Chapter 428: Audience with the Dragon King

Chapter 428: Audience with the Dragon King

"We won!"

Titanium Cobalt Blue witnessed the simultaneous explosion of Lone Star Li's clone and couldn't help but want to shout out loud. The tension she had been feeling finally dissipated, and she could no longer hide the joy in her heart, her face lighting up with a smile.

The family members offered their congratulations one after another.

"Congratulations, Blue."

"Little Blue, you've gained a good follower. Don't keep him to yourself; introduce him to us when you have the chance. Let's be friends."

"Aunt Blue," Titanium Cobalt Qing Wei said with a hint of envy, "not only do you have good talent, but you also have a good eye for people."

Titanium Cobalt Blue had a close relationship with the king's most beloved granddaughter, and hearing her words, she smiled, half-joking and half-serious, "To be honest, I didn't expect Ashes to come this far."

"Really?"

Titanium Cobalt Qing Wei blinked.

"Really!"

Titanium Cobalt Blue wanted to answer like that. She had been receiving intelligence from Earth, and Ji Daosheng's letters also detailed Ji Xinghuo's gifted potential, calling him the first genius in the history of Earth's humanity and predicting that he would have a chance to challenge the Herder Saint within the next few decades.

Initially, she thought Brother Sheng was exaggerating, but after seeing Ji Xinghuo in person, she began to believe it.

She had initially set the goal for Ji Xinghuo to be within the top ten, but later, due to the intense competition, she relaxed the goal to within the top thirty.

As a result, Ji Xinghuo fought his way to the top!

The champion of the Doomsday Dragon Festival, the Ender, and not just any ordinary ender from previous years, but one who had defeated countless geniuses of the True Dragon Dynasty. His final battle with Lone Star Li was thrilling and spectacular.

Even if she had been the one to face Lone Star Li, victory would not have been guaranteed.

"He's only 27 years old!"

"Brother Sheng was right. It's very likely that Ji Xinghuo will challenge the Herder Saint within thirty years!"

Titanium Cobalt Blue couldn't help but feel her heart surge with emotion.

If Ji Xinghuo became the Herder Saint, the Asia-Pacific Community would immediately be able to unify the globe, and all of humanity would become their support.

Just the assistance of Ji Xinghuo alone would far outweigh the investments of the past years.

The future returns would be over a hundred times, a thousand times, or even more!

Not to mention the distant future, for now, there was the reward of a hundred thousand ether crystals. Titanium Cobalt Blue looked at Titanium Cobalt Yanluo and called out with a smile, "Seventh Aunt."

"I'll send someone to deliver the ether crystals to your house right away," Titanium Cobalt Yanluo said without trying to renege on the bet. She had a very generous attitude towards her loss.

"Thank you, Seventh Aunt."

Titanium Cobalt Yanluo was left speechless.

The Titanium Cobalt Dragon King stood up from his throne, and everyone fell silent, standing with their hands clasped in front of them. They heard the Dragon King say, "Let the top one hundred ranking foreigners from this Doomsday Dragon Festival come to the Yuan Magnet Palace to meet me."

"Yes, Your Majesty," a Titanium Cobalt Dragon Guard replied loudly.

Clap!

An electric whistle sounded, and the figure of the Titanium Cobalt Dragon King disappeared. The huge projection of the Mental Fantasy Realm above Titanium Ring City also vanished.

The True Dragons also took off one after another and entered the Yuan Magnet Palace.

On the spaceship.

Ji Xinghuo's consciousness detached from the Mental Fantasy Realm and opened his eyes in the cabin. The past 99 stellar hours on Dragon Guard Seven felt like a dream, yet it was also indistinguishable from the real world, with every detail deeply etched into his memory.

When he checked the interface of the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupils, he saw that his spiritual source energy had increased to 570,000.

"It's over."

Ji Xinghuo stood up, and his electromagnetic sensing swept through the entire spaceship. He found that most people had already left, and the other cabins, halls, and decks were empty. Only the Dragon Guards remained on the spaceship.

Towards the latter part of the Doomsday Dragon Festival, very few people could remain in the Mental Fantasy Realm, and those who were eliminated left the spaceship early on.

