Often, opportunities for regret are fleeting. For the four mercenary teams that entered the next layer, there would be no turning back—leaving at the sixth layer would have been their only correct choice.
In the vast cavern, more accurately described as a colossal underground palace, six massive magic stone pillars rose majestically. Towering at an astonishing height of thirty meters, these pillars were unlike ordinary magic stone structures adorned with spell engravings. Instead, they were crafted from enormous, translucent magic crystals that shimmered with an ethereal glow. Even from a distance of one hundred meters, the pulsating magical energy radiating from these crystals was palpable, sending tremors of power through the air.
In nature, magic crystals are typically found in small fragments, used to assist mages in their spellcasting. However, the large, uniform crystals that towered before the adventurers indicated that they were forged by the combined might of high-level mages—those of at least grandmaster caliber. The largest known magic crystal, housed in the capital's Magic Academy of the mightiest empire, the Amy Empire, measured ten meters in length and two meters in diameter. Dubbed the "Sea Blue Shield," it was said to protect the royal city of Skanblay.
The six magic crystals before the adventurers exceeded any logical understanding of magic. How many mages, and how great must their power be, to create such monumental crystals? And to have six of them?
Between the towering crystals, a neutral blue magical film shimmered, taking on a hexagonal shape and undulating like the surface of a pond. This magical membrane vibrated rhythmically, amplifying the enormous magical energy that rolled through the cavern.
Beneath this extraordinary magical film, a dragon lay sleeping.
"Ah—" Although everyone had anticipated seeing an enormous dragon, the sight before them rendered them speechless.
What kind of dragon was this? It had two heads—one as dark as midnight and the other a brilliant azure. Both heads shared a single, massive body that extended over twenty meters in length. Before it knelt three white skeletons, dwarfed and helpless, like ants at the feet of a giant.
A two-headed dragon?
In the dragon realm, two-headed dragons are exceptionally rare. It is said that when such creatures are born, they are immediately put to death, considered harbingers of misfortune. Historically, only one adult two-headed dragon has been recorded, a blue dragon whose name has been lost to time.
"Wind Whisper? Is that the Evil Dragon Wind Whisper?" Old Rock murmured in a voice tinged with dread, his usual bravado replaced by palpable fear. Even the fearless dwarf was visibly shaken.
"Wind Whisper? Everyone retreat, now!" A Feng shouted, his voice ringing with urgency. What kind of dragon could instill fear in the hearts of such renowned heroes as Old Rock and A Feng?
Wind Whisper? Could it truly be the fabled dragon? Panic rippled through the ranks. Was this indeed the legendary Wind Whisper? Even from a hundred meters away, Da Qing Shan raised his battle shield high. "Amy, fall back! I'm getting out of here too!" Several of the ordinary Purple Heart mercenaries surged toward the exit like headless flies, desperate to escape.
Wind Whisper? A name that invoked terror.
In the annals of dragon history and human lore, this name represented shame, sin, and profound evil, synonymous with invincibility.
Legends of Wind Whisper date back over 2,500 years. According to ancient tales, there existed a colossal empire known as the Ponglu Empire, whose territory spanned two major continents—its total area being over five times that of the present-day Amy Empire. This vast realm owed its greatness to its rulers, who were said to be descendants of gods, each emperor an unparalleled warrior, empowered by divine lineage. Every king and prince could become dragon riders, leading their undefeated armies to conquer nations across the continents.
Yet, at the height of its power, the Ponglu Empire was destroyed almost overnight.
According to legends, around 1,400 years ago, the Ponglu Empire laid siege to the capital of what is now the Amy Empire—at that time, the last stronghold of the Linfi Principality. The commander of the Ponglu Empire's forces was none other than Prince Edward, renowned as the greatest warrior of the Ponglu Empire and the heir apparent. At thirty-eight years old, he was in the prime of his life. Legend has it that after the prince successfully captured the Linfi Principality, the seventy-year-old King Ponglu VII abdicated in favor of his beloved son.
The war unfolded smoothly. Though the ruler of the Linfi Principality was wise and capable, the disparity in strength was insurmountable. The Linfi Principality could muster only eighty thousand troops, while the Ponglu Empire's cavalry alone numbered a staggering seventy thousand.
As the adventurers braced themselves, the legends of Wind Whisper loomed ominously over them, a reminder that some tales are best left untold, and some dragons are best left undisturbed.
After three months of relentless battles, the Linfi Principality was reduced to a mere thirty thousand soldiers, holed up in the capital. Defeat seemed inevitable; the remaining resistance had devolved into a mere obligation of the royal family to honor their ancestors.
