Chapter 620: Ancient Red Dragon

The teleportation platform of the Storm Temple.

Storm Giant Lodar, who guards the teleportation array like a statue, watches Lei En walk out of the temple, but this time Lei En does not leave alone; beside him stands a tall, lithe figure.

"Asina?"

Lodar cannot help but lose his voice, his eyes widening.

At this moment Asina is in human form, wearing a brand‑new set of armor, bearing a bronze round shield, with a blue single‑handed sword slanted between the shield and her back, its hilt exposed; a finely crafted bright‑silver circlet rests on her forehead, making her look like a genuine human transcendent.

Lodar senses no giant aura on her at all, feeling somewhat unfamiliar; if he hadn't watched Asina grow up, he wouldn't even dare to confirm.

"Uncle Lodar."

Asina steps forward cheerfully and greets, "I'm leaving now, to see the world outside."

The Storm Giant's expression clears; he scrutinizes Asina seriously, but can discern nothing, and asks, "Did the elder consent to your departure?"

Asina nods slightly.

"Congratulations, your years‑long wish is finally coming true," Lodar shows a satisfied smile. Many of their kind wish to leave the temple and venture out, but only a handful of giants pass the elder's trial; Asina is the youngest.

Then, with a hint of reluctance, he advises, "The Prime Material Plane is marvelous, and the myriad realms are boundlessly vast, yet extremely perilous. You must be cautious and never reveal your identity. If trouble arises, return to the temple; this is your eternal home and strongest support."

"I'll remember, Uncle Lodar," Asina's bright eyes brim with emotion.

Lodar nods.

Asina is the most outstanding young kin he has ever seen; her strength already surpasses his, her wisdom and temperament are even finer, never requiring his extra concern.

Not to mention, Asina has also gained the elder's support.

All her gear is evidently forged by the elder's own hands, at least of Epic Grade; the shield on her back is coated with magical bronze, disguised as a common enchanted round shield, yet Lodar knows it well—it is one of the supreme treasures of the giant race, the Aegis Divine Shield!

With this shield in hand, few in the world could threaten Asina; she is extremely safe.

Her aura is also superbly concealed; without prior knowledge that she is a Titan Giant, no one would doubt her human identity, and magical detection would likely fail to see through. This is probably the elder's handiwork, though it's unclear which of her pieces creates the effect.

Lodar's keen gaze sweeps over Asina's bright‑silver circlet, without further inquiry.

He looks at Lei En, unaware of the soul contract, yet guesses the elder has already made arrangements and briefed Lei En; he still bows solemnly and says, "Lei En, please look after Asina on the Prime Material Plane; the Storm Giant clan would be deeply grateful."

"I will," Lei En replies earnestly, "Rest assured, Lord Lodar."

"You two, hurry inside."

Lodar suddenly urges them forward; Lei En seems to sense something, turning to see a group of young Storm Giants rushing from the temple—mostly male, some with anxious, forlorn expressions, many glaring at him.

His soul eye perceives a swath of crimson.

Lei En immediately drags Asina into the teleportation array; Lodar inserts his greatsword into a side aperture, activates the formation, and sends the two of them away.

When the young Storm Giants arrive, they only see Lodar on the platform, being scolded harshly.

In the collapsed palace beneath the valley.

Lei En and Asina appear on the teleportation array; the rune light beneath their feet gradually fades. Asina looks around; darkness cannot block her "Thunder Eagle's Eye," allowing her to see the long‑abandoned giant palace clearly. When she spots the damaged, grand murals, she is momentarily stunned.

After a long while, Asina sighs, "This used to be a temple of Annam."

Annam is the giant god; since the end of the Second Era he has vanished, and like the other giant deities, he has never answered the prayers of his followers.

"Yes, but now it has become ruins."

While speaking, Lei En turns his head toward a corner of the palace; the Thunder God's Hammer is hidden within that void. A thought flickers, and the war hammer silently flies over, circling the empty space beside him.

Asina suddenly furrows her brow, as if sensing something.

"What is it?" she asks.

Secrets are nearly impossible to hide between soulmates; Lei En originally did not intend to reveal the Thunder God's Hammer to Asina so early, but her perception is so sharp—likely due to her two lightning forms—that she sensed the Thunder God Stone within the war hammer.

He reaches out, grasps the hammer's handle, pulls the war hammer from the void, and smiles, "This is my weapon."

