Chapter 15: Dark Magic

The silhouette of the green dragon instantly transformed into green spots, seemingly about to vanish into the vast sky. However, just as the four adventurers let out a sigh of relief, the green spots suddenly expanded and split in two—another giant dragon joined the battle.

The force of the downward dive was immense. The agile dragon wings beat the air rapidly, folding tightly against the dragon's body to achieve greater speed, and then beat the air once more...

A giant dragon conjured blades of ice that surged down like a rain of knives towards Reger, while the other dragon oozed red blood, launching fireballs in rapid succession. The fire elemental attached to the fireballs let out joyous laughter.

The wind illusion dragon floating in the air was almost instantaneously destroyed by the baptism of fire and ice.

Without any pause, ice and fire swiftly penetrated the illusory body of the wind illusion dragon, crashing down toward Reger with overwhelming force.

Centered around Reger, the sea of fire and icy spikes collided with the absolute barrier, immediately rebounding in all directions—white ice blades and red flames intertwined like a towering wall.

Although the absolute barrier could defend against first and second-level magic, it could not dissipate the immense, continuous impact that followed. Reger was forced to step back repeatedly.

"O dark spirit, I command you to become my shield with your ethereal form." With no other options, Reger had to once again draw on the power of dark magic to form a massive dark shield in front of him—this was a rare defensive spell in dark magic, creating a shield from gathered energy. This spell was far more efficient than ordinary magical shields, and due to the absorbing properties of the dark force field, it could absorb damage even if hit, though its duration was relatively short.

With the help of the dark shield, the ice blades and flames were quickly absorbed and disappeared.

The shadow of the green dragon suddenly reappeared, its long claws slicing through the curtain of fire and ice like lightning, piercing through the absolute barrier.

Dragons are undoubtedly extremely intelligent creatures.

When they realize that their opponent can easily break their magic and cast high-level spells, they swiftly change tactics, using quick, small spells to constantly attack the mage, pressuring him so that he has no time to summon powerful magic, and then using physical attacks to directly break through the absolute barrier that can only defend against magic.

It seemed they had succeeded.

Even the dark shield could not defend against the dragon's claw attack.

For dragons, magical attacks are often aimed at groups of enemies. When facing a powerful opponent, their sharp teeth, powerful wings, and long tails become unimaginably potent weapons.

Especially the sharp claws on their forelimbs; the claws of an adult dragon can grow up to a meter long, easily slicing through the skin of elephants or rhinos. Even the oak shields held by heavily armored infantry would be torn apart like paper. Let alone human bodies, which are much more delicate.

The ten sharp claws tore through the absolute barrier like spears, the dark shield only slightly delaying the attack for a moment. With a whistling wind, the dragon's claws thrust in again...

Suddenly!

A flash of silver light appeared as a massive silver steel shield clashed solidly with the dragon's claws, sending dazzling sparks flying. "Ugh," a muffled groan escaped as Chi Hanfeng and Xiaobai were pushed back two steps by the tremendous impact.

As a high-level knight, Chi Hanfeng understood that the mage should stand behind the warrior to cast spells, so he had been ready to intervene in the battle at any moment. However, he did not expect the dragon's attacks to be so swift and sharp; even with the speed of the snow beast, he could only block the dragon's deadly strike at the very last moment.

Even so, the dragon's power was something humanity could not match. Vivid red liquid quickly oozed from the knight's mouth, and Chi Hanfeng struggled to swallow as he continued his assault, without any pause, the bright knight's spear emerged from beneath the shield like a cunning snake, aiming for the injured dragon's belly.

Due to inertia, the unsuspecting green dragon's massive body slammed heavily against the shield. The dragon twisted its body to avoid the spear, but the spear pierced through its left wing.

"Hiss—" The giant dragon let out a long, mournful cry. It flapped its wings, attempting to soar into the sky again, but after only rising a few yards, it twisted and crashed heavily onto the snow-covered slope, sending large plumes of snow flying.

"O dark dragon Randa, I summon you in the name of darkness." The shaken old mage began his incantation once more.

"Ah—" The other dragon sensed the formidable power of the two individuals before it and the surge of magical energy, abandoning its attack. It flew above the injured dragon, grasping its spine, and with a long cry, the massive figure turned around and vanished over the mountain ridge.

"Ha, with the great knight taking action, two little dragons were instantly chased away." Chi Hanfeng raised his spear towards the sky, shield tucked under his chest, striking an exaggerated pose that he held for twenty seconds. Proudly, he asked, "How about that? Am I cool or what?"

"Cool, totally cool," Amy replied, resigned to his dramatic antics.

