Chapter 454: Scale‑Riding Blood Guard

Lei En's gaze flickered slightly; these three called Ai Mili Si "Dragon Lord".

He opened his personal library search and immediately found the information; a book recording the history of the Kangjiatuo Kingdom mentioned the title "Dragon Lord" many times.

"So it's the Scale‑Riding Blood Guard!"

The seven great families of Kangjiatuo have ruled for over three thousand years, each possessing a unique extraordinary vocation and establishing an extraordinary legion; the Zhuogengbao family is no different.

The extraordinary members of the other six families all fuse the bloodline of some kind of monster.

The Zhuogengbao family, however, is different; the extraordinary individuals they cultivate fuse their own bloodline—the blood of Dragon Descendants—and are called "Scale‑Riding Blood Guard".

The method of cultivating Scale‑Riding Blood Guards is the Zhuogengbao family's greatest secret, held by the Dragon‑Descendant Kings of each generation; yet over the long ages some of it has leaked. The key to becoming a Scale‑Riding Blood Guard lies in a half‑dragon alchemical elixir, forged by a Dragon Descendant using his own blood and Red Dragon blood as primary ingredients, along with numerous unknown alchemical potions; after brewing, it is given to a newly Soul‑Transformed extraordinary being to ingest, thereby changing profession to a Scale‑Riding Blood Guard.

Scale‑Riding Blood Guards are essentially replicas of Dragon‑Descendant Apostles.

They possess many Dragon Elements, most notably crimson dragon‑scale skin; their defense and resistances are astonishing, their physique is extremely robust, and their strength, speed, and regeneration are virtually indistinguishable from true Dragon Descendants.

However, Scale‑Riding Blood Guards lack casting ability.

They must unconditionally obey their "Dragon Lord", the Dragon Descendant who supplies blood, with life and death controlled by the Dragon Lord's hand.

Once the "Dragon Lord" dies or ceases to provide the dragon‑alchemical elixir, the Scale‑Riding Blood Guard loses its dragon‑blood power, its strength sharply wanes, becoming comparable to ordinary Iron Guards, and its professional rank may even regress.

In Kangjiatuo, Scale‑Riding Blood Guards have taken part in almost every historical event.

They are the Dragon‑Descendant King's most trusted personal guards; each generation of Zhuogengbao's monarch cultivates a dedicated "Scale‑Riding Guard Unit" to protect him at all times.

In any given era, at most two "Dragon Lords" can exist simultaneously.

One is the Kangjiatuo king, the sovereign seated upon the Iron Throne; the other is the heir to the throne, and the two will not coexist for long.

The former Dragon Lord, in the later stage of his life, only then reveals the method of cultivating Scale‑Riding Blood Guards to the next Dragon Lord—usually his own heir—so that the successor can raise his own Scale‑Riding Guard Unit, ensuring a smooth ascension after his death.

Because of the limited supply of Dragon‑Descendant blood and the rarity of Red Dragon blood, a single "Dragon Lord" cannot have many Scale‑Riding Blood Guards.

At the fewest, only a dozen or so; at most, no more than three hundred.

Lei En's Soul Eye observes the three individuals—two men and a woman—all of whom are entry‑level Legends.

The strongest Scale‑Riding Blood Guard is the leading man, whose appearance is striking and demeanor resolute and steady; he is already a twelfth‑level Scale‑Riding Blood Guard.

The other two are tenth‑level; the woman is the youngest, her aura unstable, clearly having only recently risen to Legend.

Their soul Elements are identical: "Strength", "Dragon‑Scale Skin", "Tenacity", "Dragon Roar", "Mid‑Level Flame Resistance", "Flame‑Claw", "Breath‑Fire Technique", "Swiftness", "Rapid Recovery", etc.; they all wield longswords and have mastered multiple sword‑technique combat Elements.

Lei En assesses the Scale‑Riding Blood Guard Elements and finds them akin to Flame‑Magic Swordsmen; their strength is impressive, surpassing both Sturgeon Warriors and Serpent‑Speakers.

"These sword‑technique Elements look familiar."

He couldn't help glancing at Asitan, instantly spotting some clues.

All this time, Lei En has regarded Asitan as a legendary "Swordsman", possessing only exceptionally refined swordsmanship and no other Elements.

Upon closer thought, he realizes Asitan must once have been a Scale‑Riding Blood Guard; after his Dragon Lord, the "Mad King" Xi Rui Ya, died, he lost the Dragon Elements, causing his power to degrade to tenth‑level—just shy of falling from Legend—and he now claims to be a swordsman, even deceiving himself.

As expected, these Scale‑Riding Blood Guards were all trained by Asitan; at least in swordsmanship, they are his students.

There's another detail to this matter.

