Ashen Dragon

"Screech—"

The bloodstained spearhead pierced through the chest of the Blue Dragon Descendant Godslayer. It lowered its head, staring with a bewildered expression at the spear protruding from its chest, letting out a powerless roar from the depths of its throat before collapsing with a thud.

The battle on Summer Night Autumn Rain's side was heavily one-sided. The Blue Dragon Descendant was already being bombarded by relentless fireballs, forcing it to flee in agony.

With a moment of distraction, a thick Dragon Hunting Arrow came whizzing through the air, piercing straight into its throat and exiting from the back of its neck. The eyes of this Blue Dragon Descendant Godslayer instantly dimmed and dispersed, falling weakly to the ground as well.

Monsters with a challenge level exceeding Level 10 were bosses that required many players to team up against a few years ago, but now, especially to these insanely powerful professional gamers, they are merely slightly troublesome elite monsters.

Just like that, within a short span, the guards of this Blue Dragon Sect were completely wiped out, leaving behind several carts of weapons and armor, along with blood-stained gold and silver treasures looted from towns across the region.

"Decent haul, we should split it and get over a hundred Ginnar," Singo counted the loot, speaking lightly.

Mantou couldn't help but marvel, "Damn, is it this lucrative? It's easy to do business with no capital like this. Why don't we settle in Talilo and turn into desert bandits right here?

We could rob and loot caravans, easily earning hundreds or thousands of Ginnar. Isn't that much better than staying in Isdalia earning a dead salary?"

"This line of work isn't easy." Singo shook his head, casually storing the weapons and jewels into a Dimensional Bag. He then looked up at the sky.

From the distance, a sandstorm rolled in, obscured figures hurriedly advancing, and the crackling sound of lightning could be heard.

"We've been discovered by the Dragon Worship Church, move quickly!"

Singo and Mantou mounted their Bipedal Wyverns, skimming the ground, while Summer Night Autumn Rain and Natural War Maniac unfolded the wings behind them, using their flight ability to escape the scene.

Sure enough, the sandstorm closely followed them, chasing after them directly, with flashes of electricity surging in the sandstorm and numerous sinister figures. These were a group of bipedal winged wyverns, covered in pale blue scales, entwined in arcs of electricity—the miniature versions of Blue Dragons.

These were also Blue Dragon Descendants, death reapers lurking in the sandstorm—Storm Flying Dragons.

Within the encroaching sandstorm, over twenty Storm Flying Dragons glided in, roaring in unison and spewing Lightning Breath from their mouths, far beyond what a four-person team could contend with.

A priest of the Blue Dragon Sect, donned in a deep blue robe, rode atop one of the Storm Flying Dragons, exhibiting fanatical expression, angrily roaring, "Empire bastards betraying His Majesty Tiamat! You will pay for this!"

"Cease the futile struggle, you cannot escape. This land—a domain of giant dragons!"

He waved his scepter, the clouds in the sky quickly spreading, accumulating terrifying energy, as a lightning bolt as thick as a bowl struck down, illuminating the sky instantly.

"Watch out!"

"Boom!"

Mantou steered the Bipedal Wyvern, making a sharp turn and narrowly dodging the lightning strike, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

"Damn, such an intense pressure?" Mantou wiped his forehead, looking up at the dense storm clouds in the sky, instinctively urging the Wyvern to fly lower, nearly skimming across the ground.

Singo warned, "Don't just look at the sky, pay attention to the ground, it's a desert after all!"

"What?"

Before he finished speaking, the sand dunes trembled, blue figures leaping from the ground, scattering a shower of dirt and rocks, and lunging directly at the low-flying Mantou.

They sank their menacing fangs into the hind legs of the Bipedal Wyvern, biting down and refusing to let go, hanging precariously beneath it, using massive claws to ruthlessly scratch, tearing off chunks of scale-covered flesh.

These were colossal wolverine-like creatures covered in thick scales, with compact muscles and sharp single horns, also bearing distinctive Blue Dragon features—they were Blue Dragon Descendant Ambushers.