However, there were quite a few people waiting outside the spaceship.

Ji Xinghuo walked out of the cabin and made his way towards the exit of the spaceship. As he walked, all the Dragon Guards on the ship looked at him, their eyes filled with reverence and curiosity, and some even bowed to him to show their respect for the Ender.

When he had first boarded the ship, no one knew who he was.

Now, he was famous!

Ji Xinghuo remained calm and composed. When he stepped out of the spaceship, the square outside was bustling with people, and they erupted into enthusiastic shouts.

"Ender!"

"The Dragon Festival champion is here!"

Hundreds of thousands of people stood there. During Ji Xinghuo's final battle with Lone Star Li, they had received the news that he was on this spaceship. Many of the eliminated legendary powerhouses were also waiting to catch a glimpse of the final victor.

Ji Xinghuo waved to the crowd, his face still maintaining its usual calm.

This wasn't his true nature.

However, in the True Dragon Dynasty, he had to maintain the persona of "Ashes." By pretending to have a silent and reticent personality, he could reduce the amount he spoke and thus lower the chances of exposing information accidentally.

Moreover, being taciturn added to his aura of strength.

When one possessed strength that surpassed the vast majority of people, even if one was mute, others would still find it cool.

Ji Xinghuo spotted Cheng Sheng.

Cheng Sheng was riding on his Steel-edged Dragon, and he had performed very well in this Doomsday Dragon Festival, improving his strength significantly. However, his ranking was not as high as the previous time, and he ultimately placed 132nd, missing out on a reward.

The crowd continued to cheer loudly.

At that moment, Ji Xinghuo received a message on his personal terminal: "By the King's order, the top 100 ranking foreigners from the Doomsday Dragon Festival are to present themselves at the Yuan Magnet Palace."

High in the sky, a Dragon Guard was also announcing the edict, which echoed throughout Titanium Ring City.

Most of the top 100 ranking foreigners had already gained fame before today. They had boarded the spaceship to enter the Mental Fantasy Realm from Upper Titanium Ring City, except for about a dozen people who had boarded from the four spaceships in Lower Titanium Ring City.

Ji Xinghuo was one of them.

He immediately took off and sped towards the Upper Titanium Ring City in the sky.

"Summoned by the Titanium Cobalt Dragon King..." Ji Xinghuo recalled the terrifying power he had sensed from the Dragon King when he looked at him from a distance, and he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

Even among the over two hundred Dragon Kings in the True Dragon Dynasty, the Titanium Cobalt Dragon King was a top-notch powerhouse, second only to the five Dragon Emperors. Most Herder Saints would have to bow their heads and refrain from acting rashly in front of him.

Would such an invincible powerhouse be able to uncover his secrets?

The Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupils, the Pitch-Darkness Law Ball, and Qinghong... Ji Xinghuo felt a bit apprehensive.

After all, one couldn't expect every Herder Saint to be like the Ghostly Spirit, adhering to the principle of fair trade and refraining from forceful seizure.

Of course, not every Herder Saint had the Ghostly Spirit's discerning eye, able to see through him at a glance.

"Better be safe than sorry."

As Ji Xinghuo maintained his flying posture, a dull transparent sphere detached from his left eye and fell into his pocket, where Qinghong swallowed it.

"Take the Pitch-Darkness Law Ball back to the Earth base, and don't alert anyone. Wait for me there," Ji Xinghuo instructed. After hearing his orders, Qinghong shrank to the size of a pea and fell from the sky, drifting down into Lower Titanium Ring City.

Soon, Ji Xinghuo arrived at Upper Titanium Ring City.

Outside the protective force field, he took out his identity card, passed the verification, and entered, landing on a platform.

There were already about a dozen people gathered there, all legendary foreigners ranked in the top 100.

As soon as Ji Xinghuo arrived, he attracted everyone's attention.

"Ashes!"

The Dragon Guards of Titanium Ring City also recognized him, but the people present were the cream of the crop among legends, and they had their own pride. Unlike ordinary people, they didn't fanatical praise the Ender, merely sparing a few extra glances.

