Dragon of a Thousand Stars, You Are the Origin and End of All Things

Subspace Labyrinth · Dragon Bone Plaza.

The heavens and earth were shaking.

"Are Ian and Anfa alright?"

Before Dragon Bone Plaza, Sheo floated in midair. Invisible psionic power had formed a blazing wall of fire stretching nearly a thousand meters, driving away all the mutant beasts and exploration team members who dared approach the dragon bones and crystal cabinet.

Restored to her original appearance as a red-haired dragon maiden, the True Dragon raised her head worriedly toward the cloudless sky. "Even through the subspace, this disturbance is a little too big."

High above, faint ring-shaped ripples continuously appeared and vanished. It looked as though some colossal beasts beyond the world were brawling, with the occasional missed punch striking the world's outer shell.

Even a True Dragon could not help but worry at such a sight. "Even communication through the dragon soul has been cut off. This Subspace Labyrinth is truly extraordinary."

"Although I'm worried too."

Isengard crouched in the crater Ian and the other young prodigies had blasted out during their earlier battle, sighing as he used his Charged Rifle to snipe those with ill intentions from afar.

Zzz—boom~

A pale golden beam fiercely blasted an Ascendant out of the air just as he transformed into a gale and tried to approach the crystal cabinet. The blond youth shook his head. "But even if he dies, that would still be Ian's own choice."

It sounded heartless, but it was merely helplessness.

When a prophet voluntarily chose to do something incredibly dangerous, who could possibly persuade them otherwise?

The future they saw was the greatest warning in the world. If even that could not dissuade them, then no one could make them stop.

As for Anfa, she possessed a dragon soul. Even if she died, it would only mean the destruction of her prosthetic body. If things reached the point where even her dragon soul could be destroyed, that would no longer be an ordinary problem. Probably no one could escape it, so there was no need to worry.

However, Ethan was not merely worried.

Because both he and Sheo knew that Ian now possessed a certain degree of authority over this Subspace Labyrinth.

Since Ian could use subspace transfer to move the Dark Gold Dragon and the other young powerhouses away, the situation probably was not that dire... at the very least, he could still escape.

Besides, they did not have much energy to spare for worrying about others.

After the leaders of the various exploration teams and the Dark Gold Dragon were taken away, the remaining explorers and mutant beasts descended into chaotic battle.

The mutant beasts were abnormally powerful. Even the elites from various nations could only barely suppress them. Worse still, while fighting the mutant beasts, some exploration team members continued sending people over, attempting to seize the storage chips inside the 'crystal cabinet' or infiltrate toward the enormous mountain of dragon bones.

In response, Sheo and Isengard—the ones Ian had spared, or rather, deliberately left behind—became that line of defense.

—Whether it was the crystal cabinet, the divine marrow within the dragon bones, or the Source of Dragonblood, they were all our spoils and treasures!

With that thought, Sheo's True Dragon instincts awakened. As the only True Dragon present with a genuine Third Energy Level soul, she could be said to suppress every enemy in Dragon Bone Plaza.

Whether they were alchemical firearms, psionic weapons, or crude armor from who knew where, she destroyed, devoured, and blasted them all apart by herself!

As for Isengard, he only needed to occasionally use his Charged Rifle to pick off a few people preparing sneak attacks.

"Just leisurely shooting like this... it feels a little unsatisfying."

After shooting down another Ascendant who had tried to cross the defensive line while invisible, only to be detected by the Light-Tempered Eroding Dragon's life-force senses, Ethan shook his head slightly and suppressed the unease in his heart. "Ian and Anfa are probably fighting for their lives against enemies right now... what exactly should we do?"

"Don't overthink it."

Sheo was unexpectedly clear-headed at this moment. Without the slightest worry, she said, "Whether it's the Dark Gold Dragon or the others from the exploration teams, their targets are the dragon bones, Dragon Crystals, and the dragon's divine marrow behind us. As long as we hold this place, we'll be helping Ian."

"Or rather, Ian only left us here because he foresaw this future and needed us to stay behind and guard our spoils!"

