Chapter 126: Plucking Dragon Scales

Gazing at Nai Ai Li's broad back muscles, the rhythmic undulating lines, and the power and stability generated with each wingbeat, Seeing Ange suddenly said, "I want to ride the great dragon too."

Seeing Ange's sudden outburst left Lord Nai Ge Li Si somewhat stunned; he instinctively replied, "No, this is my—uh, do you mean riding like this right now?"

Seeing Ange nodded.

"Uh, if it's riding like this, don't I often carry you flying back and forth?" Lord Nai Ge Li Si said.

"Shaky." After speaking, Seeing Ange glanced at it and added, "Small."

Lord Nai Ge Li Si was furious; he hadn't seen Seeing Ange complain while being ridden, but now that there was a bigger one, he complained about him being small.

"Then go ride Lightning; Nai Ai Li is mine."

"Too bumpy, will fall apart." Seeing Ange said seriously.

"..." Lord Nai Ge Li Si was speechless; who cared if Lightning was bumpy? Even if it was bumpy, he hadn't actually fallen apart. The point was that Nai Ai Li was his, okay?

Forget it, too lazy to say more, lest Seeing Ange get serious and actually fight him for her, which would be troublesome.

Changing the subject, Lord Nai Ge Li Si said, "Do you know why Nai Ai Li called you first?"

Seeing Ange nodded, pointed to the dense cluster of tiny dots in the distance, and said, "Fight them."

"Right, when we giant dragons encounter these little mosquitoes, it's actually quite annoying; if we use dragon breath to spray them, it's too wasteful, and we can't spray many times. Later, I'll need your help to shoot them down." Lord Nai Ge Li Si said.

"Okay." Seeing Ange replied.

Just then, Nai Ai Li had flown higher than the Winged Knights, turned, and dove. Her slender body arched like clearing an obstacle, instantly tossing the angel skeleton and little zombie lying on her back into the air, scaring them into screaming "Awooo!"

Seeing Ange reacted quickly, reached out and grabbed them, first shoving the little zombie into the Palace of Rest, then switching hands to shove the angel skeleton in as well.

However, Lord Nai Ge Li Si discovered a problem: "They were tossed up, why are you standing so steadily?"

Seeing Ange tilted his head and said, "Wind."

Lord Nai Ge Li Si of course knew about the wind; he himself relied on the wind to maintain stability, and since mounting Nai Ai Li's back, his wings had never been folded.

The compressed airflow formed after Nai Ai Li pushed the air aside blew over his wings, firmly pressing him against Nai Ai Li's back.

He was just curious why Seeing Ange could do it, and so skillfully; a farming skeleton really couldn't be judged by common sense; it must have been cultivated through the Pollination Art.

The moment the giant dragon dove from high altitude, all the Winged Knights scattered like bees from a disturbed hive; they first dove to accelerate, watching which one the giant dragon chased; if it chased someone else, they would immediately pull up, and their feet would pedal furiously inside the cylinders.

Only by pulling to a higher altitude and diving down could they gain higher speed; during high-speed aerial combat, without speed, even if the giant dragon flew right past them, it would be very difficult for them to hit each other.

Because the instant both sides crossed paths might be only a few hundredths of a second; without a Sword Saint's reaction speed, they wouldn't have time to draw the bowstring and pull the trigger.

As for the one being pursued, they could only continue diving down and pray to the Light.

How could such crude pedal-powered wings escape the giant dragon's pursuit? They were caught up with in no time; Nai Ai Li didn't even bother opening her mouth, merely flying past the wings, and the turbulence she created was enough to make the wings lose control, spinning as they fell toward the ground.

Spinning and spinning, the entire wing tore apart in mid-air, leaving no chance even to level out and save themselves at the last moment.

Seeing the giant dragon pursuing their own comrades, the remaining Winged Knights who had escaped disaster immediately turned and dove, chasing after the giant dragon; this was the best opportunity; as long as they followed the giant dragon, even if they couldn't catch up immediately, the opportunity would arrive at the last moment.