Chi Hanfeng placed a hand on Reger's shoulder, hugging him while feigning tears. "Reger, you can't die! You can't die like this. How will I face my old man, my old man's old man, my old man's old man's old man…" His voice trailed off abruptly.

"Is it really that cool? Good, then you can hold that pose for two hours," Reger replied, motioning for the two little ones to follow him up the mountain.

Xiaobai carried the petrified Chi Hanfeng behind him, dodging low-hanging branches and jutting cliffs that constantly struck the immobile knight, adding small streaks of blood to his already dramatic pose. One could only imagine how deeply Chi Hanfeng was crying inside.

...

That night, after the two children had fallen asleep, Chi Hanfeng tapped Reger on the shoulder, signaling him to step outside for a chat. The two of them tiptoed away from the campfire.

"Hmm, Reger, why didn't you use your most proficient Level 5 ice magic, Ice Storm Dragon, during the day?" Chi Hanfeng asked.

"Hmm… The green dragon is of the ice element. Ice Storm Dragon would have very little effect on it," Reger replied, his tone lacking its usual teasing lilt, as if sensing something.

"I remember that the Dark Dragon Randa is the ultimate dark magic, right?" Chi Hanfeng pressed.

"Correct. I didn't expect you to know so much about magic. Why didn't you learn it back then? It seems you could still do so now…" The old mage appeared to be deflecting the question.

"You're a neutral attribute mage. How could you cast the ultimate dark magic?" Chi Hanfeng didn't fall for it and cut straight to the point.

"…" After a long silence, Reger stared directly into Chi Hanfeng's eyes. "There are some things I cannot tell you at this time. Please forgive me." With that, the old mage returned to the campfire and lay down, soon followed by a heavy sigh...

That night, both Reger and Chi Hanfeng had trouble sleeping.

The next day, the terrain grew higher, and the snow underfoot thickened, leaving no clear path. The wind howled, threatening to lift them off their feet if they didn't cling tightly to tree branches and trunks.

After crossing a small ridge, they found themselves in a vast circular clearing that measured at least 1,000 meters in diameter. No wonder it was called the Green Dragon Terrace. In the center of the clearing stood a massive rock, and on the southern face of the rock was a dark entrance, from which white puffs of breath rose. It seemed this was indeed the final destination for the two adults.

As soon as Green noticed the dark opening, he jumped up, wobbling and rolling toward it. Big Green, afraid he might fall, followed suit.

The inside of the cave was not dark; every twenty meters, a floating Will-o'-the-Wisp illuminated the space with its cold, flickering light. It was quite extravagant; a Will-o'-the-Wisp lasts for two hours, and it was hard to imagine how many mages were needed to maintain such an effect.

As they progressed, ice elementals began to leap out, glowing green, but upon seeing Green, they each vanished behind the walls.

The ground sloped downward, but it was not damp. Perhaps due to being deeper underground, the air gradually warmed. Suddenly, a colossal cave appeared before them.

One could not imagine its magnificent scale unless they stood within it.

The ceiling of the cave was adorned with massive, colorful stalactites, the longest of which extended over ten meters. The tips of the stalactites shimmered with tiny flashes of lightning, while the nearby stalactites formed a larger web of electricity; the walls were covered in white, fish-scale-like crystals that reflected dazzling light. In the center of the cave stood a raised platform, glittering with countless piles of agate, diamonds, and gold coins.

Green leaped excitedly onto the platform, only to find it empty, his expression instantly turning to disappointment.

However, he quickly wiped away his sadness and dove into the pile of jewels and gold, happily rolling around. In that moment, the entire dragon lair suddenly trembled—sigh... A parent knows their child best.

The lightning on the stalactites surged suddenly, cascading down like a waterfall, and a massive green dragon revealed its ethereal form amidst the web of electricity. "Taimuge'er Sai, you have finally arrived." Its body was over five times the size of the two dragons from earlier.

This voice was unmistakably the same one they had heard in the canyon.

"My child, this is our final meeting," the dragon blinked. "The Dragon God is calling me, and all of this will be inherited by you. For a long time, I have sealed your magic, now—Dragon God Palote, unleash all the power of your kin!"

Countless bolts of lightning gathered from all directions, shooting toward Green. Within the lightning, Green underwent a tremendous transformation: tender little horns began to sprout from his head, and small buds emerged from his back, gradually growing into a pair of tiny, fleshy wings. Green displayed a pained expression, opening his mouth to expel a long stream of flames.

"Goodbye, my child." The lightning diminished, and the dragon's figure gradually faded away.

The two people present finally felt a sense of release. With a loud "Wow," Chi Hanfeng and Reger both lunged toward the treasure.