After a month of grueling conflict, the principality's ranks had dwindled to less than twenty thousand. All available food supplies had been consumed, with the price of grain soaring to astronomical levels. The ratio of those dying from hunger far exceeded that of those killed in battle, and some desperate citizens had resorted to cannibalism.
Unable to bear the thought of sacrificing the lives of two hundred thousand citizens within the capital, the king of the principality conducted a ritual to honor his ancestors before deciding to surrender the entire nation. At that critical moment, a dark mage visited the king, claiming to possess the power to defeat the empire and save the people from their suffering. That night, the dark mage and the king convened in a secret chamber of the palace, crafting a detailed plan that would change the fate of the principality.
The following day, the king dispatched a special envoy to the imperial camp to propose a duel between the two monarchs. The plan was for the principality to construct a grand platform two hundred meters outside its walls, measuring twenty meters high and two hundred meters square. Once completed, the king of the principality and the prince of the empire would engage in single combat.
Prince Edward, known for his compassion for the people, agreed to the proposal without hesitation. He wanted to minimize unnecessary casualties and reduce the war's toll on the city and its citizens. This decision was undoubtedly influenced by his own might; as a dragon rider, he was immensely powerful, while the king of the principality, lacking divine blood, was merely a beast rider, far from being a formidable opponent. In a gesture of goodwill, the prince also arranged for a minimum supply of food to be sent to the principality.
Ten days later, the grand platform was completed.
On that fateful morning, Prince Edward arrived at the battleground riding a dragon, accompanied by his elite dragon rider guard, totaling six riders.
Upon arrival, the prince found only one person waiting for him—the king of the principality, who had arrived early. However, the platform was not merely a flat surface; in its center lay a massive gray cloth, bulging as though something significant was concealed beneath.
As the prince and his dragon-riding guard landed, the king suddenly pulled away the enormous gray cloth. The dazzling sight of gold and jewels, piled like a small mountain, blinded everyone under the morning sun.
At that moment, both the prince and his dragon riders assumed that the king intended to use this treasure to bargain for his own safety, or at the very least to ensure some measure of protection for his life after defeat. The prince pondered how best to refuse any territorial demands the king might make.
Finally, the king spoke. A series of short, sharp whistles emanated from his mouth, startling the prince and his guards. As the closest allies of dragons, they recognized that the king was speaking in the dragon language.
Though the sacred dragons were fluent in human languages, humans had never mastered the language of dragons—neither had dragon riders. They could only discern the simplest meanings through exposure.
What was the king trying to convey?
As the prince and his dragon riders stood stunned, they felt their mounts shudder slightly in response to the king's words.
Afterward, the king revealed that he had been communicating with the dragons based on what the dark mage had taught him: to use the treasures displayed on the platform—almost the entirety of the Linfi Principality's wealth—to tempt a dragon to betray its rider.
The dark mage explained that dragons had an insatiable love for gold and jewels. Despite being raised by various kingdoms for generations, this inherent desire had not diminished. He estimated that on the day of the duel, the prince would undoubtedly bring his dragon rider guard along, likely resulting in the presence of six dragons. Among them, one would betray its rider—it would be Edward's mount, the legendary Wind Whisper, renowned as the "Dragon Among Dragons," the only dragon to have been named by humans.
The dark mage elaborated: a dragon should possess only one elemental affinity—wind is wind, fire is fire, and water is water. The nature of each dragon's head determined its ultimate elemental alignment. Dual-headed dragons, possessing two distinct elemental properties, were typically abandoned or killed at birth. Wind Whisper was no exception; despite its parents being wind dragons, it exhibited both wind and darkness upon birth. The darker head was not easily distinguishable from the blue, leading to its abandonment. However, the royal family took it in, raising it as a wind dragon.
This error of perception instilled a sense of malevolence in Wind Whisper's psyche. The dark head, oppressed for so long, yearned for rebellion but had never found the opportunity.
Two hundred years later, when Wind Whisper reached maturity, it was chosen as the mount for the seventeen-year-old prince, who formally named it Wind Whisper—a name that sealed its fate.
According to the dark mage's scheme, when the king sought to persuade Wind Whisper, his words and demeanor would simultaneously aim to sway all six dragons present. He was prepared to offer the treasure displayed on the platform, along with all the tax revenues from the principality for the next five years, in exchange for the life of the imperial prince.
In that pivotal moment, a web of ambition and desire began to entwine the fates of all present, setting the stage for an epic confrontation that would echo through history.
All the dragons were stunned—not so much by the gold and jewels before them, but by the audacious and reckless behavior of the king of the principality. Dragons were a noble race; while they indeed had a penchant for treasure—some young dragons even resorted to massacring entire villages to amass gold—they would never betray their code of honor. No dragon would ever violate one of the three sacred contracts of the dragon-rider pact.
