Child of Destiny

Chapter 1578: The Compass of the Lost Soul (Part 1)

...…

What the three had found floating at the center of this place was a circular object that looked like a palm-size coin.

This coin was filled with a huge amount of darkness, carrying the densest form of shadow mana.

Hu! Hu! Hu!

The coin was even set ablaze by a shadowy flame due to the dense mana that it possessed.

Even Diablo, who already mastered the Ancient Shadow Powers to a certain degree, felt great restriction coming from this object.

Shin, who was somewhat sensitive to dark energies due to his connection with Grimrace and Blackie, felt somewhat quite heavy due to the dark mana filling the air due to this coin.

Arthur, on the other hand, did not feel that much anything from this coin. But his Dragon Senses and the connection he had with the Chaos Dragon Archon he contracted with, was telling him that this thing was not as simple as it seemed.

It was also at that moment when he got the notification from the system.

*Ding*

System: You have found the [Compass of the Lost Soul (Incomplete)]!

System: Find all three parts of the compass and head to the direction where it will lead you.

*Ding*

System: The fate of your Dragon Soul will be waiting for you on the other side.

…

Arthur frowned deeply as he stared at the string notification in front of him. He did not get a real update for his quest but received a bunch of nonsense instead. ”What the heck is this?”

Shin raised his brows when he saw the expression that his brother was making. ”Hey. Whatʼs wrong this time?”

Arthur did not reply as he shared the system notifications directly.

When Shin and Diablo saw the notification, they also frowned deeply before turning their gazes back to the floating coin once again.

Upon closer inspection, Shin found out that it was indeed a compass albeit lacking some areas.

This compass lacked any moving needle, which was the main indicator as well as the cardinal directions that it was supposed to have to signify which direction was which.

Aside from the eight-pointed star engraved into it, which indicated that it was a compass, this palm-size coin did not have anything else.

What confused them even more was the fact that this object was emitting such a dark aura.

Arthur did not think much about it as he hated putting too much thought into things since it would only make the situation more conflicted.

Instead, he extended his hand and grabbed the compass before using his Dragon Eyes to inspect it. But he quickly frowned when he realized that it was something that could not be inspected due to its incomplete state on top of being somewhat of a quest item.

”Tsk! This thing doesnʼt give us much clue,” said Arthur as he put the item into his inventory.

Shin shook his head as he explained. ”Didnʼt the system have given you enough clue? It is saying something about your ʼdragon soulʼ or something at the end. There is also something about ʼfateʼ.”

”If you ask me, then it is more than enough for me to tell you that it will point you toward the location of the piece of the Divine Armor of the Dragonkin or at least something similar,” he added while turning around.

”Letʼs go. The others have already waiting for quite a while. We better tell everyone to log out and rest properly before coming back again later,” he said as he walked back to where they came from.

Diablo also followed as he fell into deep thought, trying to recall something.

…

After a proper rest offline, the Empyrean Talons did not wait that long as they quickly headed to their next destination right after going back online.

This time, the group moved as cautiously as possible despite Arthurʼs assurance that there would only be a single enemy on this cave channel. They did not want to get ambushed once again just like what previously had happened from the other cave channel.

But just like Arthur had said, they did not encounter any monsters along the way, which saved them a lot from trouble and conserved their strength.

But right after they reached the end of this path, the entire group could not help but halt in their tracks and stand still due to the monster soundly sleeping ahead of them.

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[Monster Name]: Cave Komodo Drake (Hatchling)

[Monster Type]: Beast (Reptilian Family)

[Monster Rank]: Chieftain

[Life Rating]: Draconic Species

[Monster Level]: 155

Heath Points: 50 Million

Description:

A Komodo Lizard underwent a series of mutations after an extended exposure to the mysterious power within its habitat and evolved into a Drake.

It possessed tough scales that could rival any sturdy armor and sharp claws that could cut steel as if it were tofu.

Its mouth had a strength that could easily crush boulders and metals.

Under the constant exposure to the mysterious power within the cave, it had awakened the power hidden in its bloodline and became a full-pledge draconic species.

At the same time, it had also gained an innate control over Earth Elemental Mana.

Note 1: The body of this monster could not be harvested as it was a dungeon monster, but there was a high chance that a Beast Core or an Elemental Core would drop upon death.

Note 2: There was also a small chance that a Soul Crystal would drop upon being killed.

Note 3: The was also a very certain chance that a fragment of a Lesser Dragon Core would drop upon its death.

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”Is this the guy that we saw earlier?” mumbled Arthur as he recalled their brief encounter with a chieftain-rank monster earlier when they were being chased by the Komodo Lizards.

”The chances are high, but that is not the main problem right now,” said Leonard as he could feel an immense threat coming from this monster.

His ʼBestial Instinctsʼ were telling him that this monster was way more powerful than any monster that they had encountered up until now.

Even Shin was frowning quite deeply as he stared at the sleeping lizard. He had said to Arthur before that their current limit in the Awakened Continent was a Chieftain Rank Monster if it was a one-on-one battle if they used all their cards.

But after seeing the monster before them, that assessment might be wrong, especially when chieftain-rank monsters mostly possessed a high life rating due to their awakened bloodline.

Of course, the Draconic Species was one of the creatures with the highest life ratings due to them being descendants of the Dragons, which was why this Komodo Drake in front of the group gave off a much stronger threat compared to other types of monsters.

At the same time, not far from this sleeping drake, the group could also see a floating sphere in the air.

When they used their respective ocular skills to have a closer look at that object, they realized that it was a small magic circle that resembled a compass.

The group then realized that it might be one of the pieces that Arthur needed to complete that item that he had gotten from the previous cave channel.

”Get ready and adjust your mind. This is going to be much more exhausting compared to the previous battles that we have up until now,” said Shin to the group, especially to Samael and Huahua, who were quite new to the team.

Based on his estimate, this must be their first time facing such a powerful monster that far surpassed the current limit of the players.

The common and elite-rank monsters of the Awakened Continent might be equivalent to the king and emperor-class monsters of the Aurora Continent on the same level respectively while the special elites were a notch higher than the latter.

But given the quality of the players of the Empyrean Talons, they could not feel that much pressure from these monsters, especially when these experts always make up for their mistakes.

However, they faced a monster that far surpassed those monsters, which could even cause the group serious trouble during the battle. This could even endanger them given that this Cave Komodo Drake possessed a strength that could threaten even their top combatants.

Bang!

Arthur did not wait that much as he quickly charged ahead right after receiving the buffs from Cloe and Samael.

Swoosh!

He transformed into a streak of light while assuming a throwing stance midair. He was holding his dragon spear as if it were a javelin while gathering his dragon powers and infusing them into it.

It was at this moment when the Komodo Drake finally opened its eyes, waking up due to the sudden intruder.

But before it could even pick itself up from its comfortable position, Arthur threw the dragon spear forward, transforming it into a huge golden dragon.

Swoosh!

ʼTrue Nine Dragon Arts: Imperial Tactics – Golden Dragon soar through the Heavensʼ

Roar!

He did not even hesitate as he entered his combat state, the Reality Manifestation, taking this battle very seriously.

Boom!

(-2,520,623)

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