NOVEL NEXT Chapter 88: Where Did You Go Wrong?
Almost as soon as David's voice fell, the divine power mark on his right claw suddenly lit up.
Then he felt as if an invisible claw, just the right size, had grabbed him, pulling him straight up towards the endlessly steep Dragon Cliffs.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
To be honest, in that instant, David was somewhat baffled. Exhausted to the extreme, he had braced himself for the beginning of a long journey, even imagining facing pursuit from devils from the Bronze Citadel and encountering difficulties from Chromatic Dragons of different factions than his ancestor Red Dragon Ephelomon, among other things.
But the instant the divine mark lit up, the scene changed abruptly. It was like he had just arrived at the luxurious home of his mother, the CEO, and didn't even have time to press the doorbell before he was enthusiastically pulled in by the prepared host.
Thus, what should have been a long and arduous journey of flight and ascent, in an instant, created the illusion of the cliffs turning into flat ground, as if he was being invited into an ancient, evil-enshrouded dimension.
It was like the feeling of his soul gradually leaving his body when he first entered the Pantheon.
Yes, I am truly heading towards the realm of a true god.
The sky here was always filled with dark clouds, flickering with unsettling red lightning.
The Dragon Cliffs were the sole passage to the Evil Scale Fortress or, more accurately, they were a part of the Evil Scale Fortress—its outer interface. This was just like the Garden of Joseph is to the War God's Divine Realm, Warrior's Rest.
And on this path to the Dragon God's Divine Realm, there were also many Chromatic Dragons that embarked on pilgrimages and guarded the place. With the tacit approval of the Dragon Queen, they built their nests atop these boundless and edgeless Dragon Cliffs. The cliffs seemed to naturally adapt to the magical reactions of the different Chromatic Dragon nests, transforming sections into lava fields, deserts, forests, marshes, and glaciers.
The higher one ascended, the larger the nests and the older the corresponding dragons.
At first, some idle Chromatic Dragons attempted to hinder him or to extract a 'toll' from the newcomer. However, before they could even open their mouths, they saw the divine power engraving on David's forearm glowing like magma. At that sight, some, like Black Dragons, retreated faster than they had appeared, while others, like White Dragons, prostrated themselves in worship from atop glaciers. Only the Red Dragons held their heads high, staring at David—this lucky recipient of 'Divine Favor'—without any attempt to hide the envy, jealousy, and hate in their hearts.
For further up, those who were still unable to free themselves from their obsession with treasure and greed, or whose faith was insufficient to sustain the connection to the Dragon God's Divine Realm, would see nothing but a hollow void.
Finally, as David's speed increased, he leaped beyond the end of the Dragon Cliffs. At the same time, he finally witnessed the Divine Realm's appearance as he had perceived it in his spiritual vision of the material world.
It stood upon a volcanic crater that seemed to rise from an endless void. The entire fortress appeared forged from black iron, yet its surface was covered in undulating, scale-like patterns. Surrounding the fortress were rune-covered stone columns, intertwined into lines and pointing diagonally toward the heavens. Foul energy surged from their upper sections, and from time to time, black and red lightning leaped from one column to another.
However, at this moment, the Divine Realm in the void bordered another boundless expanse dubbed the 'Crimson Battlefield.' From the walls of this latter realm, countless Chromatic Dragons took flight, heading for what seemed an endless battleground. Furthermore, numerous 'threads' connected to the distant Bronze Citadel. Demons, advancing wave upon wave, streamed in along these sky-reaching ladders.
This must be the epicenter of the divine war, the War God's Divine Realm—Warrior's Rest.
Within the fortress walls lay a limitless expanse of palaces. Five color schemes perfectly melded, blending the grotesque and monstrous with grandeur and majesty. In these palaces, fallen Chromatic Dragon followers were resurrected. After a brief rest, they would rejoin the divine war, a conflict that could span decades or even centuries.
In the rear of this Divine Realm, there were also many summoned individuals like David. They either received training in the Chromatic Palace, feasted on inexhaustible banquets, or engaged in relentless battle with each other.
Yet as David, the blood-caked Red Dragon speeding towards the Evil Scale Fortress, appeared in the sky, numerous Chromatic Dragons were lured by the overwhelming stench of blood from his month-long participation in bloody battles. They halted their activities to gawk at him.
Even from a distance, David could tell by the expressions on these dragons that the onlookers were gossiping about him. How could he not know? This was mostly because he had dug up the Styx River in his fury, thus 'making a name for himself' directly in Barto Hell and even in the Evil Scale Fortress.
Gradually, he found that many Chromatic Dragons, originally perched on the high platforms of the palace, began to accompany him like fortress guards, flanking him on both sides.
What are they trying to do? Almost as soon as this doubt surfaced in David's mind, his body, guided by that divine power, turned and began to fly towards the 'upper' part of the Evil Scale Fortress.
In that moment, he witnessed a cloud exuding a boundless, colorful light screen. As he drew closer, he saw that within the vast cloud, there emerged what appeared to be an 'Evil Scale Fortress' inverted in the void above.
However, compared to the one below, this one seemed even more grand and ethereal. Countless dragons gathered there by the thousands, as if they had witnessed the things they most longed for in life. They strolled across the heavens, weaving through the five-colored radiance, their constant draconic songs blending into a grand chorus, like a resonance of souls.