Chapter 43: The Path of the False Dragon (Fourth Update, 14,000 Words)

"You, how did you do that?"

"Uh, how did I do that?"

How did I do that? I don't know.

At this moment, though Li En still wore a cold face, his heart was quite shaken.

Such a troublesome thing, how did it vanish with just one punch after another?

He stood there, his mutated arm still extended, seemingly unable to deny it.

"Truly a beautiful dragon claw," Larry's exclamation came at just the right moment, making Li En pause in surprise.

You, know this thing? Know the dragon claw?

"In the kingdom, there are actually quite a few who walk the False Dragon Path, but such a beautiful False Dragon claw, I've never seen before."

It seemed this rather fearsome arm appeared beautiful in her eyes? Uh, sister, is your aesthetic a bit abnormal?

But those crystal-like compound eyes seemed truly dazed as they gazed at Li En's arm.

"I didn't expect it either," Li En was still organizing a lie.

"Yes, truly unexpected. The weakness of these troublesome creatures is actually the power of the False Dragon. But Lord Li En, you are truly a pity."

Larry's face was full of regret. In her view, even a mere ripple from Li En at his peak was so powerful; it was hard to believe how strong Li En would be in his perfect state.

The muscle curves of this dragon arm were nearly perfect, the dragon scales on it displaying an arcane crystal radiance. Whether in power or enchantment potential, it was a top-tier existence.

Fearfully, Li En at his peak could truly crush an ogre with a single claw.

"Truly worthy of the designated successor of the Heroic Soul... It is all our fault that forced you to awaken your bloodline. Your time has been shortened again, hasn't it?"

Li En fell silent for a moment. He didn't know how to respond, yet was instead taken as tacit agreement.

"... Probably, one or two days left. But actually, it doesn't matter. For me now, a few more days or a few less days hold no meaning," Li En went along with it.

This was actually the truth. After eliminating Maria, Li En would definitely settle the Heroic Soul Card; these extra one or two days held no practical significance.

And facing the still utterly bewildered Dimon and others, Larry offered a brief explanation.

"The False Dragon Path is borrowing dragon-kind materials for evolution. In our country, it counts as a niche within a niche."

A transcendent's species can evolve continuously. Transitioning from raw stone to "colored metal" counts as the beginning; eventually, one can even evolve into legendary mythical species, such as Phoenix, Behemoth bloodlines, and so on.

And as one of the most dominant species native to this land, the Dragon Clan naturally has a similar path, called the False Dragon Path.

But this path is not easy to walk. Dragon-type species, though numerous in quantity, are basically the strongest tier within their realm. Other species of the same realm are mere mobs, while dragon-types are basically all kinds of BOSSes; collecting their materials requires risking one's life.

But for beast-kin clans like lizards and snakes, this path is the most suitable. A lizard-man like Li En being a False Dragon is not strange.

"The Pan-Continent False Dragon Path is actually a Great Dao. Due to the strength of dragon blood, the intensity and upper limit of this evolution path can be guaranteed. But in our kingdom, due to certain reasons, the numbers are fewer, and most are hidden." As they walked, Larry explained the unspoken rules of the noble circles.

Many things you can play with in private, but you cannot shove it in their faces, or else you will suffer exclusion and siege.

What are those certain reasons? Naturally, it is the royal family's near-hysterical hatred toward the Dragon Clan.

A quasi-empire was literally beaten down into several cities; this grudge is indeed sky-high.

But actually, everyone knows this is clearly taking out anger on the wrong target. Why should the hatred of one dragon implicate other dragons, or even dragon sons and dragon grandsons?

Yet in the social public opinion within the kingdom in recent years, this was political correctness. Both the new and old dynasties hated dragons to the extreme, while in the border regions, not many people truly cared.

"... Actually, we in Radiance City don't mind. The big fellow you just saw is also one of the more famous False Dragon powerhouses in this city. His bloodline should have already reached the level of Volcanic Sub-Magma Dragon. At that same standard, it can be called overwhelming strength."

Uh, that guy is actually a dragon? Not some hippo?

Li En breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed his own power was passable. But he always felt his "dragon claw" should be something different from that volcano.

To truly answer this distinction, one would probably have to find that dragon-hunting little girl who is truly a Dragonborn.

"Tsk, truly don't know how a Dragonborn could harbor such great hatred toward dragons... Heh, maybe her father sired her and then ran away."

Recalling the "Dragon Clan Joke Collection" he saw on Tieba in his past life, Li En thought of a hell joke fitting this world's worldview and almost laughed out loud.

