Chapter 868 Dragon of Divine Mystery (1/2)

”It's said that the Million Steel Dragon is currently engaged at Fort Pioneer. It had intended to visit you, but could only ask for someone else to relay his message now.”

Before he left, Nostradamus's last words echoed in the guest hall. ”To be frank, if not for the Dragon God heading out to the galaxy and Abyss to subjugate considerable ranks of Chaos, I would have thought that it had been maimed in its civil battle against the Pentashade Dragon God and had yet to recover.”

At that, the old mage's words turned slightly jesting. ”It's quite rare for a god to be so discreet.”

”And that discreet Dragon God wants to see me—and mainly to meet the King of Searing Soul?”

Joshua could not blink a few times in return, but Nostradamus had already teleported away without hearing the warrior's puzzled question.

Meanwhile, Ying, who was bringing hot tea poked her head in curiously from the doors to the guest hall. After an envious glance at Zero Three who was sitting on the warrior's shoulder, she asked softly, ”Master, has Master Nostradamus left?”

”Yes.”

Joshua's brow tightened and rose from his chair, quietly saying, ”And there is no telling if it was deliberate, but he left me a bombshell just before he left.”

The Metal Dragon God… and the King of Searing Soul?

What was the relationship between the two?

Truth be told, the identity of the King of Searing Soul was no secret—all who know about the Sage and his Heirs basically know.

The 'Soul Searer' itself was nothing of note as well since anyone who possesses the talent, ability, and object would advance into that domain. Regardless of the measures used, by collecting souls and searing that which was one's own or another's, thereby gaining certain power to earn certain advantages were the threshold of soul searers.

Joshua's power of Glory 'Soul Pool' was a standard 'Soul Searer'. It would enhance an owner's physical attributes and strength by collecting the soul fragments of the defeated. Undead treasures such as 'Million Souls Pearl' have similar functions, being similar objects of 'searing souls'-type.

However, the 'King of Searing Soul' was different. Although it had the same series of attributes, the power of the King's Authority that stood above all the others symbolized a single thing: by burning Chaos and Souls—even another form of Order, creating an entirely new 'Being of Order'!”

It is because he held and wielded it several times that Joshua knew that the power that could create new Order that exists to revive worlds, remold ecosystems and restore all things in the world is the grandest Authority that not even Steel Pythons had. It is the power all worlds hope to gain, a divine threshold amongst divine thresholds.

Joshua had inherited the power of that Authority through the Azurite, the Third Apostle and the Sage, though until now, he never did fully study its essence.

”Interesting. The Metal Dragon God knew early on that I held the power of King of Searing Souls, and yet only specified that he wanted to meet me now.”

Joshua picked up a cup of tea that glimmered in magical radiance from the saucer that Ying carried, downed it and put it back as the silver-haired girl looked on regretfully. Joshua had wanted to ponder, but his spirit deviation rate remained too high—not even Zero Three's help would help, and he handily gave up on thinking.

”Who cares. I'll just ask face-to-face when we meet in Fort Pioneer.”

Whatever the case may be, the Million Steel Dragon had always been aligned to all beings benevolent and of Order. It would probably be willing to answer his questions.

”Master, are you leaving again?”

Holding up the saucer and watching Joshua's gaze at present, Ying could not help but sigh quietly. ”You are clearly so hurt, but you're working again barely after a few days of rest at home…”

”It's not actually work, but more or less a stroll outside.”

Joshua smiled and reached out to pat the silver-haired girl's small head, nonchalantly saying, ”I have been developing the game in the last few days, playing with you lot and going on trips. It's about time, or my body would rust if I still don't move it.”

”Although my spirit deviation rate is still high, as long as Continental War keeps running, my spirit won't deteriorate… Ying, remember to play it with Ling, Black, Light and everyone from the residence. Although there's not much power to be gained and the skills are relics of fallen civilizations, but there would still be gains from studying things by analogy.”

”Joshua, your spirit deviation rate is increasing again!”

Just as Ying was left startled inside, unsure why her master was so affectionate, Zero Three's eyes abruptly opened over Joshua's shoulder, growling, ”Steady!”

With those words, silver data flow flickered around Joshua's body as the warrior's condition stabilized. He blinked and smiled, and turned around without a word, morphing into endless luminous particles and vanished from the Liege's Residence.

Ying, left in the guest hall, stared worriedly at where Joshua departed.

”Could he really communicate normally with his condition…” The silver-haired girl shook her head, pushed open the doors to the guest hall and left. ”Come to think of it, he ate even the basket while eating fruits…”

***

Setting aside the matter of the doubtful silver-haired girl, Joshua, now maintaining a link between Zero Three and the main Mana Net server, appeared in the Void.

Silver mist gathered around a Steel crystal that resembled a snowflake, before finally materializing into the form of a man out of thin air. Joshua hence strolled forward in the Void, flying towards the Multiverse Sacrificial Grounds.

”Joshua, what is the Metal Dragon God like?”

Zero Three asked Joshua interestedly. It was clearly the Artificial Intelligence girl did not manage to gather much significant information despite having all the world's data, while Joshua himself appeared more familiar with the mysterious Dragon God.

”As its name suggests, the Metal Dragon God is the patron deity of the Metal Dragons. Million Steel Dragon is its name, just as it holds the meaning of 'kind parent' in the language of the dragons.”

Joshua did not mind explaining to Zero Three about the Dragon God since they were about to meet. Incidentally, his critical spirit deviation rate requires focusing his mind to remember so that he remains stable.

Be it in the preexistence or this life, compared to the active antagonist that was the Pentashade Dragons, the Metal Dragons were quiet in reputation. Apart from the far south and the West Mountains where some dragon rulers resided, there were not many Metal Dragons around the world—most lived in seclusion at Dragon Island or hid at the world's edge, and were so subdued that they were a complete opposite of the Pentshade.

Indeed, not only were the personalities of both races which shared the common ancestry of Astral Dragons different, their policies, world views, ideologies and path for the future. Both went on separate ways, with the Pentashade always aiming to replace humans as Mycroft's dominant race, while the Metal Dragons did not care for that at all. They simply wished to live quietly like metals, disturbing no one and not be disturbed in turn.

In the preexistence, it was said that the Pentashade waged a civil war against the Metal Dragons before the Draconic Plague. Though the latter's elite forces were not lacking, without the support of a force like the Abyss and being less populous than the Pentashade, the Metal Dragons were beaten on every turn, even subjugated and prevented from warning the humans about the Pentashade's conspiracy. Then, after the Plague, all of Mycroft turned against the dragons as if they were mortal enemies, with even humans with some dragon blood in them being killed in venting. The Metal Dragons naturally stayed far away, playing transparent dragons.