Drake was reveling in pure exhilaration.
Insignificance, sheer insignificance surrounded him! When he harnessed the power from the 'Five-colored Dragon God' within the divine core, manifesting into the legendary dragon from his imagination, the world he saw transformed. Everything appeared as strands of rules; the sky, the earth, rivers, and forests were no longer mere matter but a tapestry of concepts. Though Drake only half-understood, he sensed the divine laws at play.
Whether due to his draconic instincts or the arrogance bestowed by divine power, Drake felt invincible as if all beings should kneel before him. He was aware this was but an illusion, not true godhood, yet the feeling that all creation was beneath him swept over him.
Ahead, the thirty-thousand-strong human army formed neat squares, with a thousand men already charging towards the forest. To the human Drake of the past, the sight of this solemn battlefield, this collective charge, would've been terrifying. But as a primordial dragon, the human legions seemed no more than a swarm of ants, easily crushed underfoot.
To the soldiers, facing a dragon spanning over three hundred meters, akin to an airborne island, was like confronting a mountain. Could their iron weapons truly harm such a fearsome beast? Reason dictated the impossibility.
The dragon's might radiated from Drake, battering the fragile human spirits. Drake noticed that despite the crushing weight of his presence, the soldiers remained standing. His dragon's gaze, fueled by divine force, discovered a mysterious power bolstering them—a battle essence surely related to some divine spell.
'Amusing, incredibly amusing. I suddenly find this world quite entertaining, hahaha!'
Drake laughed internally, overwhelmed with excitement. Raising his mighty claw, he slammed it down, obliterating those too slow to evade, their armor and bodies rendered to shreds by his absolute power.
To Drake, these insignificant humans required none of his abilities; his primordial dragon form alone was enough to crush them all.
As he lifted his claw, rivers of blood and offal stained the dirt; the stench of carnage wafted over the field, bringing a morbid air to the landscape.
Drake cackled with glee. If he were still human, the horrific sight and the reek of blood might have stirred a palpitation or thrill, but as a dragon, they brought him a deep, visceral satisfaction. It seemed the draconic nature was etched with a brutal gene.
"Cry for mercy..."
"Don't kill me, please don't kill me!!!"
"Aaaahhhhh—"
"..."
The human soldiers, in abject terror, scrambled to their feet, fleeing and screaming, desperate to leave the hopeless battlefield behind. The carnage from the indomitable dragon shattered their spirits, and they ran as fast as their legs could carry them. But to the immense dragon, their rapid escape was as slow as a snail's crawl.
Without a glance at the fleeing ants, Drake strode forward. Each step left a deep imprint on the earth, the thunderous rumble akin to a stampeding herd. Those unfortunate enough to be trampled were of no concern to him.
"Roar—"
In a surge of sheer excitement, Drake issued a deadly roar. The soundwave blasted through the air, flinging thousands into chaos. His tail, thick and powerful, lashed against the ground, shaking the plain in front of the Forest of Nourishing Grace and hurling countless humans into disarray.
With just one confrontation, he had routed the thirty-thousand-strong formation, causing immediate and gruesome casualties.
A piercing crashing noise caught Drake's ear. With a light 'hmm,' he looked aside to see stones hurtling through the air from human trebuchets. The boulders, ten meters wide, fell with a suffocating force. Unfazed, Drake simply inhaled deeply and exhaled at the flying rocks, diverting their descent into the human crowd instead.
Amidst pained cries, dozens more were crushed and maimed.
Then, with a piercing gaze, Drake spotted a 'toothpick' coming his way—a closer look revealed it was an arrow, wrapped in a faint silver glow, marking it with the world's special powers.
"Ting—"
The arrow struck true between his scales, but with Drake's colossal size, dodging such a minuscule attack was unnecessary. Besides, the arrow, despite leaving a faint scratch, had no effect.
His eyes traced the arrow's path back to its source—the same trebuchets. A human dressed like a ranger stood agape, likely shocked by the ineffectiveness of his attack.
Drake cared little for the human's thoughts. Seeing that someone dared to throw stones and shoot 'toothpicks' at him, his anger boiled over. His throat surged with power as he unleashed a conical breath of emerald fury.
The breath was more devastating than any flamethrower, instantly turning all it touched into a mirage. The Emerald Dream expanded, ancient trees sprouted upon the plains. At first mere phantoms, they solidified within moments. Their robust trunks ensnared the wailing humans, hanging them as ornaments or twisting their bodies into lifeless shapes.
Their blood and viscera nourished the forest's rapid growth.
"I am Drake Galakrond, foolish humans. Quake before the dragon, for you, mere ants, are destined to die!"
Humanity wailed in agony, screaming for mercy, weeping, but the dragon's eyes remained cruel, devoid of any compassion.