He shook his head; now was not the time for such thoughts. There were still unknown opponents ahead.

The appearance of these small beasts also signaled that this incident had vaguely spiraled out of control.

But for Li En's squad now, with this targeted power, the path ahead would be much smoother.

No need to use the "Long Zhao"... Li En always felt this power was currently unstable; every time he used it, he felt discomfort throughout his body.

His hardware might not be able to sustain this hardware for the long term.

"Dragon Eye." With just a single glance, he could see those small beasts transform one by one, then charge forward like madmen.

"Evil-Cleaving Slash!" This time, he could slash quite satisfyingly.

Even with the buff not being high, it was far more comfortable than Zero's blank slate.

"Play it safe. Save the Long Zhao for emergencies; the consumption of the Dragon Eye isn't high..." Li En stepped forward one by one.

But those as smooth as them were always a tiny minority.

"True Dragon Eye!" In some corner of the cave, something similar was happening.

A boulder-sized big fellow widened his eyes, the pupils within turning into blood-red vertical slits.

'Volcanic Roar' Kverduf finally could not hold back and came down actively.

"Tyrant Dragon Flame Claw!" He let out a mighty roar, his arm suddenly thickening by a circle, transforming into a massive dragon claw that slammed down directly.

But the man-beast struck by it was still struggling, biting and tearing.

Countered? Non-existent.

Behind it, several small beasts were silently watching, one of which even made a faint sound.

That eerie tone echoed through the cave, yet no one could understand it.

And if Li En were here, he would know what it was whispering in a low voice was...

"Fake dragon, fake dragon, fake dragon. Hiss hiss hiss, mud fake dragon not even worthy of being a mongrel."

"Gurgle what!"

Kverduf erupted in rage again, his magma-like skin bursting open directly.

Seed after seed of flame seeped from his skin; the next moment, they turned into fire.

In an instant, fire bearing a trace of draconic nature draped over him, and the laughing man transformed into a human-shaped fire dragon.

"Fighting Qi Explosion!"

This time, when he once again unleashed the "Fighting Qi Strike," the deformed dragon claw drew out a sheet of blazing flames, directly turning the human-beast into a man of fire.

He breathed heavily, and as his energy returned, it seemed to draw in the flames; the fire blazed even more fiercely.

The greatest advantage of the False Dragon path is an excessively robust body; in his view, it is nearly a perfect match for the Wu Seng, who rely on physical hardware. However, he is a broken-vow monk with no vows at all.

This strike, he was serious; even a steel gate would quickly turn into molten iron.

But even so, this monster could still regenerate while counterattacking.

"Unkillable trash!"

Enraged, Kveilduf advanced once more.

"Aaaaaah!" With a roar, he tore through the flames with brute force.

When it turned into twitching flesh, the regeneration finally began to stop.

Yet before him, many beasts still roamed the cave at will; roaring wildly, they were not necessarily a rational choice.

The Great Leader's strength was astonishing; even forcing a breakthrough, he could still cut through, but the other Leaders might not be so capable.

They had become ripe fruit, singled out for targeted attack.

Before the Third Leader, "Black Anvil" Bargu, there were not only small beast packs.

The one who had been tracked all along, the black-robed nun Maria, appeared before him.

Though he had found his target, his expression was extremely grim; more than twenty small beasts, like tamed puppies, surrounded her.

And among them, three had broken horns on their foreheads, extra eyes full of spirit, appearing especially ethereal and evil.

"Is this Lord Bargu? I still remember your arrogance when you took my poor child."

Both sides seemed to have old grudges, but now, that no longer mattered.

"Goodnight, Lord. And please go die."

"Whore! I should have killed you all long ago." But facing the beast pack lunging at him, he had no leisure to speak.

His retreat was already sealed off.

The small beasts, originally driven only by instinct, this time, under the Beast Tamer's control, each transformed into human-beasts and formed a battle formation.

Now, it seemed the Third Leader of the Slave Market would need to find a way to cower and flee.

As Maria began hunting to prepare her travel funds, the person she waited for also began to arrive.

"Clang!" A small boat bumped against the dock on the dark river and came to shore.

Three figures cloaked in hoods and wearing single-eye masks sat aboard; one by one, they silently disembarked.

The leader, a huge man over two meters tall, looked left and right but saw no woman waiting there as agreed.

So he turned and gave an order.

"Find her, take her goods. If she plays tricks, kill her. If she obeys, kill her after we leave."

Maria's reasoning was sound; knowing too much, she had no path to survival from the very beginning.

But this time, who would be the one to laugh last?

(End of this chapter)