As long as they waited for the giant dragon to level out or pull up, its speed would drop sharply; that would be the best shooting opportunity.

But they still underestimated the giant dragon's aerial superiority; after knocking down the first wing, Nai Ai Li rolled in mid-air, spun once, then leveled out, continued accelerating in level flight for a distance, and then pulled up.

Seeing Ange on her back opened fire; bang bang bang... bang bang bang...; one by one, explosive fireballs were shot out, detonating and scattering within fifty meters.

Nai Ai Li, head to tail, was nearly fifty meters long; the range of the explosive fireballs in the air was not even as long as Nai Ai Li's body.

Seeing Ange tilted his head, looking at his own hands with confusion.

"Do you know the reason?" Lord Nai Ge Li Si asked with a smile.

"Strong wind." Seeing Ange said.

"Then what should be done?" Lord Nai Ge Li Si asked again. This kind of leading question meant that Lord Nai Ge Li Si's soul for being a know-it-all was burning again.

No choice; finally catching an opportunity, previously Seeing Ange only cared about farming; he wasn't familiar with that aspect, so even if he wanted to teach, he couldn't.

Seeing Ange nodded thoughtfully.

"??" This reaction was wrong; did he really know? You, a skeleton who has never been in the sky, understand how to fight in the air?

Lord Nai Ge Li Si got a bit angry, crossed his small claws, and decided to see how Seeing Ange understood the method; if it didn't work out, he would scold him then.

Seeing Ange turned around, looking at the Winged Knights relentlessly pursuing behind him, then raised his hand; the compressed airflow flowing over Nai Ai Li's body surface suddenly condensed into chunks of ice crystals the size of fingertips.

Seeing Ange had been able to condense ice crystals long ago, mainly out of anger; when Trulus burned his glowing moss field, an angry Seeing Ange used too much force, condensing water droplets into ice crystals, literally drenching Trulus until he ran away clutching his head.

Ice is actually an advanced form of water magic; often, the low temperature and form of ice are already more destructive than water, so water-element combat mages must be skilled in using ice.

After condensing the ice crystals, Seeing Ange ignored them, letting them fly freely backward in the air, then colliding head-on with the Winged Knights.

Puff puff puff... the sound of hail hitting tents; the Winged Knights who collided with the ice crystals immediately lost control, twisting and turning, beginning to fall uncontrollably toward the ground.

When the wings spun around, it could be clearly seen that the wings were already riddled with holes.

"..." Lord Nai Ge Li Si didn't know what to say; originally he had wanted to wait until Seeing Ange couldn't handle the enemies, then seek his help, so he could take the opportunity to scold him thoroughly.

Aerial combat naturally requires wind-element magic; it is not only flexible but also fast, and wind elements are everywhere in the sky.

But unexpectedly, Seeing Ange not only didn't ask him, but instead took a different path and chose ice-element magic.

It must be admitted that condensing water into ice used here was extremely clever; it required almost no effort, yet could break the enemies' wings, and it relied on the enemies' own speed to crash into them.

That is to say, it wasn't Seeing Ange who shot them down, but themselves; Seeing Ange merely scattered some nails on their pursuit path; this was truly too convenient.

Moreover, this method only worked on Winged Knights because their wings were too fragile; if it were Griffin Knights or Sub-Dragon Knights, there would absolutely be no such effect.

It was so clever that Lord Nai Ge Li Si was speechless; it was even better than wind-element magic, after all, wind-element magic still required aiming, while ice crystals just needed to be scattered.

"Impossible, such a clever method couldn't have been thought up by you; who taught you?" Lord Nai Ge Li Si had to suspect that someone had secretly instructed Seeing Ange.

Seeing Ange kept scattering ice crystals and casually replied, "Watering, dragonflies will fall."

The maneuverability of Winged Knights in the air was far inferior to that of giant dragons; their only chance was to dive and tail the giant dragon while it pursued other comrades, then attack at the moment it leveled out or pulled up.