These dragon-blooded monsters were called "Desert Wolves" by the nearby residents. During hunting, they could organize into a tight-knit group, digging tunnels from debris and lurking beneath the surface, ambushing their prey on essential routes.

"Howl—"

Blasting currents ran through the scales of the Blue Dragon Descendant Ambushers, generating sparking electricity and arcs, which also coiled around the Bipedal Wyvern and Mantou, making crisp exploding sounds.

Finally, the Bipedal Wyvern trembled, emitting black smoke, whimpering as it plummeted towards the sand dunes, where a dozen Blue Dragon Descendant Ambushers lay in wait.

Mantou thrust his spear downwards, piercing the Blue Dragon Descendant Ambusher hanging from the Bipedal Wyvern, causing it to howl and fall away.

He patted the neck of the Bipedal Wyvern, urgently saying, "Noodle, hurry up and fly!"

In a daze, Noodle seemed to hear his command, instinctively flapping its wings, and at the very last moment before crashing into the dunes, they skimmed through the sands and took off. The Blue Dragon Descendant Ambushers jumped furiously but couldn't reach them.

Though the flight was wobbly, Mantou still managed to evade the ambush from these monsters and caught up with the other three.

But the sandstorm behind surged forward, closing the distance rapidly, and Mantou could even hear the snarling of the Storm Flying Dragon, the heart-wrenching cries of the Evil Dragon Sacrifice, and the explosive crackle of lightning.

Beneath him, across the rolling desert, the Blue Dragon Descendant Ambushers with crimson eyes crazily pursued, incessantly roaring towards the sky, whipping up waves of sand.

Singo, facing the sandstorm, turned his head towards Summer Night Autumn Rain in the distance, shouting loudly, "Autumn Rain, is the portal ready? We're retreating directly—"

"Boom!"

A lightning bolt grazed his body, scorching his sleeve black, nearly taking his life.

Summer Night Autumn Rain remained composed amidst the howling gale, calmly responding, "The current Magic Web is disrupted by the Evil Dragon Sacrifice, it's too chaotic. Give me two more minutes!"

"Alright! I'll protect you! Just focus on casting!"

Natural War Maniac swung an axe, slicing a Storm Flying Dragon that was about to sneak attack Summer Night Autumn Rain in half, confidently shouting.

Singo, standing on the dragon's back, turned around and drew a Dragon Slayer Arrow, pulling the longbow taut. The arrow whistled out, piercing through the storm directly into the throat of a Storm Flying Dragon, bursting out from its rear neck.

Mantou, however, couldn't perform as gracefully. He somersaulted within the storm, dodging the Blast Lightning striking from behind, looking disheveled, with even his hair turning into an explosive mess.

"Tear them apart for me! Don't let these damn traitors escape!" The Evil Dragon Sacrifice roared angrily, swinging his scepter continuously, urging numerous Blue Dragon Descendants for pursuit.

At that moment, Summer Night Autumn Rain's eyes sparkled faintly, the space in front twisted and transformed, revealing a massive spatial vortex.

"Don't linger in battle!"

"Alright, let's go!"

Summer Night Autumn Rain, Singo, and Natural War Maniac entered one after the other.

"Hey, wait for me, I haven't entered yet!"

Mantou intended to dive in, but the tail of his Bipedal Wyvern was grabbed by a jumping Blue Dragon Descendant Ambusher, slowing their pace significantly.

"Never mind, Noodle, let's charge directly!"

Gazing at the rapidly closing spatial tunnel, Mantou gritted his teeth, disregarding the arcs enveloping him, and plunged headlong into the spatial vortex, dragging the Blue Dragon Descendant Ambusher with him into the portal.

"No—"

The frustrated roar of the Evil Dragon Sacrifice echoed from behind.

The other side of the portal led to the Ashen Empire's stronghold, fully armored Imperial Soldiers everywhere, with Silver Dragons, Brass Dragons, and other Metal Dragons hovering in the air.

The Blue Dragon Descendant Ambusher that traversed space opened its eyes, gazing around the unfamiliar surroundings, reluctantly letting go, eyes filled with deep despair.

"Howl…"