The Legend of the Dragon King

Fire and ice were mortal enemies; the half-meter long icicles were like the harbingers of death, forcing the lions to release their hottest flames to protect themselves. Nonetheless, the scorching air still cooled.

Fueled by rage and vengeance, the giant youth clubbed another two lions.

His body was already scorched black after receiving countless attacks from the lions. The glow of soul power surrounding him was dimming rapidly as strength left his body.

At that moment, he suddenly saw a figure quickly approaching from where the golden vine had previously sprung.

As the figure approached, a blue glow appeared on the ground and even thicker vines burst out. They were too sturdy for even the lions’ flame shields to defend against. In an instant, the hundred-year lions stiffened and roared as the vines impaled their stomachs.

It was also clear that every lion inside the range of the Bluesilver Grass had momentarily slowed down.

In that instant, the approaching figure dropped from the sky and onto the Blazing Demon Lion King’s back. Ignoring the flames covering the lion’s body, he transformed his right arm into a golden claw and grabbed the lion king’s head.

The lion king thrashed its body, struggling free of the golden vine.

Similarly, the other lions had also managed to break free of their restraints and transferred their attention from the sturdy youth to the youngster on the lion king’s back.

The Blazing Demon Lion King shuddered, then collapsed with a loud rumble. Tang Wulin had destroyed its backbone, taking away even the chance to struggle in its death.

Had the sturdy youth not provided the perfect distraction, Tang Wulin could not have killed the lion king so smoothly and the outcome would have differed greatly.

Fireballs arced toward Tang Wulin, but he was prepared. The golden vine suddenly appeared beneath him, sending him soaring into the air like a spring.

Meanwhile, an eerie sensation descended upon the lions. The shower of icicles exploded into countless shards, fusing with the emerging blizzard which grew to swallow the group of lions..

Although the Blazing Demon Lions had become frenzied after the death of their king, the overbearing blizzard completely suppressed them.

The youth finally realized that saviors had arrived, triggering a breath of relief to escape his lips. Coupled with the relief, however, was shock. He had clearly seen that the youngster who killed the Blazing Demon Lion King only had two rings, but both were purple. And then, a blizzard had come out of nowhere and descended upon the lions.

In the elementary spirit ascension platform, Soul Elders were the upper limit, but there was no way a Soul Elder could possess so much firepower.

The sight of a girl bathed in green light casually approaching the Blazing Demon Lions as if the blizzard wasn’t even there had left him utterly speechless. Unfazed by the blizzard, the girl raised a hand and summoned a ball of ice while the surrounding blizzard converged on her location.

In just several moments, the ball had grown to over one meter in diameter and spikes covered its surface.

“Go!” The ball of ice flew straight at a thousand-year Blazing Demon Lion.

It managed to respond in time by opening its mouth wide to breathe a swathe of flames toward the ball.

A violent boom tore through the air when the ball of ice exploded in the center of the pride, shattering into a mass of shards which hailed down upon the lions.

This… was this all planned?

The sky suddenly lit up, drawing the youth’s attention. Starlight descended from the heavens, blanketing the lions to seemingly no effect. Twinkling starlight enveloped them, and in a flash, they simultaneously turned to begin mauling one another.

For that instant, flames blazed within the blizzard, but none hit the right target, leaving only the lions themselves injured.

Blue vines slithered out once more, binding the lions. The figure from before descended again, grabbing another lion’s head with his dragon claw.

“What are you waiting for?” Tang Wulin asked the youth.

Snapping out of his stupor, the youth brandished his giant rod as he leapt back into the fray.

With his domineering strength, the remaining Blazing Demon Lions were soon suppressed and exterminated one after another.

The youth delighted in the slaughter, venting more of his wrath with each skull he smashed open.

All of a sudden, the pretty, large-eyed youngster called out to him, “Be careful!”

As the youth attempted to respond, a cold sensation ran across his neck and then, there was nothing.

☀

Spirit Pagoda, room thirteen of the spirit ascension platform.

Six young men and women stared at a screen. They were the members of the Soul Elder squadron which was decimated in the battle against the Blazing Demon Lions.

They all broke out into cheers when they saw that reinforcements had arrived and the lions were being slaughtered.

But suddenly, the screen went black.

“What happened?” asked a girl.

“I think Captain had an accident,” said another boy in shock. If at least one member of the team remained alive in the spirit ascension platform, they could watch the events on the screen. A black screen signified that their entire team had been wiped out, with not a single member still in the spirit ascension platform.

Sure enough, when they checked the room, the youth’s box was open. Even in his normal state, his height nearly passed two meters.

“Captain, are you alright?” His concerned teammates surrounded him.

Gradually, he opened his eyes then rubbed his neck. “I’m fine.”

“Captain, how did you die? Didn’t you guys already wipe out the lions?” one of the girls asked, confused.

The youth showed a similarly puzzled expression. “I’m not sure either. Those soul masters that saved me were really strong. I died right as one of them told me to be careful. Maybe another powerful soul beast appeared. Well, whatever. At least I managed to avenge you guys with their help. It was my mistake this time. I underestimated the strength of the Blazing Demon Lion pride and I’ve led us to ruin. As an apology, I’ll take you all out to dinner.”