The three legendary Scale‑Riding Blood Guards arrived together with Pedro*Moersi, and are not strangers to each other, indicating that the establishment of Scale‑Riding Blood Guards relies on the Moersi family's support, likely cultivated within the Moersi Principality's lands.

From this, it can be inferred that the Moersi family pledged allegiance to Ai Mili Si long ago; moreover, they have never betrayed the Zhuogengbao family, having secretly funded and assisted for years, scheming to welcome back the Dragon Descendants.

No wonder!

Lei En suddenly realizes that the Moersi family and the Scale‑Riding Guard Unit are the backbone of Ai Mili Si's restoration dynasty, her greatest source of confidence.

If she hadn't aligned herself with me and secured Weizelan's support, relying only on those five thousand half‑centaur troops and a few hundred extraordinary mercenaries, she might not even have been able to capture Bēnliú Fortress, let alone attempt to restore the kingdom.

"This woman's scheming... I wonder how many more things she's hiding from me?"

Lei En feels a tinge of displeasure.

He isn't particularly concerned about the existence of Scale‑Riding Blood Guards or the Moersi family's support; what matters to him is Ai Mili Si's attitude, which clearly still holds reservations toward him.

"Hmm... it was originally just a cooperative relationship," Lei En thinks he's being overly sentimental, so he gives a self‑deprecating smile and doesn't probe further.

Ai Mili Si steps forward and personally helps Pedro*Moersi to his feet.

She glances at the incredulous Duke Feishe, smiling: "Lord Li Fu Si need not be so surprised; the Moersi family has never betrayed the Dragon Descendants, whether in these past forty‑plus years or the preceding three thousand years; the Moersi family has always been steadfastly loyal, their loyalty indisputable."

"Her Majesty the Queen's trust is the Moersi family's honor!" Pedro responds emotionally.

"This..."

Duke Feishe, astonished, shakes his head, his expression complex, saying: "The Moersi family has truly hidden themselves well; I've been your neighbor for so many years, yet never noticed."

He recalls several crises of the Zhuogengbao dynasty in Kangjiatuo's history.

Each perilous turning point, the Moersi family stood on the side of the Zhuogengbao family, sometimes overtly, sometimes covertly; appearing to choose according to the prevailing tide, yet secretly exerting influence behind the scenes, without revealing the relationship between the two families at the time.

If it weren't for the Feishe family's initial surrender this time, we wouldn't know when we could ever discover it.

Of course, Duke Feishe understands that this is also intentional on Ai Mili Si's part; by displaying her power, she gains greater trust and confidence for herself.

Prince Pedro says: "Your Majesty, I come on behalf of my elder brother; the Moersi family has completed all preparations, the Viper Legion is covertly assembled, the Serpent‑Speakers lurking in the capital are ready; awaiting your command, we can at any moment sow chaos from within the capital to coordinate with your army's assault plan."

"Please thank Prince Duolang for me; you have done well," Ai Mili Si says, her expression greatly pleased.

Prince Pedro bows deeply.

"Your Majesty, my brother and I have only one request: when we storm the capital and overthrow the Lao Bodi Er family's rule, we must locate the murderer of my sister Eleanor and her two children; I will bring that person back to Dark‑Spear City and sacrifice them to our god Setarina!"

His expression is icy, his eyes flash with hatred and murderous light; his voice is low and hoarse, like a venomous snake spitting venom, chilling the listener.

Ai Mili Si's smile narrows, she nods and says, "I will."

Lei En has heard Ai Mili Si mention the name Eleanor; she was the former Zhuogengbao dynasty crown prince's wife, thus Ai Mili Si's elder sister-in-law. When Ma Erke breached the capital, he ordered the slaughter of all Zhuogengbao Dragon Descendants; as queen, Eleanor and her children could not escape the disaster.

It turns out Eleanor hailed from the Moersi family, and her two brothers are both princes.

From Pedro's displayed hatred, one can infer that the queen likely met a gruesome death and endured a terrible ordeal before dying.

The Moersi family secretly supports Ai Mili Si's restoration, aiming to overthrow Ma Erke, not only because of the alliance between the two families but also to avenge their kin.

Lei En has continuously used his Soul Eye to observe Pedro, and all is genuine, without any falseness.

He can't help but sigh quietly, "One truly cannot judge a person by appearance; this person seems dark and treacherous on the surface, yet his heart is sincere and delicate."

Lei En!

Emilyss pointed at the three people behind Pedro and introduced, "They are my Scale‑riding Blood Guards, they used to be in Prince Pedro's domain. I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier…"

She looked hesitant, with an apologetic expression.

Lei En had already let it go, smiling, "No problem. A force as important as the Scale‑riding Guard, it's never too careful to keep it secret."

Emilyss breathed a sigh of relief, but the Soul Eye saw that she still harbored a knot in her heart.

"Let me introduce them to everyone."