Her thinking is way too simple... but she might not be wrong. Is this the perspective of a dragon? Ethan gave a silent, bitter smile. Sheo's personality, which trusted prophets one hundred percent, truly left little room for worries. To her, the world was simply that straightforward.

But the blond youth still remembered what Ian had told him alone before everyone split up on the second floor.

Although I can't see it too clearly either, Ethan.

At the time, the knight who had already become Mahdi rubbed his eyes and spoke seriously. This trip to the Xenobiology Research Institute will probably be a tremendous opportunity for you too—an opportunity no less significant than Anfa's, filled with both danger and harvest!

An opportunity...

What opportunity did Canaanmore hold that was related to him, the son of a northern marquis of the Empire?

"You two, something's wrong!"

Suddenly, a pleasant yet tense voice came from nearby.

Sheo and Ethan turned their heads together, only to see a mass of silver light flying rapidly toward them before stopping in front of them.

It was a Silver Fairy.

However, unlike the Silver Fairies who usually looked rigid and solid, this Silver Fairy named 'Mercury Spring' was entirely composed of liquid-like mercury.

Her smooth curves, surging and flowing with an exquisite rhythm, made her an absolute anomaly among the Silver Fairies, who were almost all styled after knights and warriors.

But being an anomaly was proof of strength.

Mercury Spring was, in truth, the 'brain' of the Silver Fairy team.

Although Silver Salt was the captain, he was ultimately just a powerful fighter. After all, dying fifteen times because he challenged strong opponents was rare even among the Silver Fairies, who were renowned for being combative and reckless.

One had to know that if they lost their fighting spirit and conviction, even immortal Fairies would gradually dissolve themselves, becoming fragments of soul used to construct new Fairies within the Fairy Forge... Many Fairies had simply lived too long, their free hearts gradually filled with failures, regrets, and unwillingness from the human world, until they chose self-dissolution. They dissolved the deep sighs within their hearts and became entirely new existences.

Yet Silver Salt had maintained his surging fighting spirit and preserved his 'self' even after fifteen defeats. Such willpower was truly astonishing.

But conversely, someone who could die fifteen times challenging strong opponents could never become a leader with such a reckless personality, even among Fairies.

Because she had reincarnated relatively recently, Mercury Spring was not particularly powerful. However, she possessed a means of communicating with the powerful Silver Fairy 'Star' and Afiboya the Mechanical Dragon.

It relied on the Fairies' special soul structure, a form of 'Void Realm communication' capable of transcending the ordinary boundaries of space and time!

"On behalf of Falling Star City and the Witnesses of the Orthodox Church, I have some bad news for you two."

Now, however, Mercury Spring had come to Sheo and Ethan, the strongest pair present. With a solemn expression, she said, "My Void Realm communication has been blocked... In Canaanmore, those capable of doing such a thing are either Silver Gate and State Domain among the Ten King Bloods, or a Fifth Energy Level powerhouse!"

"I have reason to infer that the Fourth Energy Level powerhouses above the ruins have already begun fighting!"

"If possible, I hope you can retrieve the storage chips from the crystal cabinet now and join us in resisting whatever impact may come next. Rest assured, those are your spoils. We absolutely will not try to seize them."

Mercury Spring said this with selfish motives of her own.

Indeed, Falling Star City and the Four Orthodox Churches had come this time only to 'witness.'

They would not contend with any side for these treasures. They would merely provide treatment for the defeated and prevent them from continuing with sneak attacks, schemes, or acts such as destroying key ruin equipment and bringing about mutual destruction.

There had already been many instances where infighting among Terra's factions caused the irreparable loss of Pre-Epoch Civilization technology. It was something no one could accept.

Only the Four Orthodox Churches, Falling Star City, and Dragon Island possessed the credibility and strength to assure every faction that they would not favor any side and would protect these 'precious legacies' belonging to humanity.

Of course, if the ruins concerned True Dragons, then Dragon Island would become a participant as well. That was only natural.

