This meeting was completely beyond Xia Mi's expectations.
Staring at Uesugi Koeru, who was marked as "Killed in Battle" in Cassell College's archives, she suddenly felt like she had fallen into a web, shifting from the hunter to the prey.
At the same time, more questions—no, more doubts—began flooding her mind like tangled threads.
"Honorable King of Earth and Mountains, please allow this old man to introduce himself."
Uesugi Koeru, unhurried and composed like a true gentleman, bowed respectfully to the tall figure in the darkness. If only he had a hat, the image would have been perfect.
"I am Uesugi Koeru, the last Shadow Emperor of the East. By the will of my master, I have come to deliver a divine decree."
A divine decree?
Xia Mi was momentarily stunned, but soon, she couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.
"Are you seriously still playing this game in this day and age? How childish."
"Believe it or not, that is up to you. I'm just the messenger."
Uesugi Koeru shrugged indifferently. His job was to deliver the message, nothing more. Whether she believed it or not had nothing to do with him.
Xia Mi was silent for half a second before speaking casually.
"Alright then, let's hear it."
"You will die at the hands of your beloved."
Uesugi Koeru conveyed the message truthfully, but even as he said it, he found it utterly ridiculous.
The Four Great Kings of the Dragon Race were always ruthless and cold-hearted, their nature cruel and tyrannical. The idea of one falling in love with a human—and even dying at their hands—was about as likely as Hilbert coming out of the closet tomorrow… and on the receiving end, no less.
Not impossible, but the probability was damn near zero.
This was the kind of plot you'd only find in a romance novel!
Uesugi Koeru wanted to dismiss it as nonsense, convinced it was impossible. But then, he remembered—Adam's prophecies had never been wrong.
Maybe the world was just changing too fast.
Alright, back to business.
Leaving aside Uesugi Koeru's increasingly wild thoughts, on Xia Mi's side, a sudden tremor ran through her heart.
In her mind, a boy's shadow inexplicably surfaced, but she quickly shook her head, forcefully driving the thought away.
"Ridiculous!" Xia Mi's voice carried a hint of anger as she loudly rebuked, "Is this what you call 'destiny'?"
Her voice was loud, yet there was an unexplainable trace of panic within it—like a little girl whose secret had just been exposed, making her both flustered and furious.
"Believe it or not, that's up to you. I'm just here to deliver the message." Uesugi Koeru shrugged indifferently. "My job here is done. Now, if you'll excuse me."
With that, he turned to leave.
But barging into Nibelungen uninvited and then speaking of destiny—such an act was nothing short of provocation. How could Xia Mi possibly let him go so easily?
"Stop right there!"
Xia Mi's golden eyes flared, burning like blazing flames.
Her shout echoed through the tunnel, and under her overwhelming presence, the entire passage trembled. Cracks spread across the rock walls, sending fragments tumbling down, dust swirling in the air.
"Come and go as you please? Do you think this place is some kind of playground?"
Her piercing golden gaze radiated an indescribable majesty. A boundless and terrifying aura surged forth like an avalanche or a raging tsunami, filling every inch of the tunnel, as if several mountains were crashing down at once.
Facing a Dragon King—even one who wasn't in her complete state—the sheer weight of her spiritual domain was already suffocating for Uesugi Koeru.
"Knew it would come to this…" Uesugi Koeru let out a heavy breath. His entire body felt like it was being squeezed. Unconsciously, his own golden eyes began to glow, but under the Dragon King's spiritual suppression, their once dazzling brilliance flickered weakly.
"O mighty ruler of earth and mountains, I meant no offense."
"Who sent you? Tell me who's behind this!"
Xia Mi's gaze was razor-sharp.
She had to know—who was pulling the strings from the shadows?
If looks could kill, Uesugi Koeru figured he'd have been torn apart by now. Though he wouldn't die outright, a Dragon King's golden eyes held an undeniable power over Hybrids—one that was impossible to resist.
The air around him felt like it was about to solidify into glue.
The immense pressure of the spiritual domain made him feel as if he were thousands of meters deep in the ocean.
His bones, muscles, nerves, and even every strand of hair were screaming warnings, wailing in fear.
This wasn't like last time with that fake "Odin."
This was a real, living "Dragon King"!
Thinking of this, Uesugi Koeru couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
This job was way too dangerous.
Dealing with Dragon Kings all the time—if he had known things would turn out like this, he might as well have just died in the ocean back then.
But despite his complaints, he still wanted to avoid a fight if possible.
He cleared his throat and said, "Respected Dragon King, I'm afraid I can't tell you who it is. But you won't have to wait long—soon, you will meet my master yourself. If you have any questions, you can ask them directly then."