At first Asina does not understand; the war hammer is identical to the one Lei En used in earlier battles. She then perceives the palace suffused with massive lightning elements, all emanating from the hammer, drawing her in with an indescribable magic.

"This is…"

She is bewildered for a few seconds, then a flash of insight strikes her mind, "Thunder God's Hammer!"

The world's most powerful Legend Grade weapon, the Thunder God's Hammer, even though it appeared later than the Aegis Divine Shield, is famed among Storm Giants—who are innately adept at lightning—so much that every Storm Giant has heard the legend of the Thunder God's Hammer.

Asina's beautiful eyes widen, "Lei En, you actually possess the Thunder God's Hammer!"

"Hehe…"

Lei En smiles smugly, enjoying Asina's shocked, slightly flustered expression; a soul mate cannot betray oneself, so there is nothing to hide, and he laughs, "Do you want to try?"

"Alright!"

Asina is eager to try; it is said the Thunder God's Hammer is the heaviest weapon in the world, only its master can lift it, and others can barely budge it.

The Thunder God's Hammer floats lightly to the female giant's feet, like a fallen leaf.

Asina grasps the hammer's handle, testing her force; the war hammer remains motionless. She gradually increases power, yet nothing shifts; the hammer seems welded to the ground, and her expression hardens. She possesses Level‑13 Strength; the elite Titan Power Armor forged by the elder raises it to Level‑14, granting a punch of over one hundred thousand pounds, yet she cannot even move the hammer.

Her face turns serious; both hands clutch the handle, she exerts all her strength to lift it upward.

Simultaneously, she triggers Titanic Divine Power, her body swelling to over three meters tall; massive bolts of lightning erupt across her armored skin. Employing Level‑7 "Power Burst" technique, her muscles tense, a golden ponytail flutters amid the lightning, and waves of terrifying force cause the entire palace to tremble.

"Ho!"

Asina lets out a low growl, her qi and blood surging, her face flushing crimson.

The ground beside the teleportation array is punctured by two pits under her feet, stone slabs cracking open, yet the Thunder God's Hammer beneath her remains as steady as Mount Tai, unmoving.

Lei En watches calmly.

When ownerless, the Thunder God's Hammer can be forcibly lifted with Level‑7 Strength, but when it has a master, a single thought of the wielder can cause its weight to surge a hundredfold, locking it with the surrounding space; all the power bestowed upon it is dispersed across a radius of several hundred meters.

Anyone attempting to lift the hammer is battling space itself, like pulling one's own hair to raise the body; all exerted force cancels itself out, resulting in zero effect.

Only by standing outside the locked space and applying force could one move the hammer, but that is virtually impossible.

No one has arms that long.

Once the hammer locks space, teleportation spells are also barred; one cannot open a portal on the hammer and reach through to grasp its handle.

Lei En suddenly has a thought: Reslin possesses the Eight‑Ring Gate Key, which can ignore spatial seals, but with Reslin's frail body and no magical augmentation, he cannot even lift a hundred‑pound weapon, let alone hoist the Thunder God's Hammer whose weight has multiplied a hundredfold.

A Xina tried for half a minute with no effect, yet refused to give up.

Her body kept growing; the larger she became, the stronger she grew, but once she exceeded four meters, her palms became too big, so she could only grip the hammer's handle with one hand, and the effect was even worse.

Having no choice, A Xina shrank back to three meters tall, head above the rest.

She barely held the hammer's handle with both hands, uttered a low rumble, her body crackling with lightning and thunder, employing all her strength and technique, clenching her teeth to maintain the power stance; the palace echoed with terrifying waves of force, as if a raging storm had broken out.

Amid the booming sound, the Thunder God's Hammer shifted imperceptibly.

Lei En's complexion changed slightly.

Fortunately, the hammer was never fully lifted; A Xina only held on for a few seconds before her power drained. She reverted to human form, her firm chest heaving violently, shaking her head repeatedly, exclaiming, "No wonder it's the Thunder God's Hammer—truly marvelous, I can't lift it."

Lei En also let out an inexplicable sigh of relief.

He waved his hand, and the Thunder God's Hammer fell back into his grasp, laughing, "In this world, no one besides me can lift it."

"May I give it a try?"

A sudden voice sounded beside them, its tone strange and deep, filled with endless authority and antiquity, as if transmitted from a distant past into this time.

Lei En was startled.