Chi Hanfeng frantically scooped up a large handful of gold coins. "We struck it rich! Haha! When I left home, I didn't take any money, and now the hard times of these years can finally be over."

Reger, on the other hand, opened every small box he found. If he didn't like one, he would immediately move on to the next, stuffing any good items into his pockets.

"Whoosh," a burst of flame erupted from Green's mouth, clearly outraged by the robbery unfolding before him.

"Ah… oh…" Chi Hanfeng awkwardly set down the bag he had been about to fill with coins, looking at Green with kind eyes. "You don't want me to take it? Then just say so! How would I know if you don't tell me? If you keep breathing fire like that, look, what if the gold melts? That would be a disaster!"

While speaking, he grabbed another handful of coins. "Big Green wants to learn with me, right? Are you going too?"

Green nodded eagerly.

"Oh," Chi Hanfeng casually tossed the coins into his bag. "This is Big Green's tuition. It's quite cheap. I'm a magical beast knight, and if I were to recruit a disciple in the imperial capital... Hehe... I would need a whole bag of money for that. But since it's for your sake, I'm giving an 88% discount—massive clearance sale!"

Chi Hanfeng then fixed his big, kind eyes on Green. "Would you like to eat delicious lizard jerky or fish meat every day?"

Is that even a question? Green nodded vigorously.

Chi Hanfeng continued tossing coins into the bag. "This is enough for one year's worth of meals, two years' worth, three years' worth… That should be good. I guarantee you'll have plenty of delicious meat for at least ten years, no problem, right?"

Green stared at him in shock and nodded blankly.

"Big Green doesn't eat much, but he'll need some too, right?" Chi Hanfeng said, grabbing another two handfuls of coins and tossing them in.

"I still need to buy armor for Big Green. Sigh, it costs a fortune," he sighed again, tossing in two more handfuls—his bag was nearly full now.

"Alright, that's enough, Green. Look, that old geezer is still taking your treasure!" While Green turned his head, Chi Hanfeng took the last two handfuls of coins and stuffed them in, making the bag bulge to its limit.

"Don't look at me, little one." The old man saw the furious Green and, at first, struggled to find an excuse. However, having learned a lot from Chi Hanfeng's earlier performance, the magician added, "Green, I'm not like that garbage knight. I don't want money; look, I only picked up a few magic scrolls and books, oh, and some magical items."

"You're going on an adventure with Big Green in the future. Without scrolls, if someone attacks you randomly, it would be quite troublesome. So, I'm just holding onto them for you. Or do you want to carry them yourself?" As he spoke, the old mage lifted a huge pile of scrolls and dumped them on Green's little head, making a series of thuds—thump, thump, thump... Tears immediately welled up in Green's eyes—there were not only scrolls but other things in there, leaving a series of bumps on his little head.

"Ahem... Look, little one, getting a taste of hardship now, huh? Now you know I'm doing this for your own good. All of these things I'm helping you take for free…" Reger shamelessly proclaimed.

"These magic books, you'll need to learn them in the future. It would be dangerous without someone to guide you, right? I'm a magic tutor, and you just saw it. The giant dragons outside couldn't defeat me; they're stronger than you, right? So I should be able to look at these books as your teacher, right?" The mage continued speaking as he tossed a few forbidden-level books into his own robes.

"This ring, oh, look at this lightning shield symbol." The old mage held the ring up in front of Green. "It can naturally defend against lightning attacks. Big Green can use it; you don't mind, do you?"

"Here, this ring has a blue shield symbol. It can naturally defend against water attacks. Big Green can use it; you don't mind, do you? Oh, Big Green already has one, so he'll give this one to Amy. You don't mind, do you? Good, as long as you don't mind."

Little Green nodded non-stop… Sigh… Although adult dragons possess wisdom far exceeding that of humans, the intelligence of young dragons only equates to that of a two- or three-year-old child. To make matters worse, he was encountering two cunning humans—a great misfortune for the dragon race.

...

After this round of haggling, the group left the dragon lair with far more than they had expected. That night, Chi Hanfeng was unable to sleep, clutching his bag of gold coins; Reger kept touching the magical books and rings beside him, checking to ensure they hadn't been lost, and he too could not sleep; Green lay there, pondering all the events of the day, unable to sleep… but had nightmares all night long.

The chapters of history turned to the year 199 of the Red Moon calendar.

This year undoubtedly held significant meaning:

For the first time in nearly a century, the ice magic tutor Reger emerged from the Ice Prayer Tower. From that day forward, magical spirits across the continents suddenly began to stir.The young mercenary king encountered his life-and-death companion, Big Green.The ancient sacred dragon, which had always been elusive, revealed its terrifying powers to the world, starting with the Ice Dragon.

—Niel Harbor's Research Notes