Slime True Immortal

"I see." Oros let out a soft sigh, pulling his gaze away from the memories of the battlefield and settling it back on the slime crouching on the broken chair. "It seems all of this was arranged by fate. Alex made the wrong choice; he simply walked down a path from which even he couldn't turn back."

"While this answer cannot bring back those fallen companions, at least it can grant them peace."

He stood up, the light and shadows within the dream castle swaying with his movements. Outside the window, the phantom of that black dragon was just having its neck caught in the jaws of a silver dragon. The image froze, then shattered into specks of broken light that dissipated into the clear sky.

"You, sir, have helped resolve a long-standing grievance for the silver dragons of yesteryear. In any case, a thousand thanks."

"Alright, enough talk of these old, dusty affairs. I will be staying in the Icefield for a while. Constructing the magic formation to block astral surveillance is quite troublesome. It requires the assistance of several grand mages and numerous mage apprentices. Additionally, I will need quite a few magic gems to refract the viewing. I hope you can prepare them for me."

The moment Chen Yu heard this, he knew he was about to bleed resources heavily.

Though his heart ached, he still maintained the composure befitting a king, waving a gel hand dismissively. "I'll arrange the mages. Just tell me what materials you need."

He hopped down to the ground and followed Oros back through the Fissure to the Material Plane.

The ethereal gray mist slowly dissipated behind them as he and Oros returned to the Royal Palace.

"There's actually one more thing I need to trouble you with."

Chen Yu's small eyes flickered with wariness upon hearing this.

Was this old dragon thinking of borrowing money?

Although the Empire was developing well, every single expense—constructing the gel greenhouses on the Golden Tassel Plain, expanding the city, allocating budget for Anvil's floating fortress—made his heart ache with each cost.

He wasn't lending any money. Not a single copper coin.

Oros seemed to read the meaning behind that wary expression and let out a quiet, amused laugh. "Rest assured, it's nothing troublesome. I just have a habit of writing biographies while traveling over the years."

"My last biography, about the expedition into the Northern Giant ruins, was published decades ago. Since I've encountered the newest rising empire's sovereign on this continent this time, if I were to return without recording something, I'm afraid my old editor would chase me all the way to the dragon's lair to scold me."

"It's just an interview." He spread his hands. "I want to record the birth of the Slime United Empire and the story of the Slime Hero King. I believe newspapers in many city-states across the continent will be eager to see this."

Chen Yu's wariness slowly eased.

Just an interview—it really wasn't anything troublesome.

In fact, the moment Oros made this request, Chen Yu's mind had already raced to some other possibilities. Wasn't this the perfect chance to provide a window for the continent's inhabitants to understand the Slime United Empire?

Oros's biography would definitely be published in newspapers in Dawn City and other human city-states. By then, he could easily sneak some extra content into the interview.

For example, that the Slime United Empire was the true orthodox kingdom of the elves. Or that the Slime Emperor warmly welcomed talented individuals to come and settle down. It could serve as an advertisement for the Leaf of No Distinction's liberation cause, while also helping to ease the Dawn Council's hostility toward the Empire.

He couldn't let that biography make people who had never set foot in the East think the Slime United Empire was just a monster kingdom built by magical creatures.

That idea was simply brilliant. No wonder he was so clever.

Chen Yu secretly preened, brimming with bold ambition as he hopped around and accepted Oros's request.

Oros was also taken aback for a moment. He had thought the sovereign would at least hesitate for a few days or need to consult with his ministers, but his acceptance was far too quick.

However, he soon understood.

This was indeed a golden opportunity to let the continent see the Slime United Empire for what it truly was.

This vast empire had risen from the depths of the swamp in just a single year, spanning the widest stretch of the eastern continent. Yet the ancient city-states, councils, and kingdoms of the southern continent had almost no understanding of it.

This biography could let commoners, merchants, adventurers, and scholars who had never stepped outside their city gates know that in the eastern mountains, a nation built by slimes was changing the continent's landscape in its own way.

Oros also had his own plans.

Though he spoke magnanimously about the dragons willingly yielding the land, claiming they were naturally more drawn to the freedom of the Astral Realm, he knew it was just a facade.

No dragon was willing to stay in the dangerous depths of the Astral Realm, living in constant fear. Though it was free there, they had to be ever vigilant of wandering demigods and void predators that crawled through dimensional cracks from unknown planes.