But now, trailing behind the giant dragon, they would suddenly be smashed by clusters of ice crystals, hitting them head-on until they were bruised and battered; the canvas skin on the wing tubes was knocked into a puffing sound.

That was bad enough, but the worst part was the wings; they were woven from special spider silk and coated with several layers of fish glue; they were thin and light, utilizing the wind more efficiently, but they simply couldn't withstand being hit by ice crystals; one hit made a hole.

After being smashed with a dozen holes, the wings lost control.

The closer the pursuit, the more severe the damage to the wings; if the damage wasn't too severe, they could still land using Gao Chao's skill; if the damage was too severe, they could only free-fall, and finally with a crunch, could only be scooped up with a shovel.

Only two Winged Knights, thanks to their extraordinary skill, retracted their wings the instant the ice struck their bodies, tumbled in free fall for a stretch, then spread their wings again and managed to survive.

If it were only the ice crystals, that would be one thing, but on the dragon's back there was also a magical cannon platform — whenever anyone drew close and flew alongside, the platform-like mage would fire wave after wave of wind blades, aimed at nothing else but their wings.

Once the dragon got close, almost no one could escape; one winged body after another rained down.

Thus the chase went on in the air, and the Winged Knights suffered heavy losses. At this rate, all the wings would surely be cleared away before evening.

The idea was a fine one, but the Winged Knights were no pushovers. Just as Nai Aili approached one Winged Knight and flew alongside, waiting for Seeing Ange to shoot him down, the knight suddenly retracted one of his wings, leaving only a single side, and that remaining wing tilted up slightly.

The wing was instantly torn apart by this violent shift, but the wing's barrel was twisted by the tremendous force into a ninety-degree bend, its tip aimed straight at Nai Aili.

Twang! A bowstring sang, and from the tip of the barrel a crossbow bolt shot out, lightning-fast, burying itself in Nai Aili's body. The pain made her scream: "Moo!"

The wing that had fired the bolt was now only a hollow tube, spinning as it fell toward the ground — no need to think about it, it would definitely smash into a pulp.

But this suicidal tactic successfully struck Nai Aili; the bolt sank beneath her scales.

"Scale-Piercing Bolt! Little Aili, are you all right?!" Lord Nai Ge Li Si cried out.

"It hurts, hurts like crazy! Moo!" Nai Aili bared her teeth, wheeled around, and chased after the falling wing, blasting it with a breath of dragon fire — not even giving it the chance to fall to the ground and die on impact.

Lord Nai Ge Li Si wanted to say it wasn't necessary — it would have died from the fall anyway, why waste a breath? But seeing Nai Aili going "moo moo," he sensibly shut his mouth. Mother dragons are often unreasonable.

"Is it just pain? Are you feeling very unwell? How about we fly away first, find a spot, and I'll help you pull the bolt out," Lord Nai Ge Li Si said.

A Scale-Piercing Bolt, about one point seven meters long, had gone in completely — for a giant dragon, that was a very serious wound. If it had hit a vital spot, it could even be fatal.

But Lord Nai Ge Li Si looked at the wound; it wasn't a vital spot, roughly around the dragon's shoulder.

Nai Aili wheeled around without a word, first diving to accelerate for a stretch, then leveling out and flying off into the distance at high speed.

Lord Nai Ge Li Si was a little surprised — Nai Aili, being this obedient?

When they had first arrived at the oasis, Lord Nai Ge Li Si had tried to persuade her for a long time, but no matter how he argued, she refused to hide, only repeating one sentence over and over: "The people here believe in me, I can't abandon them."

If not for that, Lord Nai Ge Li Si would never have let his people get dragged into this war.

Nai Aili, who refused to listen no matter how he tried to persuade her, was now silently turning tail and leaving? Could her wound be that serious?

Thinking of this, Lord Nai Ge Li Si couldn't help but worry, and asked urgently: "Little Aili, are you all right? Is the wound very bad?"

