Chapter 810: The Blue Dragon Clan's Decision
Western Taliro Great Desert, Ashen Ridge Wasteland.
Dunes undulated across the horizon, frozen in the wind like waves of eternity. The sky shimmered with heat distortion, boiling under the relentless thermal surge. Black rock, carved by millennia of wind, stood jagged and twisted—ancient skeletons of colossal beasts, etched with the scars of time. Sand grains lashed against the stone, hissing like a million starving insects gnawing at the bones of the world.
Occasionally, ghostly glimmers flickered in the depths of the desert—faint emerald or deep violet—vanishing in an instant. They were either shards of ancient magic imprisoned in the sand, or the cold, watchful eyes of some elemental life force gliding beneath the dunes.
This was no ordinary wasteland. It was a forgotten battlefield, a graveyard of life force—Ashen Ridge Wasteland. A place once perhaps teeming with life, now reduced to ash and silence.
Legend said that long ago, this land had been a forest rich with vitality.
Then came the cataclysm—the clash between the Sun God and the Wind God. The Sun God unleashed boundless golden flame, burning everything to ash, evaporating forests into dust. The Wind God summoned endless gales, summoning storm after storm that scoured the land for ages.
Now, the battlefield once abandoned by the gods had been reborn into war—though this time, the combatants were dragons.
"Roar—!"
From the parched sky, seven copper dragons roared with fierce determination. Their scales glittered under the sun like molten metal, radiating a sharp, metallic sheen.
Farther away, on a cluster of sandstone cliffs, four blue dragons stood—battered, scarred, their skin crackling faintly with static. Among them, a female blue dragon was noticeably larger than the others, her scales polished smooth by the wind and sand. She bore an array of magical gear, glowing faintly at her limbs and spine. This was Christianna Faria—the most gifted young dragon of the Faria Clan.
Christianna spread her wings, rising into the air with a violent gust that whipped up swirling dunes. She roared, voice sharp as lightning:
"You filthy Copper Dragons! Leave this land! This is Faria Family territory!"
The copper dragons’ gaze was icy, their tone dripping with venom:
"Filthy spawn of Tiamat! You’re the ones who should leave—back to Avernus, where your god belongs!"
Before the words even faded, the copper dragons dove—firing line after line of searing fire breath.
The blue dragons surged aside, wings flaring. The fire struck the sandstone with thunderous impact, cracking the pillars and sending them crumbling into dust.
"Damn copper-skinned crawlers!"
Christianna snarled, eyes blazing with fury. She drew in a deep breath, her throat swelling with a brilliant, blinding lightning charge.
"Zzzzz—BOOM!"
At the very moment the lead dragon closed in, a torrent of crackling lightning erupted from her maw—engulfing the first three copper dragons in a storm of electric fury.
Blue dragon lightning breath was the strongest among the Five-Colored Dragons—greater even than that of the red dragons.
The sound was deafening—crackling, sizzling, like a thousand serpents screaming. The three copper dragons were thrown into convulsions, their scales blackened, eyes glazed with shock. Smoke curled from their bodies as they fell, screaming, from the sky.
The surviving four hesitated, frozen in terror. Christianna seized the moment, flaring her wings and rocketing upward into the storm-laden sky.
In the midst of thunder and lightning, she dove—clamping her jaws onto one of the copper dragons’ wings, tearing it clean off. The dragon plummeted, crashing into the earth with a bone-shattering impact.
The remaining three lunged forward, but two more blue dragons—loyal to Christianna—charged in from behind, roaring wildly. Their own lightning breaths flashed like twin suns, forcing the copper dragons back.
"Meddling copper brutes! Today is your death!"
Christianna soared higher, her voice echoing from above. A bowl-sized bolt of lightning tore from her maw, aimed straight at the head of the nearest copper dragon.
To be struck directly in the head by a blue dragon’s breath weapon—especially one so young—would mean instant death… or at the very least, crippling injury.