"Oh? Is that so?"
Xia Mi's tall figure remained hidden in the darkness.
Her voice carried a hint of displeasure as she let out a cold chuckle.
"In that case, you can stay right here. You'll leave when your so-called master arrives."
She wanted to see for herself who was hiding in the shadows, playing tricks.
"Goodbye!"
Uesugi Koeru didn't hesitate.
He turned around and ran.
Nibelungen was indeed the Dragon King's alchemical domain.
Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to escape.
But he had some "tricks" up his sleeve.
However, Xia Mi seemed to have expected this.
Her calm gaze remained steady as her voice echoed through the tunnel.
"Fenrir!"
BOOM!!!
In the pitch-black subway tunnel, it was as if a thousand-lumen spotlight had suddenly turned on.
Blinding golden light burst forth.
The tunnel walls trembled violently.
As if some ancient mechanism had been triggered, cracks spread across the rock walls.
Chunks of stone crumbled and fell, filling the air with dust.
The ground shook violently as a massive "searchlight" blocked the path ahead. A blinding golden light completely filled Uesugi Koeru's vision.
But in reality, that was no searchlight—it was a dragon!
An ancient and majestic being, its massive body resembled mountain ranges from millions of years ago, covered in dark cyan-black scales as hard as steel.
Despite being a reptile, its presence was more awe-inspiring than any creature—powerful, deep, resilient. Every shift of its scales produced the crisp clank of metal striking metal.
Its bone-ridged face carried the dignity of a king. With a single beat of its enormous wings, it sealed off the tunnel's only exit.
"ROAR!!!"
A deafening bellow erupted, sending visible shockwaves rippling through the air.
Just from that one roar, Uesugi felt like he had been slammed by a tidal wave. The impact sent him flying dozens of meters back, his feet carving two deep trenches into the tunnel floor as he struggled to stay upright.
The dragon took half a step forward, and the entire tunnel trembled. Countless rocks broke loose from the ceiling, pelting against its scales with sharp, metallic clangs.
Twin streams of scorching air shot from its nostrils, stirring up powerful gusts. An indescribable sense of pressure bore down on Uesugi, making every hair on his body stand on end.
Sweat poured uncontrollably from his pores. Under the piercing gaze of those golden eyes, an unstoppable chill crept into his heart.
"You're not leaving here until you talk."
Xia Mi stepped forward, placing a hand under the dragon's chin, her eyes glinting with danger.
"Enough, enough…"
Uesugi Koeru sighed, shaking his head. "I was hoping to avoid conflict, but in the end…"
His gaze swept over the wary dragon and the girl standing beside it. The teasing expression faded from his face, replaced by an icy, emotionless stare.
It was as if he had become a completely different person. Ripples of light flickered in his pupils as he muttered softly,
"In the end, expecting reason from dragons is wishful thinking. At the end of the day, fists speak louder than words."
Dark, armor-like dragon scales emerged from beneath his skin, spreading rapidly across his body.
Layers upon layers of black scales shimmered with a grayish-white rock-like sheen. Faint, mysterious patterns were carved on the surface—so subtle that they were nearly impossible to see without careful observation.
His muscles swelled to several times their original size, bulging as if inflated. The sheer force stretched his scales to the breaking point, and jagged bone spikes extended from his spine to the tip of his back. In the blink of an eye,
Uesugi Koeru transformed from a human into a towering creature nearly tens of meters tall—an aberration resembling a smaller version of the "Dragon King"!
"Draconization?!"
Xia Mi's heart trembled as she witnessed the transformation.
Throughout history, every hybrid who had dared to walk this forbidden path had met the same fate—falling into madness and becoming mindless Death Servitor. Successful cases were virtually nonexistent.
Yet now, a human had taken the final step.
He had turned into a dragon!
"Word Soul—Bronze Throne!"
"Word Soul—Immortal!"
"Word Soul—Instantaneous Amplification, Level Ten!"
Three layers of Word Souls stacked upon each other, pushing Uesugi Koeru's physical strength to an unimaginable level in an instant.
"Are you kidding me?!"
Xia Mi's pupils shrank in shock.
"You're cheating, aren't you?!"
Even the so-called King of Earth and Mountains, famed for unparalleled defense, would have to bow before this body—now tougher than any known alloy!
The next moment, Uesugi Koeru vanished.
BOOM—!
A deafening sonic boom tore through the air. The entire tunnel collapsed under the force.
Xia Mi's vision was filled with a pitch-black figure.
Before she could react, she was struck as if by a falling meteor.
The overwhelming force crashed into her like a tidal wave, sending both her and Fenrir hurtling against the tunnel's rocky walls.
The shrieking winds of destruction howled without end.
********
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