Atlas’s Secret

"Geez... Falerra... who is this kid?"

After giving a good beating to the human, the creature was satisfied.

"It's an interesting kid... don't you think too?" Falerra responded, appearing at Atlas's side.

"Well... he is not an ordinary human indeed. I could feel a strange power inside his body during the battle... and that devilish thing was so treacherous."

"Hehehe... I knew that you would like him. But there is more... look at this..." Falerra pointed out something on the young man's body.

"Mhm?!" The dragon had already turned to his miniature form and looked at that point curiously: "So... It seems one of those stigmas from those progenitors. But I have yet to see one with this form... a beautiful four-leaf clover with emerald leaves."

"Even you don't recognize it?" Falerra spoke in surprise: "Well... things are getting even more interesting..."

"So... you told me that this human is the new owner of the tree? Was it true?"

His words showed that the dragon's desire for those fruits was profound.

"Greedy fellow... I already told you to ask him about it!" Falerra replied with a wide grin.

"What kind of dirty trick are you pulling off?"

The dragon was cautious by nature and felt something strange in all this matter.

"Well... answer me this question... How much do you need them?"

Once again, the dragon smelled something fishy, yet he answered sincerely: "Now that I've reached my last mutation, I need it even more..."

"Then... you are even more in trouble..."

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Almost a day passed, and finally, Atlas woke up.

His body was not in perfect condition, but he was still alive.

"Huuu... that was so dangerous..." Atlas lamented in a low tone.

"You are right... you were lucky."

Another voice came from the side, attracting his attention.

Atlas looked to the side and found the small creature looking at him intensely.

"Little dragon... Why are you still here?"

"At least... you call me by a proper appellation..." The dragon growled and then approached its tiny face: "Human, where is the Rocky Tree of the Underworld?"

His request was direct and a bit threatening, but Atlas wasn't scared: "I will tell you where it is if you become one of my companions."

The dragon was momentarily stunned since he couldn't believe the human's words. Was he really asking him something so preposterous?

"Are you insane? You are strong, but not so strong to make me accept something absurd." The dragon mocked, holding back his rage: "Look... you are still alive only because of Falerra... So..."

Atlas wasn't scared at all. He still had some tricks up his sleeve, such as the deadly dagger.

"Stop it... Threats won't work with me. So, rather than wasting time, why don't you listen to me?"

The dragon was angry, yet he gave his consent.

"There is this technique called Soul Ethereal Pact... if you form a pact with me, you will get many benefits other than the Celestial Fruits. If you don't believe me, you can ask Uranus..."

The dragon was still listening to his blabbering, finding all this joke quite funny: "Who is this Uranus?"

"Him..." Atlas waved his hand, and Uranus came out of his personal spatial dimension.

ROAR!

As soon as he came out, his roar shook heaven, yet the dragon wasn't touched by it and snorted even more arrogantly: "Little bear... calm down!"

His aura of dominance landed on Uranus, giving him a scare.

"Hey... don't scare him. He was just protecting me..." Atlas said, patting his companion's head.

As soon as the dragon's aura vanished, he started questioning Uranus: "Don't you dare to lie to me. Your... master told me about this so-called Soul Ethereal Pact. Was that dimensional space one of the benefits?"

Growl...

"Well... that's impressive. What else?"

Growl... Growl... Growl...

As the bizarre duo kept talking, Atlas approached Falerra and Sarruma.

"Senior Falerra... thank you for saving me."

"Hehehe... little kid, no need to thank me. You will need to do something for me later." Falerra replied nonchalantly: "Anyway, if you want to convince him, you must find another way. He is quite a prideful fellow."

"So this was your plan since the beginning... I will think about something else if Uranus can't persuade him."

While the two were talking, a shout came from the dragon's side: "What?"

Both Atlas and Falgnis looked toward them with perplexed looks.

"That's impossible... don't lie to me!" The dragon shouted again with a trembling voice.

Growl... Growl...

"Nonsense... If it's true... then tell me its name!" The dragon insisted, looking back and forth frenetically.

Growl... Growl...

"Damn!"

After cursing loudly, the dragon appeared at Atlas's side and asked directly: "Hey... what's the name of your Cultivation Technique?"

Hearing that question, Atlas looked at him with a bit of hesitation.

"Stupid fellow... We are both Chaos Creatures. Furthermore, Falerra is already dead. Do you think we need it?" The dragon added, noticing his reaction.

At this point, even Falerra was curious about the topic, especially after seeing the dragon acting so eagerly.

"I'm sorry... but I can't tell you." Atlas was adamant about not revealing the name, but the dragon's following words shocked him to the core.

"There are few Martial Cultivation Manuals with the effect described by Uranus, all of which have the same similarities... The cultivator can't keep his sanity intact after reaching higher Realms. But you look fine... you are not a crazy demon. Since that's the case, the only possible explanation is the Devo..."

The dragon was just one breath away from revealing the truth that Falerra intercepted: "Impossible!"

He was a remnant of his past self, yet the shout was filled with so much power that the dragon couldn't even open his mouth.

Keeping in check the dragon with his power, Falerra fixed his golden eyes on Atlas: "Atlas... You have the Devourer of Chaos Manual?"

Atlas knitted his browns lightly, but it was more than enough for Falerra.

"God... I thought you were destined to gain my last wish, but now... It's evident that the hand of fate was acting behind all of our backs."

Falerra was so shocked that the powerful restriction on the dragon disappeared, letting him free to exclaim again: "Damn... Then I was right..."