The copper dragon’s eyes widened in terror, reflecting the storm. It twisted its head—but too late. The lightning struck its shoulder.
CRACK—BOOM!
Electric arcs exploded across its body, fusing and tearing through its scales. The dragon’s massive frame convulsed, then fell like a stone, crashing into a rock wall. The impact triggered a cascade of boulders.
"Boom—!"
The tide had turned. The blue dragons now held a three-to-two advantage—and with their superior individual strength, the balance of power was undeniable.
Copper dragons, by nature, were light and quick—prone to fleeing when outmatched. The two remaining dragons exchanged a glance, then turned and fled, their voices echoing behind them:
"Blue dragons! You wait! Our Metal Dragon warhorses are coming! You won’t stay arrogant for long!"
"All talk and no guts!"
Christianna roared, ready to pursue—when a mature blue dragon suddenly blocked her path.
"Stop. It’s pointless. They’re trying to lure us into a trap. Right now, what matters is dealing with these fallen enemies."
As she spoke, the older blue dragon turned toward the fallen copper dragons, her eyes flickering with cold, merciless intent.
Before Christianna could respond, the dragon landed beside one of the wounded copper dragons. With a single, brutal motion, she drove her claw into its chest, tearing out its heart. The dying dragon let out a final, bloodcurdling wail that echoed across the desert.
Christianna stared at the corpse, sighing softly.
She wasn’t mourning the enemy.
She was grieving for her clan’s future.
Before the Dragon Cataclysm that had swept across Seleucus, conflicts between the Faria Clan and the Metal Dragons had been mere skirmishes over resources—small, contained, rarely deadly.
Dragons had a long-standing, unspoken rule: True dragons never killed one another. Even the Five-Colored and Metal Dragons, sworn enemies, had never wiped each other out completely.
But three years ago, the Dragon Worship Church launched a brutal assault on Seleucus.
The "Thunder Tyrant," Gorazdra, slaughtered seven adult Golden Dragons in three days. The wrath of Bahamut was ignited. The entire Metal Dragon race was consumed by fury.
One month later, retaliation came.
An army of five Gold Dragons, seven Silver Dragons, and twelve Copper Dragons descended upon the Faria Clan’s western nest. Six blue dragons died. The clan suffered massive losses.
From that day, the ancient "gentleman’s agreement" among true dragons was shattered.
Now, the bloodshed returned—the brutal, merciless war of the First Age—the Dragonfall War, a war that had claimed countless lives.
Christianna knew: if they killed every last copper dragon here, the Faria Clan would face an even greater vengeance from the Metal Dragons—especially the copper dragons. More of her kin would die.
So as the older blue dragon prepared to finish off the second wounded copper dragon, Christianna called out:
"Enough. No more."
The dragon turned, eyes blazing with confusion and rage.
"Why? These hypocritical Metal Dragons have already killed so many of our own!"
Christianna’s voice was sharp, cold:
"Fool! Killing them won’t help us. It only brings more wrath. We gain nothing—only death."
She pointed a claw at the corpse.
"Clean up the bodies. Then we return to the Western Dragon Nest. I need to speak with Father."
Her tone was final. Her eyes burned with electric fire.
"Yes."
The older dragon grunted, lips curling in annoyance—but she obeyed. She lowered her head, spread her wings, and flew toward the nest.
Blue dragons preferred underground burrows—digging into dunes or using magic to carve complex tunnels and chambers beneath the sand. They avoided grand structures.
But the Faria Clan—the largest blue dragon clan in the South, and indeed across the entire Feanso Continent—had multiple nests.
The Western Dragon Nest stood atop the ruins of an ancient city, half-swallowed by dunes. Its entrance was an open cave, where ancient stone pillars and broken walls fused with blue and purple crystal inlays.