Ji Xinghuo didn't plan to talk to them, maintaining his aloof image.

"You're here!"

A figure that could pierce through armor descended from the sky, his helmet's face mask opening to reveal a handsome face.

Bi Fenyu was extremely enthusiastic as he smiled and said, "Back on Black Ring Star, I knew you were strong, but I never expected you to be so formidable, becoming the Ender in this Doomsday Dragon Festival."

Ji Xinghuo nodded at him. "You're not bad yourself."

"If it weren't for you killing me, my ranking would definitely have been higher. I would have been in the top 20, and I wouldn't have almost fallen out of the top 100," Bi Fenyu said with some regret. He had recognized Ji Xinghuo in the Mental Fantasy Realm, but he had still mixed with the crowd to join the siege. It wasn't that he wanted to, but the competitive pressure at the time had been too intense, leaving him with no other choice but to take the risk.

"Hehe..."

Ji Xinghuo let out a cold laugh, having seen through the other party's thoughts, which was why he hadn't held back when attacking.

However, since Bi Fenyu had given him crucial information that led to him obtaining the Pitch-Darkness Law Ball, he considered it a favor owed.

"Let's go."

Bi Fenyu acted as if he and Ji Xinghuo were very close.

Led by the Dragon Guards, the dozen or so people boarded a maglev train and headed towards the Yuan Magnet Palace.

Before long,

The maglev train sped across the majestic metal mountains, climbing higher and higher until it finally reached the mountain peak. It came to a stop in front of a grand palace that emanated a silvery glow—the Yuan Magnet Palace, which was also ring-shaped, stood tall amidst the clouds, a spectacular sight.

Guided by the Dragon Guards, Ji Xinghuo and the others entered the palace through the main entrance.

Inside the palace, which was several kilometers long and thousands of meters high, a massive metal throne faced the entrance, flanked by rows of Dragon Lords. All of them were sixth-stage powerhouses, dressed in the uniform armor of the Titanium Ring City Dragon Guards, holding aloft the fluttering Doomsday Dragon flags as they rode on the backs of True Dragons. The atmosphere was solemn and dignified.

A total of one hundred Dragon King bodyguards!

Most of their True Dragons were of the Gold Dragon species, with some being Flame Dragons, Ice Dragons, Flying Dragons, Beast Dragons, and others, all of which had reached the Quake level.

The aura emanating from a hundred Quake-level True Dragons converged in the grand hall, creating visible ripples in the air.

Ji Xinghuo walked past the crowd and moved to the front of the group.

He could sense the gazes on his back and knew that many of these people had died by his hand in the Mental Fantasy Realm.

Some were curious, while others were filled with jealousy and hatred.

However, most of them didn't display extreme emotions. It was simply a matter of their skills not being as good, and everyone had witnessed the final battle. No one felt that they could have defeated Ashes or Lone Star Li, acknowledging that their achievements were well-deserved.

Ji Xinghuo spotted Lone Star Li among the group. Only one clone of the Pseudo-Dragon Man Legion had come.

Now that they had left the Mental Fantasy Realm, they were no longer enemies.

Ji Xinghuo had no interest in fighting Lone Star Li again. He had won in the Mental Fantasy Realm, and he knew that he would only win more easily in reality.

Standing beside Lone Star Li were Titanium Cobalt Zhen He, Cang Ya, Cai Xia, Dawn Blade, and Wu Kucha Lang. Ji Xinghuo's gaze swept across them, and he noticed that the two beautiful women harbored ill intentions towards him, their eyes gleaming with resentment.

Apparently, they still held a grudge against Ji Xinghuo for taking advantage of their vulnerability and eliminating them both in an instant.

Ji Xinghuo ignored them.

He walked past Lone Star Li and stood at the very front, turning his back to the others.

Among the 99 genius legends present, all had been defeated by him in one way or another. Even if he hadn't personally taken them down, they had been eliminated, while he remained standing as the Ender, proving his superiority.

Without saying a word, Ji Xinghuo's indifferent and arrogant attitude spoke volumes.