"The wound isn't serious, just like being pricked by a toothpick. But Lord Nai Ge Li Si, I may not make it — my lifespan is about to end. Don't let my body fall into the hands of those humans," Nai Aili replied calmly.

"Huh? Right now? I told you long ago to go hide. You're already over ten thousand and a few dozen years old, still doing such violent moves — you were even rolling just now. You're long past being a young dragon, and you still pull stunts like that." Lord Nai Ge Li Si grew anxious the moment he heard it and complained nonstop.

"No. I'm already over ten thousand and a few dozen years old, I've lived longer than you. What does one or two more years matter? If you weren't here, I wouldn't leave. I'd fight to the last moment, then die in the lake at the oasis," Nai Aili said in a low voice.

"Sigh…" Lord Nai Ge Li Si sighed. Indeed, from his perspective, the passing of a fellow kind was a very sorrowful thing — but Nai Aili didn't see it that way.

Huang Tong dragons lived far too long; a year or two meant as little to them as a few extra minutes did to humans — meaningless. Rather than hide and eke out a few more minutes, only to fail to wake from some future slumber, it was better to die gloriously in battle.

Understanding was one thing, but accepting it was not easy. A hundredfold grief finally condensed into one line: "Still, don't die in the lake — you'd pollute the water, and your believers wouldn't be able to drink it."

"Hahahaha, brother, you're really funny." Nai Aili finished speaking, stretched out her neck, and let out a clear, ringing dragon's cry.

At the same time, her bloodline was boiling, and a message, carried through the resonance of bloodlines, reached into the hearts of all dragon-blooded: the dragon race had once again been visited by the Dragon's Lament.

The Winged Knights could only watch helplessly as the brass giant dragon rode off into the distance. The grand vow they had made at departure — "surround and slay the dragon, become dragon-slaying knights" — had become empty in the blink of an eye. What they got instead was a casualty rate of fifty percent.

No injuries, only deaths — anyone who fell could not possibly survive.

The battered Winged Knights returned to camp, dragging themselves out of their tubes exhausted, only to be kicked back in ruthlessly by Tie Lei Si: "A message has come from the dragon-blooded — the brass dragon is dead. It surely hadn't left the desert when it died. No matter what, we have to find its corpse."

One after another, the wings took off again, wobbling crookedly — but this time it was no longer a hunt, it was a search. Yet after a full day of fierce fighting, the sky had already darkened. Finding a dragon's corpse in the night that was about to fall was no easy task.

Tie Lei Si realized this too, so he simply divided the surviving Winged Knights into five batches of one hundred each. One batch would take to the air to search while the others rested and rotated, pinning the hope of finding the dragon's corpse on the daylight of tomorrow.

In a single night, they couldn't possibly bury a dragon dozens of meters long, could they?

A hundred kilometers away, at a sand dune, Lord Nai Ge Li Si looked at Nai Aili lying dead on the ground, then at Seeing Ange, and at the little zombie and little angel who had just been released, and shook his head helplessly.

Relying on just the four of them to bury this enormous body in a single night — by any measure, it didn't look like a task that could be completed.

"Can we stuff her into the Rest Palace?" Lord Nai Ge Li Si asked.

Seeing Ange shook his head.

"Can you dig a hole for it?" Lord Nai Ge Li Si turned to look at the little zombie.

The little zombie worked very hard, huffing and puffing as she dug for half a day, and managed to dig a pit big enough to fit one of the giant dragon's paws.

What on earth were they to do? Forget burying it — even a shallow burial wouldn't do. A dragon corpse's features were far too distinctive; mages in the sky, using certain special detection arts, could spot highly distinctive objects that weren't buried deep. So even a shallow grave was out of the question.

But with just the four of them, how could they possibly dig a pit large enough to hold Nai Aili?

He turned back to ask Seeing Ange if he had any ideas, but when he turned his head, he saw Seeing Ange pulling at Nai Aili's scales.