He realized he hadn't sensed anyone approaching at all, and the Will of Truth hadn't detected the spying; he quickly scanned the surroundings, finding no source of the voice within the palace.

He jerked his head upward; the All-Seeing Eye pierced the dozens‑of‑meters‑thick soil above, finally locating the target, his pupils instantly contracting in shock.

Lei En saw a massive dragon.

He had never seen a dragon so enormous; from head to tail it spanned at least one hundred fifty meters, many times larger than his mount Bo Erqi.

If Bo Erqi stood beside it, it would be like a baby compared to an adult.

It was entirely covered in crimson scales; even the smallest scales were as large as a tabletop, half a meter thick, each forming a neat, impenetrable armor like rubies, reflecting dazzling light. The Soul Eye could not see through the dragon's soul, but sensed a terrifying flame power.

Red dragon!

Ancient red dragon!

Lei En immediately recalled; this was the ancient red dragon that Bu Laimit had told him about, the one occupying Ka Er Feng, nicknamed "Yu Yan", whose true name was "Yi Waerna".

The dragon's size correlates with its age, and so does its strength; dragons over two thousand years are generally over a hundred meters long, classified as ancient dragons. Yu Yan's size far exceeds a hundred meters, far beyond an ordinary ancient dragon—its age, even halved, would still surpass two thousand years.

According to Bu Laimit, this red dragon isn't the type that relies solely on innate combat ability; it also serves as a mage, possessing superb spellcasting prowess!

Wasn't it said that it had been sleeping in its lair all these years?

Could it have been awakened by us?

It was nearing noon outside, the sky bright and scorching, yet Lei En's heart was an icy chill.

At this moment, the ancient red dragon lay on one side of the Giant Relic Valley; its body resembled a hill, its massive head, comparable to a house, protruded into the valley, looking down through the soil at the underground palace where he stood, its crimson dragon eyes over two meters in diameter filled with surprise and curiosity.

Wait…

The Soul Eye sensed that the ancient red dragon bore no hostility; it also lacked the typical irascibility of red dragons, its temperament relatively rational, seemingly restraining its nature intentionally, yet its greed for treasures could not be entirely quelled, though not as intense as imagined.

Lei En hesitated.

The moment he discovered the ancient red dragon, he wanted to teleport A Xina to the Whirlwind Storm Sanctuary, but activating the planar teleportation array required half a minute; the already‑collapsed palace certainly couldn't hold that long, and the red dragon would destroy the array.

"Young man, you've been coming and going in my domain these past years without even a greeting; isn't that impolite?" the ancient red dragon spoke again.

Lei En's face showed astonishment; it turned out the dragon had known his actions all along.

At this moment, A Xina also located the source of the voice, looking up at the palace dome; she couldn't see through the soil, the dragon was fiercely concealing its terrifying might, yet she could still discern its identity and fearsome power.

"Let's go out."

Lei En made a decision, opened a random door, grasped the Thunder God's Hammer and stepped through, emerging in the valley outside.

A Xina followed out, and at a glance saw the red dragon's head overhead, its overwhelming dragon aura descending like a blanket; she was horrified, her mind left with only one thought: "Uncle Luo Da Er didn't deceive me; the Prime Material Plane is truly too dangerous!"

Ryan Augustus has met the respected Lord Yu Yan.

Lei En bowed and saluted, also stating his family affiliation.

The ancient red dragon's head leaned closer to Lei En, scanning him up and down; its snarling mouth curled into a terrifying grin, and in a resonant, far‑reaching voice it said, "I know you, Count Ge La Mo Ge of the Oriense Empire."

As it spoke, a few sparks flared from its nostrils.

These unremarkable sparks fell to the ground, instantly turning the soil within dozens of meters into a pool of magma.

Lei En and A Xina's hearts leapt; the ancient red dragon's power was terrifying, the flames casually dropping from its nostrils were no weaker than a Fifth Ring spell.

The red dragon's silhouette vanished suddenly, the massive pressure dissipated invisibly, and a robust middle‑aged human stood before them.

He wore an ornate flame‑woven magical robe, his hands adorned with gemstone rings, an enchanted belt at his waist, a wand in hand, his red hair neatly tied at the back, his complexion gentle, his eyes wise, presenting the bearing of a powerful spellcaster.

"Count, may I try your Thunder God's Hammer?" the transformed ancient red dragon asked eagerly.

This chapter is from yesterday; there will be updates tonight.

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(End of chapter)