Chapter 376
As more than 40 Grandmaster Level Professionals entered the space, they split into four groups. The mutual distrust among the three Bloodline families was even more severe than William had anticipated.
One crucial revelation was that the space wasn't a mere portal; it required a map lock to access it. When William entered and surveyed the surroundings, he noticed that the sky was a bleak gray, devoid of sun, moon, or stars. In the distance, only chaos seemed to reign, with unknown black gases eroding the land beneath them, a situation that had seemingly persisted for countless years.
"Could this be Nibelungen, remnants of the Dragon era from the First Era?" one vampire speculated.
"Divine Nibelungen, I possess the Frost Dragon's Dragon Root. Give me a moment, and I'll ascertain whether this is a different space," William remarked. Throughout history, various different spaces, both large and small, had endured. For instance, the peculiar space in Moses's divination shop resembled a laboratory. Another example was the Moonlight Elf family's treasure vault, which contained a space discovered by William, albeit briefly, before they were detected and had to leave due to diplomatic issues.
Each era had its own nomenclature for these different spaces. In the Mythical Era, they were referred to as Divine Realms, Small, Great, and even today's Divine Realms. In the First Era, when dragons held dominion, they called these spaces Nibelungen.
The vampires, as servants of the Blood Dragon, likely bore some indelible marks from their inheritance, which was why they called it Nibelungen. Elves in the Second Era referred to different spaces as Otherworlds, inspired by the World Tree, which could grow as high as the sky and extend its roots deep into the earth. It had vast leaves that covered the land, and its internal space was equivalent in size to an entire Legendary continent. Consequently, the space beyond the Gods' world was known as the Otherworld to the Elves.
In the Third Era, when the Human Empire dominated, they renamed it as the Alien Space. The current different space was enormous, covering an area of over 100000 square meters, with an unknown height. This space was not small by any era's standards, especially considering that it had been preserved for so long. The fact that unknown black gases continued to erode it suggested that it had existed since the First Era, and the sheer scale of this space hinted at its grandeur.
However, William never got the opportunity to explore this extraordinary space further. At this moment, they were situated within the ruins, surrounded by towering but dilapidated buildings. The architectural style was primitive yet majestic, exuding a sense of dominance. These buildings had undoubtedly witnessed tremendous battles, given the numerous cracks and damage across thousands of structures.
In the distance, they spotted a colossal Dragon Palace, standing over 3000 meters tall with dimensions spanning tens of thousands of meters. This sight elicited awe from William and his companions because the seemingly deteriorating Dragon Palace was not only remarkably well-preserved but also emitted a faint light. Moreover, the oppressive stench in the air grew stronger as time passed, as if their arrival had rekindled something dormant.
Osman Lothar, upon seeing this, did not hesitate to lead his group towards the palace. His determination to obtain the Blood Dragon Essence was evident. Other Bloodline families followed suit, and soon, they stood near the palace's entrance.
The palace possessed a colossal gate, towering over a thousand meters in height and width. It had a narrow gap that could only accommodate two people side by side. Yet, despite being the first to reach it, Osman Lothar remained outside, seemingly petrified. As other Bloodline family members arrived, they too hesitated and
knelt on the ground, refusing to lift their heads.
William observed the situation and sensed a blood dragon within the palace. He deduced that the dragon's presence accounted for their reverence.
However, as time passed, various thoughts began to surface in their minds. While they believed that the presence of the golden eye indicated the blood dragon was still alive, questions arose.
"Severely injured?"
"Too injured to move?"
"Soul is dead, but the body persists?"
Members of the three Bloodline families contemplated these possibilities. After all, they had come for the Blood Dragon Essence, and a living blood dragon wasn't in their best interests.
Yet, when they pondered whether to enter voluntarily, a voice resonated deep within their souls, compelling them to comply.
"Enter."
Those two simple words filled them with an irresistible compulsion, emanating from the depths of their hearts.
The blood dragon, its vitality waning, once more engaged in a self-deprecating inner monologue, uttering, "Are you, the servant I carelessly created, here to save me now?"
Vampires and his companions desired to speak, but the blood dragon's gaze alone robbed them of the courage to utter falsehoods.
More significantly, they suddenly realized the truth: they were under the complete control of the blood dragon. At this very moment, their very souls were in the clutches of this ancient creature. This was the bitter cost of their immortality. The blood dragon possessed the ability to shape them, manipulate their actions, and even obliterate them.
