The Jade Dragon

The group arrived at the Dragon Graveyard Cave.

When they saw the dragon bones in the cave, everyone was stunned.

Natsu's mouth dropped open, his jaw almost falling to the ground.

Erza her arms and frowned deeply, while Lucy huddled behind Lucy), only half of her face visible.

"This is way too exaggerated..."

Lucy's voice lingered in the cave for quite some time before dissipating.

The dragon skeletons lay scattered about, ten times more shocking than when they were seen from afar.

Standing before these bones, everyone appears incredibly small.

Mavis craned his neck so high it almost snapped, barely managing to see the tip of a rib.

Natsu suddenly turned to look at Riyao.

"Didn't you say Igneel might be there?"

His voice was very low, as if something was stuck in his throat, and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down.

"This place is full of dragon bones, how could there be any?"

"Maybe one of those bones belongs to Igneel."

Riyao grinned slyly, his lips curling up wide.

Everyone shook their heads.

As expected, what Riyao said must be based on the actual product.

Natsu shouted anxiously.

"Impossible! Igneel is definitely not dead!"

His voice boomed through the cave, echoing several times over.

His fists were clenched so tightly that the veins on the back of his hands stood out.

Wendy's little face looked miserable, her eyes were a little red, and her lips were pressed into a thin line.

Mirajane patted Wendy's head and gently pressed her head twice with her palm.

"Riyao is just teasing you guys; your dragons definitely aren't here."

Hearing Mirajane's words of comfort, Wendy felt a little relieved, and her shoulders relaxed.

"This bastard doesn't look like S-Class at all."

Erza sighed and slapped her forehead.

The group began their treasure hunt.

Hoping there might be some treasure here, he started wandering around.

Natsu rummaged through the pile of bones, Gray squatted in front of a rib and studied it for a long time, Happy flew to the dragon's head and stomped on it twice, Lucy found a fist-sized fragment of a dragon tooth in the corner, held it up and looked at it again and again in front of the ball of light.

Wendy drew a magic circle on the ground.

His fingers traced arcs in the dust, one stroke after another, drawing with great care.

"I want to try looking at the Milky Way."

"That Dragon Slayer Secret Art."

Riyao squatted beside Wendy, watching her busy herself, one hand supporting her chin.

"Give it a try; maybe there really is a remnant soul."

Upon hearing this, everyone stopped their treasure hunt and gathered around.

They sat in a circle, and no one spoke.

Wendy knelt in the center of the magic circle, clasped her hands together in front of her, and closed her eyes.

[Dragon Slayer Secret Art: Milky Way]

The magic circle lit up.

She was surrounded by a green glow, the light emanating from her body and spreading outwards in wisps.

As time passed, the entire cave turned green.

Fluorescent light flickered among the keel bones, illuminating them with a faint green glow.

"Did it fail?"

Gray muttered something under his breath.

Just when everyone had given up hope...

A gigantic green dragon appeared.

A translucent body materialized from the air, its wings unfurling to cover half the cave.

Its eyes darted around before finally settling on Wendy.

"Is this Grandine's magic?"

The Hisui Dragon lowered its head, its nose almost touching Wendy's face.

"Yo ho, so this little rascal is Grandine's successor?"

Its tone suddenly became cheerful, and it grinned, revealing a mouthful of sharp teeth.

"Look at how I make a little nose! Ah~"

It opened its mouth as if to bite Wendy.

Natsu jumped in front of the Hisui Dragon, spreading his arms to block Wendy.

I won't allow you to hurt Wendy!

"Hey, I want it! I want it!"

"I won't allow it! I'll fight you to the death!"

Natsu and the Hisui Dragon exchanged fire.

A man and a dragon roared at each other from a distance, spittle flying everywhere.

Everyone was speechless.

Lucy's lips twitched, Gray rolled his eyes, Erza rubbed her temples...

"This idiot, didn't he consider that this is a spirit, unable to touch us?"

The Hisui Dragon stopped teasing Natsu and burst into laughter.

The laughter shook the cave, sending dust flying down in a flurry.

"Humans are all idiots after all."

"I'm not!"

"Not human?"

"I'm not stupid!"

Natsu argued vehemently, his face turning red with embarrassment.

The Hisui Dragon rolled its eyes, and with a snap, its semi-transparent eyelids covered its eyes from top to bottom.

"Who can say for sure?"

Everyone shook their heads and sighed.

Even a dragon on the roadside could tell Natsu was an idiot.

It's hopeless.

Happy looked up at the Hisui Dragon and flicked his tail.

What happened here?

"Hmph, I won't tell humans that I'm a dragon with principles."

The Hisui Dragon turned its head to one side, its nostrils pointing upwards.

"But I'm a cat."

Happy tilted his head and his ears twitched.

"Then I'll tell you. My name is Zirconis, you can also call me the Jade Dragon!"

Hearing the last address, Riyao felt much more at ease, and his shoulders visibly relaxed.

The Hisui Dragon continued its narration.

Its voice deepened, no longer the playful tone it had before.

"In the very distant past, dragons were the rulers of this world, and humans were merely food for them."

"One day, a group of dragons advocated for coexistence with humans. A fierce war broke out between the coexistence faction and the opposition, and the coexistence faction was at a disadvantage. They decided to teach humans the magic that could kill dragons. In your words, these humans are the Dragon Slayer."

"The tragedy stemmed from this. The stronger the Dragon Slayer, the stronger the Dragon Force became. They were gradually corrupted by the Dragon Force, indiscriminately killing any dragon they encountered, friend or foe."

"Among that group, an extremely terrifying Dragon Slayer was born. He relentlessly hunted dragons, his body becoming soaked in dragon blood, and his body gradually mutated. His human form peeled away, transforming him into a dragon."

"He was none other than Acnologia, the future Dragon King!"

"All the dragons that lie buried in this cemetery were slain by his own hands."

Everyone was stunned after hearing this.

The Hisui Dragon scratched its face, and its body began to gradually dissipate.

Starting from the tip of the tail, it gradually transforms into specks of light.

Time's up. Too bad, I didn't get to eat a little bit of that.

As the words fell, it completely dissipated.

Green specks of light floated in the air, slowly fell, and then went out.

The cave darkened again, with only the faint glow of the vines on the walls remaining.

Wendy finished the Milky Way, the light of the magic circle dimmed, and she braced herself on the ground, a fine layer of sweat beading on her forehead.

"No, there are no more souls here."

Natsu slapped his head.

"I forgot to ask, does it know Igneel?"

"It will probably say that Igneel is here."

Riyao laughed particularly wickedly, his shoulders shaking, and he was almost laughing so hard he was crying.

"I forgot to bring Princess Hisui. Let's give her a good laugh, haha, she shares a name with a big, fat dragon."

Behind a skeleton, the Princess Hisui stopped in her tracks.

I'm not going out, even if you beat me.

She crouched behind the massive ribs, her back against the bones, her hands covering her face.

She looked at Arcadios with a frantic expression, her eyes practically bulging out of their sockets.

Arcadios sighed.

"Your Highness, are you sure you don't want to come out?"

Princess Hisui shook her head frantically, her head moving rapidly and urgently.

She opened her mouth and mouthed three words.

I won't go out.

I'd rather die than go out, absolutely not.