Chapter 450: Red Dragon's Dinner
Hearing the称呼 "Fingerless One", the Fire Giant’s face instantly flushed crimson. Veins bulged across his temples like molten lava beneath skin, smoke curling from his pores in thick, hissing plumes. His hand snapped to the golden-hilted curved blade at his waist, the blade’s edge gleaming with a cold, eerie sheen as he pointed it toward the source of the sound.
"At last, I’ve caught you!"
"What is your purpose? How dare you insult a noble of the Great Fire Titan, an emissary sent by the Great Sultan to rule over you? Are you questioning the Great Sultan’s authority? Questioning the guidance of the Lord of Flame?"
Harmed was crafting a crime.
He would make this insolent Home creature experience the full weight of his power.
This was a display of might.
To enforce tyranny. To demonstrate that Fire Titan Nobles—those who served as Pashas, Emirs—were the living embodiment of the Great Sultan’s will. Between Fire Titan Nobles and common folk, there existed an unbridgeable chasm of status.
All guests at the Banquet stepped aside. At the tip of the blade, a plain, hooded Common Fire Giant stood—unremarkable, unassuming.
"What is your name?" Harmed demanded, a cruel smile twisting his lips.
The Fire Giant slowly lifted his head, meeting the towering gaze of the Fire Titan Noble with an unmistakable smirk.
"Hmph. It doesn’t matter."
"Dear, beloved Harmed, do you recognize this?"
Under the curious eyes of the gathered Fire Giants, he calmly reached into his tunic and withdrew—
a ring.
A gleaming golden ring, its face pulsing with a flickering Flame Aura.
"Hisss—"
"This… can’t be…"
"How is this possible?"
Every Fire Giant present froze, breath catching in their throats, even Harmed himself. Their faces paled.
Because this was the very ring he had lost—the ring once worn on the finger severed by a human hand.
"W-who are you?" Harmed stammered, masking the flicker of shock in his eyes. "How did you get in here?"
"How else?" The figure chuckled. "Through the Hidden Passage. The Fire Dwarves who built this city hate you all."
"Ah, you Fire Giants boast of being the most civilized, the wisest race of the Elemental Plane of Fire."
"Now it seems you’re no better than my own Ogres."
"Who am I?"
A shimmer of Arcane Radiance crackled across the figure’s form—signaling imminent transformation.
"Brash words, you—"
"Boom!"
Harmed barely had time to speak before the figure before him exploded in size, forcing him to crane his neck upward in stunned disbelief.
"By the Lord of Flame..."
"How… is this possible?"
A shadow fell over the hall.
And there it stood—towering, monstrous, an immense Red Dragon.
Its spine shattered the crystal chandeliers overhead. Its vast wings stretched across half the grand hall.
Kai Xiusu lowered his head slightly, golden eyes locking onto the trembling Fire Titan Noble beneath him. A grotesque grin split his draconic maw.
"You should have figured it out by now," he said, voice low and dripping with mockery. "I am the leader of the very nation you sought to destroy. The very lord you wished to crush beneath your heel, esteemed Harmed… sir."
The Fire Titan Noble trembled from head to toe, whispering in horror:
"Too… Primordial Dragon… no, greater than even an Ancient Red Dragon…"
"Damned… how could such a being exist in the Material Plane? A creature like this should be in Baator, serving Tiamat!"
Harmed forced a smile, his face pale beneath its crimson hue.
"Dragon Lord… I believe there’s been a misunderstanding."
"My followers misinterpreted your presence."
He tried to sound calm, but his voice trembled—weak, desperate.
Kai Xiusu leaned closer, staring into the Fire Giant’s strained face, and let out a cold, disdainful laugh.
"Misunderstanding?"
"I’ve seen no misunderstanding."
The Red Dragon’s voice grew heavier, more resonant, shifting from mockery to thunderous wrath.
"Arrogant and ignorant Fire Giant—what I saw was not confusion. I saw you insult me. You pursued my followers. You surrounded my army."
"I gave you one last chance to repent. And yet, you dared to insult me in person—seeking to destroy my realm, to crush me beneath your feet!"
Now his voice boomed like thunder, echoing through the golden halls of the brass palace.
"I came here bearing the goodwill of an Empire, seeking collaboration. And you—without hesitation—chose to become my enemy!"
"Then I will make you and your people pay the price."
"ROOOOAAAAARRR!"
The dragon’s roar split the sky, shaking the very foundations of the city.
A crushing wave of draconic aura flooded the streets—spiritual oppression so profound that even the most hardened creatures felt it in their bones.
From the laborers—Fire Dwarves, Fire Lizards, Fire Giant slaves—to the overseers cracking their whips, all felt their hearts seize.
"Run!"
"Protect the Emir!"
"This is beyond our strength!"
Panic erupted. Fire Giants scattered in terror.
Though fierce and bold, no Fire Giant warrior could face a beast of such scale. Courage vanished. They fled, leaping into the air, their lower bodies dissolving into ash and embers.
And among them, the most powerful—the Fire Titan Noble Harmed—flew at the front, screaming orders:
"Guard! Cover me!"
"Don’t let him catch up!"
His speed was astonishing—proof of the noble’s potent spellcasting ability.
But Kai Xiusu did not rush. He stretched his wings leisurely, then opened his maw.
"Whrrrrrrr—"
A violent vortex of magic erupted from his throat—sucking everything toward him. The palace trembled.
The spell was unmistakable: [Dragon Absorption].
"No—!"
"This pull is unbearable!"
"Emir, I can’t hold on—help!"
The Fire Giant guards at the rear strained to fly, but the black hole of arcane energy dragged them in.
"AAAAAAHHHH!"
"For the Great Sultan, I give my life!"
"Lord of Flame, Damned Crawler, perish!"
Seeing no escape, the guards roared in defiance, unleashing their final attacks—curved blades slashing, arrows flying, flames roaring.
But to the Red Dragon, it was like a child’s tickle.
Fzzzzt—
The air split with a violent crack.
Kai Xiusu exhaled a torrent of Bear-Bear Flames, consuming them all in an instant.
"No—!"
"How can I be destroyed by fire?!"
"I don’t want to… vanish…"
Fire Giants were born of elemental fire energy—immune to ordinary flames.
But Kai Xiusu, as an Ancestral Dragon, breathed magic of a higher order. His breath absorbed their very essence, consuming them and transforming them into fuel for himself.
In just a few breaths, the flames burned hotter, brighter—while the Fire Giants were gone.
Even their weapons melted into molten slag, pooling on the floor.
"Hssss—"
Kai Xiusu retracted his breath, savoring the surge of energy flooding his veins. He licked his lips, satisfied.
"Just Fire Giants… so much power."
"What about these so-called Nobles?"
His pale golden eyes fixed on the fleeing Fire Titan Noble, hunger gleaming in their depths.
No pity for those who enslaved and ruled over all.
The oppressors, now oppressed.
The exploiters, now devoured.
This was nature’s balance.
And now, with memories of his past life resurfacing—confirmed intelligence about the so-called Great Sultan—Kai Xiusu felt utterly certain.
"Damn… this is it…"
"Lord of Flame, they’re gone!"
"He actually… did it!"
Harmed fled with everything he had, the screams of his fallen guards echoing behind him—each cry a dagger in his soul.
(End of Chapter)
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