NOVEL NEXT Chapter 78: Draeven Against All!
If anyone were to volunteer to breached the space themselves, it would cost them, greatly consuming their power and leaving them vulnerable, exposed. And none among them wished to be the first to show weakness. Not here. Not when surrounded by predators who would tear into them the moment they faltered.
So they waited. Letting the karmic rain do the slow, patient work. All of them, from the towering giants to the serpentine Elders wrapped in mist, stood still, eyes locked on the thin, quivering veil where the spatial barrier had grown weak.
But then— Suddenly—
The already opened tiny spatial hole connecting to Draeven's Labyrinth shut. Snapped closed like a mouth clamping tight.
The ripple of space mended, the blood rain momentarily pushed back. It happened in an instant — but it was enough.
All at once, the gathered beings stiffened.NTheir brows lifted in quiet surprise. Their gazes, sharp as blades, turned toward the direction of the rain.
'Truly befitting of Draeven and Aephyra, heirs to the two most exalted Supreme Dragon Bloodlines.'
No one spoke — but a cold understanding passed between them. He had arrived.
Among them, an inconspicuous figure stirred. A human. At first glance, he appeared plain — ordinary features, a presence so thin it was like a thread lost in the vast sea of power.
Yet when he opened his eyes, they gleamed with a terrifying coldness, deep as an abyss. His lips curled in a sharp sneer.
His voice, quiet but cutting, rang out.
It was like a hammer striking steel — sharp, jarring, impossible to ignore.
"He's here," the man said, his words dripping with disdain. "The traitor's here."
The void seemed to grow colder.
Around him, the assembled forces tensed.
Power flared — ancient grudges igniting like dry tinder catching flame. Killing intent swelled, thick and suffocating, as old hatreds that had slept now stirred awake. The void itself seemed to groan beneath the pressure.
But then— A voice, cold as ice and heavy as a falling mountain, rang out from among them.
"A mere human… you have no right to call him a traitor. Never forget your place!"
The air seemed to freeze. The temperature in the void plummeted.
A chill gripped every heart present — even those who were ancient, even those who had stood on the peaks of power for eons. The weight behind that voice crushed down on them like a hand squeezing their very souls.
The human's lips twitched. His eyes, which moments ago had gleamed with cruel arrogance, dimmed faintly. His fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked — but he did not refute. He could not refute.
Because he knew. All of them knew.
"Only we of the Dragon race have the right to call him traitor. None of you have that right!" The voice echoed once more — cold, proud, and absolute. Then it disappeared entirely, as though it had never been there.
But the silence it left behind was heavy.
Crushing.
Suffocating.
No one spoke after that. No one dared.
The void remained deathly still, but the tension twisted tighter, like a bowstring drawn to its limit.
Every figure present now began preparing — silently weaving their methods, calling upon their deepest arts, each plotting their own way to seize Draeven the moment he appeared.
Because they knew— The real battle was about to begin. And in this void drenched in blood rain and grudges, there would be no mercy.
Suddenly, with a crackling ripple, a portal tore open right in the heart of the karmic blood rain. From it, a scaled Dragonoid burst forth like a storm unchained. The aura that exploded out of him was suffocating—heavy, ancient, oppressive. It weighed down on the very void around them, forcing even the strongest gathered to stiffen slightly, their instincts screaming danger.
Above him, his aura didn't just flare—it solidified. A translucent, shifting array hovered like a divine shield, its surface gleaming faintly with runes too old to name. Not a single drop of the cursed blood rain could penetrate it. The karmic downpour, so deadly in numbers, hissed and evaporated as it touched the invisible boundary.
Because while the rain's power was overwhelming to those unprepared, Draeven knew better. As long as not a single drop touched him, its corrosive, soul-piercing effects were nothing but background noise. He would not give it the chance. Not today.
Then, from the front of the vast assembled forces, a figure stepped forth — a dragon, towering and wreathed in a storm of gold and black scales. Its voice cut through the silence like a blade of ice, cold and heavy with authority as it glared down at Draeven.
"Draeven, you traitor! You're truly shameless. Even after your despicable crimes, you still have the gall to show your face here." The dragon's voice deepened, rumbling like distant thunder. "In respect for your Supreme Devourer Dragon bloodline, I'll give you this one chance. Surrender… and perhaps, just perhaps, you and your family might be spared from total annihilation."
The silence that followed was suffocating. Even the blood rain seemed to pause, hanging heavier in the air.
But Draeven broke it with a scoff that echoed with pure disdain. His slit pupils narrowed, and his voice was sharp, slicing through the tension.
"What do you take me for? A hatchling born yesterday?" His lips curled into a smirk that didn't reach his cold, blazing eyes. "Those tired tricks won't work on me."
Everyone here knew—Draeven better than anyone—that surrender would be a death sentence in disguise. A slow, humiliating death stretched out just to appease the so-called 'justice' of his enemies. To submit was to spit on his pride as a dragon, on the bloodline that roared in his veins. No. If death was inevitable, then he would meet it in battle—teeth bared, claws drawn, his enemies' blood on his scales.
And as if to hammer that home, Draeven's voice sharpened further, laced with venom.
"Are you the Dragon Emperor's new lapdog now? He must be sicker in the head than I thought—to send an unknown worm like you to lead forces against me. Does he take this war so lightly?"
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A/N:
Mass released chapters: 8/9!