Around it, magical sandstorms raged constantly. Deadly traps were scattered everywhere. Monsters—Sky Lion Beasts, Lion Dragons, Desert Scorpion Dragons—patrolled the perimeter.
Yet when they saw Christianna, the Dragon Nest’s master, return, every monster bowed in submission. Even the sandstorm parted, leaving a wide, clear path.
Christianna descended into the depths, navigating the maze-like tunnels with purpose, until she reached the innermost sanctum—the resting place of her father, the Clan Chief of the Faria Clan, the Ancient Blue Dragon Keldom.
She stepped into the cavern, her voice urgent and tense:
"Father, we can’t keep this up! This war is wearing us down!"
The ancient dragon rose slowly, his voice like distant thunder:
"But it’s worth it. When Queen Tiamat returns to the world, our clan will be her chosen heroes—eternal glory awaits."
"Damned glory!"
Christianna cut him off, snarling.
"Can honor bring back our dead? Can it make our clan whole again?"
Her voice trembled with fury:
"The war is spreading—Gold, Silver, Copper, Bronze, even Crimson Dragons are involved. We’re throwing our strength against the entire Metal Dragon race!"
Keldom remained silent for a moment, then replied:
"We just need to endure. We’ve already conquered the western kingdom. Once Gorazdra Elder completes her mission—"
"We conquered it?"
Christianna laughed bitterly.
"No. Gorazdra Elder took it—with her cult. We were just her disposable tools."
She stepped closer, her eyes blazing:
"After all this conquest, what have we gained? More enemies. More lowborn blue dragon hybrids. And fewer of our own. Father, stop this. We’re not fighting for our people. We’re dying for her—Gorazdra. She’s not one of us anymore. She’s lost. You know what I mean."
Keldom gave a bitter smile.
"Christianna… you’ve returned at the perfect time. We no longer need to defend the western front. The so-called ‘Blue Dragon Descendant Slayers’ will take over."
"What? Really?"
Christianna’s face lit up—then froze. She saw the sorrow in her father’s eyes.
Her voice dropped.
"No… something’s changed. The Dragon Worship Church… has it fallen apart?"
Keldom’s expression darkened.
"The Empire of Ash has advanced southward. They captured Linying City, destroyed the Green Dragon Sect, and seized northern Seleucus."
He paused, voice heavy.
"The Emperor of the Ashen Flame himself intervened—killed Erebus, seized his divine body. The Dragon Queen was furious. She demoted all the Great Dragons within the Divine Realm, forcing them to assassinate Kai Xiusu."
Christianna’s face paled. Her expression darkened, clouded by storm.
"So… what now?"
Keldom sighed again.
"Our new mission is to defend the Eastern and Northern Regions of Tower Liro. Stop the Empire of Ash. And if possible—kill the Emperor of the Ashen Flame."
"What?!"
Christianna slammed her claw into the ground. Sand erupted, electric currents crackling across the surface.
"You’re sending us to die! I’ve been to the Empire of Ash. I know their strength. I know how powerful that emperor truly is!"
Her voice cracked with rage:
"Gorazdra is mad! She’s lost herself in dreams of godhood! She doesn’t care about our clan—only her own ascension!"
Keldom lowered his head.
"But it’s the Dragon Queen’s divine oracle. We cannot defy it."
Even he sounded shaken.
Christianna stared at her father, her voice cold and clear:
"Father, we’ve fought and bled for the Five-Colored Dragon race. For the King. We’ve sacrificed over twenty of our own. We’ve done enough. We’re beyond reproach."
She paused, then added, softly:
"Ten thousand years ago, the Dragonfall War proved one thing—when the great dragons clash, the gods remain untouched. But we… we are the ones who fall."
Keldom fell silent. His eyes narrowed, then hardened.
After a long pause, he spoke—firm, resolute:
"Christianna… you’re right. We’ve lost too much. This time, House Faria will not obey. Even if it means defying the divine oracle."
(End of Chapter)
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