If there was an empire established by native continental races, one not overly meddled with by human deities, as a foothold, the dragons would have an excuse to rest and vacation on the continent.

They were just a group of dragons who loved slimes, passing by to bask in the sun and incidentally helping the Empire guard its borders. What was wrong with that?

When he brought this up to Chen Yu, he tried to keep his tone reserved, but Chen Yu saw right through his little scheme.

He laughed cheerfully. "I remember there are plenty of undeveloped mineral veins in the Dark Realm. The mithril deep within is enough for several dragons to roll around comfortably."

"If the silver dragons are interested, they can claim a section as their lair. The Empire welcomes the silver dragons at any time."

Oros seriously bent down, extending his right palm to clasp the little gel hand reaching up to meet his.

"You are too kind, sir."

A handshake. A diplomatic agreement spanning silver dragon and slime was thus sealed in the Royal Palace of Slime City.

Chen Yu used those mithril veins, hidden deep in the ancient mountains and difficult to develop, as new lair sites for the silver dragons on the continent. In return, the silver dragons promised to help the Empire jointly defend the mountain range border from the Dark Realm to the far eastern frontier.

The next time those Dawn mages tried to fly across the border, they would find a few silver dragons lounging in the mist-shrouded depths of the mountains. It would probably scare them into taking a detour.

Oros's interview lasted an entire afternoon.

His recording method was very traditional—using a sheet of processed animal hide as a base, dipping a quill in ink, and writing in the Common Tongue.

He barely made any edits or deletions to Chen Yu's narration. He would only occasionally pause to ask a few follow-up questions about the timeline, or raise an eyebrow when he heard about the goblins enslaving humans.

Chen Yu recounted the birth of the Empire from his own perspective.

From his first conversation with Sekashi under that great oak tree in the swamp, to the battle besieged by goblins in the Dungeon, and finally the fight with the Greater Demon.

Sometimes Oros would stop his quill, look up at him, then lower his head and continue writing.

Of course, Chen Yu didn't forget to slip in his own hidden agenda.

His tone was calm when he mentioned the current situation of the Leaf of No Distinction and the half-elves. He only casually added that the former Sacred Oak Grand Sage was still within the Empire's borders, as if it were no big deal.

He also casually mentioned that the Empire's territory had many subjects from different races. Since the Empire currently lacked talent, the wages offered to craftsmen were quite good.

Moreover, food here was plentiful. At the very least, every family could receive a monthly relief ration.

It wasn't until dusk that Oros put away his quill, dried the sheets filled with Common Tongue records one by one, and neatly stacked them into a waterproof leather tube.

He stood up to bid Chen Yu farewell, saying that the material list for the magic formation would be delivered to the Royal Palace by tomorrow at the latest. Then he transformed back into his silver dragon form, ready to spread his wings and fly toward Winterhold.

Before leaving, he reminded Chen Yu again that if he ever planned to explore those mysterious coordinates on the Star Charts, he could call on Oros anytime.

Of course, Chen Yu wasn't about to barge into an unknown, dangerous place without any preparation.

He crouched on the steps in front of the Royal Palace, watching the silhouette of that silver giant dragon merge into the grayish-blue dusk sky. Then he hopped back to his Throne and eagerly unrolled the scroll Oros had gifted him.

The scroll unfurled, densely covered with dragon-rune seals he had never seen before. Beside each row of runes, tiny dragon-language annotations provided brief notes.

These spells were all written in ancient dragon tongue. He couldn't read them, of course, but he knew a castle spirit who had studied dragon language with Olivia for decades.

He softly called out for Silver Sparrow.

Silver Sparrow's phantom form materialized from the air beside him, her silhouette glowing with a faint silvery-blue light in the twilight.

Her hands clasped together in front of her, she bowed slightly in a standard maid's curtsy.

"Master, what does Silver Sparrow need to help with?"

He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt like Silver Sparrow's voice had carried a bit more emotion lately.

Before, her replies had always been flat, like a mirror that never rippled.

But now, her voice seemed to hold a faint hint of anticipation, and a little curiosity as well.

Could it be because the castle had been refined into his lifebound treasure?

He used his Divine Sense to hand over the scroll. "Silver Sparrow, teach me to practice the spells on here."