Just as all the dragons roared, preparing to unleash their dragon breath upon the audacious king, a sudden calamity struck.
Wind Whisper let out a deafening roar, shattering the dawn sky with a sound like thunder crashing down upon the battleground. The sound was continuous, echoing across the area as if heralding a storm.
Then, Wind Whisper soared into the heavens, frantically darting through the sky. The immense form of the wind dragon loomed like a small mountain, rushing through the air with fierce determination. The dragon riders, realizing something was amiss, took to the skies in pursuit of the now-vanished Wind Whisper and the prince, even though they still didn't understand what had transpired.
Wind dragons were exceedingly rare; only four existed within the entire empire. None of the five dragon riders accompanying the prince rode a wind dragon, making it impossible for them to catch up with Wind Whisper.
Suddenly, Wind Whisper returned to the battlefield, performing a maneuver unique to wind dragons. It glided close to the platform, its massive form slicing through the air, and with a powerful motion, the dragon struck—tearing apart the prince with sheer force. Blood splattered across the platform, staining it crimson.
All the dragon riders were left in shock, stunned by the horrific scene unfolding before them. They hurriedly gathered the prince's remains and fled the site. Only one dragon rider returned to the main camp to report the prince's death, while the other four took the prince's body back to the imperial capital.
The imperial king, upon receiving the dreadful news, was left in a state of shock and issued two commands that would baffle future generations:
A bounty was placed on Wind Whisper throughout the three continents of the empire; anyone who killed Wind Whisper would be granted the title of duke.The slaughter of all dragon mounts in the imperial Dragon Gardens and among the dragon riders' ranks was ordered.
One can only imagine the outcry among the nobles regarding the second command. Among the three great marshals of the empire, Duke Lindon, a dragon rider, committed suicide in the court with his dragon rider's sword. The other two marshals, also dragon riders, broke their swords in protest and relinquished their titles and positions, leaving the imperial capital.
The ruthless orders were executed with unwavering resolve. In a single night, forty-six noble dragons were slain. During the dragon slaying, the existing dragon riders fought valiantly to protect their mounts, suffering heavy casualties. The empire's two thousand beast riders were forced into the role of the primary assailants against the dragons, with over twelve hundred beast riders dying in the assault.
The shocking news spread rapidly, igniting the fury of dragons of all elemental affinities, who united to exact revenge on the empire of Pangu. In just six months, more than two hundred dragons launched large-scale attacks against the imperial forces. Historical records later revealed that at least two sacred dragons participated in this conflict, which would be known as the "First Human-Dragon War."
Six months later, the number of beast riders capable of competing in aerial combat against dragons dwindled to fewer than a hundred, with over ten dragons lost in various battles.
Eventually, around one hundred dragons launched a surprise assault on the imperial capital under the cover of night. At least half of the eight hundred thousand citizens of the capital perished in the dragon's fury, with the royal palace enduring countless assaults from dragon fire. The inferno raged for twenty days before it was finally extinguished. It was said that during the ambush, the imperial king was engulfed in flames from ten dragons, reduced to ashes in an instant.
Thus, one of the largest empires spanning three continents collapsed in the blink of an eye. The architect of this tragedy was none other than—Wind Whisper.
For the next fifteen hundred years, Wind Whisper entered its prime. Despite being forsaken by the entire dragon race, it grew ever more vicious, spilling blood to acquire treasure, ruthlessly raiding gold mines and slaughtering the capitals of small nations.
Wind Whisper became a nightmare that haunted every kingdom, a specter no one could escape. If anyone had known that the SS-level mission's antagonist was the evil dragon Wind Whisper, even a tenfold increase in reward would not have tempted any mercenary group to undertake it. When faced with Wind Whisper, humans had only one fate—death.
Classification of Dragons
All dragons can be divided into two major systems. Firstly, there are five primary types of dragons: the Red Dragon, Blue Dragon, Green Dragon, Black Dragon, and Golden Dragon. These five types were birthed from the blood cells of the current Dragon God, Palot, who transformed his own blood into the essence of each dragon. Initially, each type had only two individuals, which then multiplied over generations. At that time, these mighty dragons could become Sacred Dragons. In contrast, ordinary dragons were created from Palot's scale cells, with a minimum of over twenty individuals typically emerging at once. While the earliest dragons were born from cellular reproduction, later generations were egg-laying creatures.
The Black Dragon is the ancestral dragon of the previous generation's Dragon God, possessing a long history and continuously existing in the world.
Red Dragons belong to the Fire element.Blue Dragons belong to the Water element.Green Dragons belong to the Ice element.Black Dragons belong to the Dark element.Golden Dragons, the primary dragons of the current Dragon God, are primarily Earth-type but exhibit strong traits in other aspects as well.
—— From the Classic of Mountains and Seas