The three legendary Scale‑riding Blood Guards, led by the strongest one named "Greywom", the male among the other two is "Dario", and the female is "Mina Sang". They are all well acquainted with Emilyss, evidently having followed her for years, but have been in hiding in Kangjiatuo for the past two years.

They had heard of Lei En for a long time, but this was their first meeting.

The Scale‑riding Blood Guards are linked to the Dragon Lord's bloodline; sensing Emilyss's unique feelings toward Lei En, they lowered their stance, and instantly felt a hint of hostility toward Lei En.

Especially Greywom, though he concealed himself well, could not hide from the Soul Eye.

Lei En pretended to know nothing, and after greeting, asked, "Emilyss, how many are in your Scale‑riding Guard, and how strong are they?"

Not only him; Duke Fishe and the others, who had previously been unaware, were also very curious.

Emilyss smiled faintly, "Overall strength is certainly not on par with your Extreme Corps, but in numbers, we have three times as many as the Extreme Warriors—already over two hundred now."

"That many?" Duke Fishe could hardly believe it.

He knew that cultivating Scale‑riding Blood Guards is extremely difficult; historically, when a new Dragon Lord ascended the throne, his Scale‑riding Guard averaged about fifty members. Later it slowly grew, requiring countless resources to expand beyond a hundred.

She had been exiled overseas since childhood—how could she have cultivated so many Scale‑riding Guards?

"Lord Lives, cultivating a Scale‑riding Guard also depends on dragon‑descendant talent; that's a secret of Zhuogeng Fortress, and I'm not at liberty to reveal it," Emilyss said with an arrogant expression.

Duke Fishe bowed slightly, "Indeed, the queen bears the heavy task of restoring the dragon‑descendant's glory; her talent must be unparalleled. It is my vision that is too limited."

That old fellow, his flattery is really loud… Lei En thought to himself.

Nevertheless, Emilyss was pleased and continued, "In my Scale‑riding Guard there are three legends, sixty High‑stage blood guards and one hundred Mid‑stage blood guards. The remaining fifty‑plus blood guards have just undergone Soul Transformation in the past two years; they improve quickly and will soon be promoted to Mid‑stage."

"Truly, the Scale‑riding Guard lives up to its name!" Duke Fishe exclaimed.

Lei En was also astonished.

The information he had read in his private library explained that the Scale‑riding Guard can suppress other families' supernormal corps in Kangjiatuo with fewer numbers because the proportion of High‑stage supernormals is extremely high, their advancement is rapid, and each individual's strength far exceeds that of ordinary supernormal professions.

Take the River Bay Corps of the Fishe family as an example: over 1,300 Sturgeon Warriors, the vast majority are only Low‑stage, fewer than twenty are High‑stage, and Mid‑stage Sturgeon Warriors are already among the elite in the corps, usually promoted to squad leaders.

In the Scale‑riding Guard, Mid‑stage blood guards are merely ordinary members.

Not to mention, the Scale‑riding Blood Guards rank among the top in strength among supernormals of the same tier.

At least in Kangjiatuo, supernormals of other families are no match; a single blood guard can stand against several supernormals from other families!

Of course, cultivating so many High‑stage Scale‑riding Blood Guards requires countless resources, especially Red Dragon Blood, and each blood guard must be equipped with a set of enchanted weapons—truly a bottomless pit.

Lei En couldn't help but glance at Emilyss, wondering just how much wealth the Zhuogeng Fortress family possessed.

It could actually endure her relentless demands!

"Your Majesty, is the Extreme Corps my Lord Lei En's army?" a magnetic voice asked, belonging to Greywom, who sounded quite indignant.

The other two legendary Scale‑riding Blood Guards responded similarly.

When they heard Emilyss say, "Overall strength is naturally not on par with your Extreme Corps," they almost thought they misheard, assuming it was merely the Dragon Lord's modest remark; after a moment they realized the Dragon Lord truly meant it.

The Scale‑riding Guard knows nothing of an Extreme Corps; in their own eyes, the Scale‑riding Guard is the strongest supernormal corps in the world!

Lei En almost burst out laughing.

He was eager to give these arrogant, sleep‑hostile pseudo‑dragon descendants a lesson, and asked with interest, "The Extreme Corps are my subordinates; would you like to spar?"

"Step back! Do not be disrespectful to Lord Lei En!"

Emilyss hurriedly spoke to stop the eager Greywom from embarrassing himself, scolding, "Lei En, don't test them; don't let the Extreme Warriors waste ammunition."

Lei En spread his hands, indicating it didn't matter.

Anyone who has seen an Extreme Warrior's fighting style would not doubt Emilyss's words.

However, the three legendary Scale‑riding Blood Guards and Prince Pedro had never seen it, finding it unbelievable; Greywom still felt unconvinced, yet could not defy the Dragon Lord's order, so he stepped aside, his gaze occasionally drifting to Lei, thoughtful.

(End of Chapter)