"I am Titanium Cobalt Zhen He. May I have the honor of becoming friends?"

A tall figure approached and extended his pale hand, his handsome face bearing a kind smile.

"Jing."

Ji Xinghuo shook his hand.

He could afford to ignore others, but not Titanium Cobalt Zhen He. They were on Titanium Cobalt territory, and Zhen He represented not only himself but also the True Dragon family.

At the very least, his public identity was that of a Titanium Cobalt family subject and Titanium Cobalt Blue's attendant, and he would continue to associate with the Titanium Cobalt family in the future.

"Congratulations on becoming the Ender!"

Titanium Cobalt Zhen He exclaimed, "I thought I had it in the bag, but I never expected that apart from a peerless genius like Lone Star Li, there would also be a dark horse like you, Jing, rising to the occasion. I have truly underestimated the talents of the world."

His eyes, fixed on Ji Xinghuo, were filled with anticipation as he said, "You are a member of the family now, and I look forward to exchanging pointers with you in the future."

"Anytime," Ji Xinghuo replied, neither humble nor arrogant.

Dong!

A bell-like sound reverberated through the Yuan Magnet Palace, and a Dragon Guard below the throne announced, "Welcome, Your Majesty!"

Electric lights flashed.

The Titanium Cobalt Dragon King appeared on the throne.

Ji Xinghuo and the genius legends looked up. The Titanium Cobalt Dragon King's appearance was consistent with his public image—a well-proportioned two-meter-tall figure clad in silver-blue armor, with a perfect and handsome face and a head of silver hair, between the strands of which electricity danced.

From this close distance, Ji Xinghuo could intuitively sense the overwhelming power emanating from the Dragon King.

Even though this might just be the insignificant breath that he naturally exuded after reining in his power, like breathing, it was far more terrifying than the combined might of the hundred True Dragons below the throne, causing Ji Xinghuo's heart to tremble.

The surrounding magnetic field intensity was terrifyingly high, causing Ji Xinghuo to completely lose his ability to manipulate the magnetic field and even affect the electromagnetic field in any way.

The throne was at the very center of a formidable electromagnetic field.

"This feeling..."

Ji Xinghuo was deeply shaken. The Titanium Cobalt Dragon King was far more powerful than the other two Herder Saints he had encountered, Xu Lingke and Queen Ayaki.

Although they were all Herder Saints, their strength wasn't even in the same league.

The difference was on the order of magnitude.

Or even greater!

In the great hall, the genius legends dared not look up, and one by one, they put away their arrogance and bowed respectfully towards the throne.

"Your Majesties!"

After a moment of silence, a clear and magnetic voice that sounded young, as if it belonged to a man in his twenties, rang out, "All of you have put on a splendid display for the Doomsday Dragon Festival, and your performances were excellent."

No one dared to respond.

The Titanium Cobalt Dragon King's tone was casual.

He continued, "Those who ranked in the top 100 will receive rewards. In addition to the usual rewards for the Doomsday Dragon Festival, I have also prepared additional prizes. The top ten can choose a True Dragon to become Dragon Lords."

"Especially the Ender."

Instantly, all eyes fell on Ji Xinghuo.

Ji Xinghuo felt a sharp gaze as if it wanted to see through him, inside and out, and understand everything about him.

The great hall fell silent.

On the surface, Ji Xinghuo remained calm, his heart beating as usual, but deep down, he felt uneasy, as if sitting on pins and needles, and time seemed to stretch on endlessly.

"Jing." The Titanium Cobalt Dragon King addressed him.

"Your Majesty!"

Ji Xinghuo maintained his composure, responding respectfully while looking directly at the peerless powerhouse on the throne, his expression a mix of calmness and reverence.

"In light of your outstanding contribution in the Doomsday Dragon Festival, I specially grant you the opportunity to enter the 'Titanium Cobalt Dragon Hatchery' to choose a True Dragon and bestow upon you the surname Titanium Cobalt, making you a direct bloodline member of the Titanium Cobalt family after fusing with the Ancestral Dragon bloodline."

The Titanium Cobalt Dragon King's words echoed through the hall, astonishing everyone.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end