench even without effort.

Among the three, only Jia Fu Na Si was the slowest; despite her sturdy physique, she could not match the speed of the two who effectively had "cheats."

"This must be the Dulaia Trench," Naimi Xisi said, pausing at the edge of a massive Earth Trench on the seabed; the chasm spanned several kilometers, endless, and even with dragon eyesight he could not discern the trench's bottom.

A gigantic octopus, over ten meters long, had just crawled out of the trench; its slit eyes froze for a moment upon seeing the True Dragon, then it slunk back into the trench.

"Exactly! The ruins of Adova Oumansi lie within, but there's a rather tough big guy inside!"

"Hm?"

Ao Duo Li laughed awkwardly, "An adult Pearl Dragon has made its nest near the Bronze Gate."

Naimi Xisi squinted, "Adult Pearl Dragon?" He began searching his tangled memories and found it.

A law‑neutral aquatic True Dragon? That's fine; it shouldn't attack unprovoked. He knows True Dragons—after all, he himself is one—yet if the Bronze Gate were seen as its property, it would still provoke an attack.

Fortunately, in his memory, Pearl Dragons are generally weak; an adult Pearl Dragon is only slightly stronger than a level‑12 adventurer, its spellcasting limited to two circles, its breath modest. Only its True Dragon physical quality could crush a level‑12 professional, yet two level‑12s together could handle it.

For this potential kin, Naimi Xisi decided to spare it somewhat, perhaps leaving it half‑dead.

Although Naimi Xisi is now only a young dragon, Juan Ce Long is already a remarkably powerful type among True Dragons.

While in the Young Dragon Stage Juan Ce Long is weak, a typical young Juan Ce Long has entered its power‑up phase, capable of matching a level‑13 professional head‑on!

Not to mention Naimi Xisi also holds multiple spellcaster side‑jobs and the strongest gem amplification.

As a True Dragon with sky‑high spellcasting, Juan Ce Long grows stronger with age; should Naimi Xisi reach the Adult Dragon Stage, its baseline would match and defeat a level‑16 adventurer! The Extreme Elder Dragon Stage is beyond imagination; with legendary spellcasting at that stage, it would crush everything except the three legendary dragons of myth.

Naimi Xisi flicked his fish‑fin, moving toward the trench's depths; Ao Duo Li and Jia Fu Na Si followed closely. All three were strong enough to merit exemplar power, and none would flee at the mere mention of an adult Pearl Dragon.

(End of chapter)