A Dragon against the Whole World

A few days later.

Boiling Sea, Raging Waves Dragon Domain, a certain isolated island far from the mainland.

The waves crash against the gray-black rocks and the soft sandy beach, creating a never-ending roar. The foaming white bubbles leave winding traces on the moist sand as they recede, only to be mercilessly wiped away by the next rushing wave.

Along this coastline, two figures are strolling against the salty sea breeze.

The man’s face is as cold as an ice sculpture, his long silver hair billowing freely in the wind, and his skin is a chilling snow color from years devoid of sunlight. He wears exquisite jewelry made of Mithril and Star Diamonds on his earlobes and around his neck, reflecting a bright gleam.

The woman has a beautiful face, her honey-colored skin glowing with a healthy sheen, and her cheeks are adorned with a few playful freckles. Her copper-colored curls are bound by a slender, tough metal wire headband, swaying gently with her steps.

These are none other than the Silver Dragon Adrian and the Red Copper Dragon Selena in human form.

"The atmosphere in the clan is heavy, like a block of lead pressed beneath the deep sea."

Selena’s voice is lowered, almost drowned out by the sound of the waves. With a hint of worry, she whispers, "Did it... fail?"

She looks at her companion beside her.

At that moment, a more turbulent wave crashes onto the beach.

The previous wave hadn’t completely receded before the next came rushing in with immense power, wave after wave, never ceasing, creating a thunderous roar.

Adrian’s steps did not halt, his deep gaze lowered, staring at the foam that emerges and vanishes beneath his feet.

How similar is this cycle of tides to the rise and fall of the era’s currents?

Powerful empires rise like towering waves, but in their glorious peak, they can’t escape the fate of collapse, turning into a speck of dust in the river of time.

Even those divine spirits, revered and seen as eternal by mortals.

Who can say there won’t be a day of twilight for them, faced with broader dimensions and more powerful beings?

Many times, sentient beings are not ignorant, yet even when they foresee the signs of decline, trying to gracefully retreat at their peak, more often than not, they find themselves unable to do so, only to watch themselves being swept by the monumental waves of time towards inevitable demise.

The Silver Dragon was silent for several seconds, slowly shaking his head.

"Those elder dragons who know the truth keep it strictly confidential."

He spoke in a deep voice, "But this very silence, too, is an unspeakable announcement."

"The Twenty-four-winged Golden Dragon King, who has protected many dragon domains and the Metal Dragon Race for countless years... His situation now, I’m afraid, is very dire."

Decades ago, all Metal Dragons outside were urgently recalled to the major dragon domains.

The purpose was singular and crystal clear.

— To concentrate all the power of the Metal Dragons, exhausting the entire race’s strength, to help the Golden Dragon King, who possesses twenty-four wings and symbolizes the strongest of the Metal Dragon Race, reach the Immortal Realm.

Over the years, dragons like Adrian and Selena have lived atop the nodes of the Ritual Array at the heart of the dragon domain.

Through the meticulously constructed ritual array by the Dragon Kings, they continuously extracted a portion of their pure life essence energy to supply to the revered king.

Such behavior, if attributed to the inherently selfish Five-Colored Dragon Race, would be unthinkable and utterly impossible.

But the internal unity and spirit of sacrifice within the Metal Dragon Race far exceed what other races can imagine.

Apart from a very few dissenters, the vast majority of Metal Dragons willingly paid this price.

In fact, it was not a one-sided sacrifice.

If the Golden Dragon King succeeds in breaking through, the entire Metal Dragon Race will gain immeasurable benefits, and its glory could even bless all descendants with Dragon Blood on the planet Bernardo.

Initially, the ritual proceeded quite smoothly.

However, a meticulously plotted assault led by the Ten Thousand Laws White Dragon forced the ritual to be interrupted for a considerable time.

Since then, the efficiency of the array in extracting life energy has steadily declined until it eventually... completely failed.

This foretold two distinctly different outcomes.

One, the Golden Dragon King has successfully broken through, his power now inherent, no longer requiring external sustenance.

Two, the Golden Dragon King’s attempt failed, his condition deteriorating to the point that even extracting energy is futile.

The exact situation is kept secret by the higher-ups in the dragon domain.

But according to the tradition of the Metal Dragon Race, if the Golden Dragon King succeeds, the whole race would certainly celebrate with feasts lasting for months on end.

Yet in reality, after the ritual was declared over, the higher-ups in the dragon domain, those older and more powerful dragons, merely calmly announced to all members the end of the closed status, and nothing more.

No grand festival, no victorious dragon roars, not even a soothing explanation.

This unusual silence cast a shadow over the hearts of all dragons like a lingering cloud.

Even the usually optimistic and talkative Brass Dragons became silent for a time.

"The worst outcome is that the Golden Dragon King has already fallen, he has been in decline for a long time."

Selena let out a long sigh, worry deepening on her honey-colored face.

If the most powerful pillar of the Dragon Race collapses, the consequences are unthinkable.

In contrast, the mortal empires, whether exploiting the abyss for power, launching wars of conquest, or exploring the vast starry sea and negotiating with alien civilizations, all exhibit an ambition and drive, keen on progress.