Silver Sparrow's gaze slowly swept across the rows of dragon runes.

"Very well, Master. We'll start with the most basic coordinate perception."

Half a month later, Floating Winterhold

In the academy office, firewood crackled merrily in the fireplace, warming the entire room comfortably.

Spread across the desk were a few magic formation textbooks that had just been closed and a blueprint covered in rune revision sketches.

Oros sat in an armchair before the fireplace, a cup of black tea that had long gone cold sitting in front of him. He was flipping through an old book brought from the dragon lair. The firelight danced on his silver hair.

A slime mail carrier pattered and squelched its way to the door. After receiving Oros's permission, it pushed open the small door and hopped inside.

It wore the little knight's vest uniformly issued by the Imperial Post Office, carrying a canvas mail bag only slightly smaller than its own body.

It pulled a letter sealed with wax from its bag, confirmed the recipient's name, then hopped over to Oros, using both gel hands to present the letter.

"Mr. Oros, a letter from Dawn City. The address is the Gray Dove Newspaper Office. Signed by Andrew Royce."

"Thank you for your hard work." Oros put down his book, took the letter, and nodded to the little mail carrier.

The slime mail carrier saluted with its gel hands, bubbling with joy at completing another task, then squelched and hopped out of the office.

Oros watched it leave, then broke the wax seal, unfolded the letter paper, and brought it close to the firelight to read quietly.

Soon, the face carved with wrinkles by the years broke into the most relaxed smile he had worn in a long time.

"Haven't seen you in decades. You're still the same as ever."

Since settling down in Winterhold half a month ago, his daily schedule had been packed full. He spent most of his time on the snowplain with the Empire's mage corps, instructing the young human and elven mages on the structure of the magic formation to block surveillance.

Although these mages had solid foundations, most of them had never been exposed to astral-level magical theory. Every step forward required time to understand.

Fortunately, Silver Sparrow occasionally came to help translate the dragon runes, barely keeping the teaching progress on track.

In his spare time, he would return to this office in the academy, sit by the fireplace, and continue refining the biography of the Slime Hero King.

His manuscript had already piled into a thick stack, fully recording the empire's development from an oak tree deep in the swamp to a behemoth spanning the eastern continent.

It had only been eight days since he sent the manuscript, and he had already received a reply from his old friend Andrew.

Not only was the guy still alive, but he was in good spirits too. He had even become the editor-in-chief of the newspaper office, thanks to his previous serialized biographies.

The reply was filled with the longing of decades apart and irrepressible excitement about this new biography. In his exaggerated tone, he declared that the Slime Hero King had arrived just in time.

With this biography, their Gray Dove Newspaper might have a chance to completely defeat their old rival in the next weekly issue. He had already written a draft layout for the next issue's headline on the back of the letter paper.

Once the newspaper was printed, the payment and sample copies would be sent together.

Oros refolded the letter paper and carefully tucked it between the pages of the old book.

Though this trip had started with some minor misunderstandings—a fight, and owing the slime a favor—overall, the outcome was satisfactory.

Olivia wasn't dead, and there was a possibility of her rebirth. His old friend in Dawn City hadn't passed away either.

And he had written the biography he was most satisfied with in decades.

For a dragon who had already lived for one thousand five hundred years, such gains were more than enough.

He was already starting to anticipate the reactions of those southern human city-states when they read this biography.

The subject of the Slime Hero King was already captivating enough. Moreover, he had clearly written the empire's elven orthodox identity into this biography.

The Sacred Oak Grand Sage was currently a lord within the Empire. The royal descendant of the Moonlight Elves was still an officially registered subject of the Empire. The disaster of the Ancient Tree Council burning the Sage six hundred years ago had also been faithfully recorded in the chapters.

He could already foresee the heated debates this would spark among human scholars and elven exiles.

But setting aside newspaper sales and political influence, after living here for half a month, he had seen many things that had exceeded his initial expectations.

Whether for followers of any divine system or foreign races with no faith at all, this newborn empire had indeed achieved the maximum possible harmonious coexistence among humans, elves, dwarves, and magical creatures in this era.

Perhaps this Slime Emperor might truly break all the barriers set by the deities in Zeyerra and lead this land toward a future even the dragons could not foresee.