Meanwhile, the blood dragon's gaze shifted away from the Bloodline families and focused on William and his comrades with an inexplicable intensity, just as it seemed it was about to convey something important.
The dragon directed its attention towards William, causing his pupils to unexpectedly contract. An indescribable aura weighed down on him, nearly forcing the prince to kneel on the spot.
His highness was confounded and contemplated crushing the teleportation scroll in his hand for a hasty escape. This impulse extended beyond merely departing the current location; he contemplated distancing himself from the dragon's palace entirely.
After all, William had identified a pressing issue: the severity of their injuries, combined with the inability of their soul's power to extend very far, left Alec unaccounted for. It seemed Alec hadn't heard their previous conversation, and he remained somewhere outside the dragon palace.
In any case, it was highly unsettling to be under the intense scrutiny of a blood dragon, a Legendary creature that may even be considered a Sage.
William couldn't help but entertain the thought: Should he have slain more dragons, allowing this formidable beast to bear witness to his deeds?
But alas, the resplendent title above his head held sway only over players; NPCs remained oblivious to it.
Contrary to the expectations of the gathered vampires, the blood dragon chose an unconventional path. Instead of acting as they anticipated, the dragon ordered William closer with a commanding tone, "Come here, approach me!"
The prince observed the massive creature closely. One of the dragon's eyes had sunken in, while the other remained open. The area around the dragon's mouth bore numerous wounds and cracks in its teeth.
Nonetheless, Prince William arched an eyebrow and advanced towards the dragon, unarmed.
At that moment, the blood dragon drew in a deep breath through its nostrils. Its golden pupil contracted slightly. As it fixed its gaze upon William once more, a complex emotion swirled within its eyes. Then, in a mysterious tone, it uttered, "You participated in or slew two dragons!"
William couldn't help but scoff at the notion. Did the blood dragon have a knack for inventing tall tales? How could it possibly discern the scent of a fire dragon he had dispatched years ago?
Nevertheless, the prince spoke the truth without hesitation, affirming, "Yes, I personally slew a fire dragon and partook in the killing of a white dragon."
The blood dragon responded, "I appreciate honesty. However, you still carry the scent of a dragon. There's something you haven't mentioned yet," with an unsettling lack of composure in its tone.
Burned Cinder and the others exchanged curious glances. Even the other vampires in the vicinity fixed their gaze on William. Something was amiss.
It was true that Prince William had never concealed his association with dragons from others. However, the peculiar thing was that people failed to recognize the small, enigmatic, and dark dragon accompanying him. The dragon bore no scent of darkness, leading many to believe it might be a hybrid creature, a crossbreed between a giant dragon and another species.
William narrowed his eyes, prepared to address the issue at hand. But before he could utter a word, the blood dragon suddenly opened its massive maw, drawing in air like a hurricane.
In that moment, William considered crushing the spatial scroll to make a swift escape.
However, to his astonishment, none of the inhabitants of Dawn City were sucked into the dragon's gaping maw. Instead, Ottoman, Flander, de Gulas, and the others were effortlessly drawn into the dragon's mouth, with minimal resistance.
But this wasn't the end; they found themselves not within the dragon's stomach but within its cavernous mouth. The blood dragon hardly chewed, and an aftertaste lingered on its lips.
A few moments later, the "sacrifice" of over fifty master vampires seemed to reinvigorate the blood dragon. Its sole golden eye gleamed brighter and brighter.
And then, the blood dragon muttered, "I never anticipated the existence of a Dusk Dragon in this world."
William remained silent, letting the dragon's words hang in the air. The blood dragon, however, seemed to dismiss William, lost in a nostalgic reverie as it continued, "The blood family, our servants, were carefully crafted by our blood dragon kind. However, in their inheritance and memory, they only bear the mark of being our servants. We never marked them as our sustenance. To engrave the symbol of 'food' directly onto their memories would have been inhumane…"
"They never professed to be our sustenance," he reflected aloud. "Engraving the symbol of food directly onto their memories would have been rather inhumane…"
Prince William couldn't help but interject, "Honestly, that's quite an understatement. Calling it inhumane is putting it mildly."
But the blood dragon remained oblivious to the prince's thoughts, lost in contemplation as it gazed at William. After a prolonged silence, it finally spoke, "It is time now."