For this reason, if some accident occurred within the ruins and none of the competing sides could guarantee the safety of the 'treasures' and 'legacies,' leaving these neutral forces to preserve them alone or together, then they would gain the right to conduct joint research and even copy and store key materials.

The maneuvering between the various factions was exceedingly complex. Generally speaking, no force would deliberately reject assistance from the Four Orthodox Churches, Falling Star City, or Dragon Island.

"So soon?"

Yet Mercury Spring discovered that both Sheo and Ethan looked calm, as though they had known all along. "In that case, something huge is coming very soon."

Saying so, Sheo gave Mercury Spring a particularly dashing smile and reached out to shake the cold mercury hand. "Thanks for the warning, Fairy!"

"We're very willing to join forces with you, but this time, I'm afraid all of us can only look after ourselves."

And it was at the instant their hands met.

Mercury Spring's mercury-colored eyes widened as she stared fixedly at the red-haired dragon maiden—and the sky behind her.

The sun.

A brand-new sun had appeared in the sky behind Sheo.

A blazing sun suddenly emerged above the dome of subspace. Visible streams of superheated air turned into a corona, winding and stretching across the sky above the horizon like a giant serpent wrapped around a sphere of light.

But that was only the beginning.

Because less than ten seconds later, that tiny exploding star vanished. What appeared in its place was terrifying hypergravity capable of piercing both the Void Realm and subspace—

Violent gravitational turbulence erupted throughout Dragon Bone Plaza. Whether they were mutant beasts fighting openly or exploration team members secretly clashing elsewhere, everyone felt the duet of weightlessness and crushing gravity in that instant.

"Waaaah! We're flying?!"

"No, this is hypergravity—"

Other than those at the Second Energy Level, neither humans nor beasts could endure the repeatedly reversing shifts in gravity. Most were knocked unconscious by the aftershocks and collapsed onto the ground.

And it was not just people.

Even the incomparably sturdy ground—the entire core region of the Xenobiology Research Institute—began splitting apart amid an earthquake that seemed to shake the world.

A massive black fissure abruptly appeared amid the violent tremors. The earth was torn open, its rift resembling a row of jagged shark teeth. It began in the distance and raced toward Dragon Bone Plaza.

"How fiercely are they fighting—"

Even though she had prepared herself mentally, Sheo was still shocked by the sight. Turning her head, she stared directly at the black vacuum that had abruptly appeared after the sun went out. Even the True Dragon could only murmur, "This is bad."

"The High Towers... are going to fall!"

Just as Sheo said.

The entire Subspace Labyrinth was violently shaken by the tremendous disturbance, and the twelve High Towers around Dragon Bone Plaza inevitably suffered the effects.

Although the High Towers themselves were incredibly sturdy and would not collapse, falling and crumbling were two different things. As the subspace earth beneath them shattered and tilted, the once-upright High Towers would shift from their original positions.

Whoosh—rumble!

Accompanied by howling winds and seismic tremors, four of the twelve High Towers surrounding the giant dragon skeleton fell one after another. Including the one whose operation had already been halted by the City of Knowledge exploration team, a total of five sealing High Towers had ceased functioning.

And the 'Red Tower' beside Sheo and the others was one of those that fell.

The shrill wind howled as the kilometer-tall colossal building toppled straight down without obstruction. The sight was terrifying, as though a giant were bringing down a thousand-meter greatsword.

At the sight, even Sheo's nerves could not remain so thick. A chill ran down her spine as she turned and fled.

Before running, however, she did not forget to use her psionic power to grab the crystal cabinet she had been protecting behind her and take it away.

With five sealing High Towers disabled, the Dragon Crystals that had previously been immovable could now be moved... But the seal had not been completely broken. The crystal cabinet, which had seemed light before, now felt to Sheo as though she were dragging a mountain!

Damn it... if my true body were here... if I could use a dragon's strength, I could take it away!

Amid the thunderous crash of the falling High Tower, Sheo could not help growing anxious. Her current prosthetic body only possessed First Energy Level strength. Although her dragonblood allowed her to endure the consumption of psionic power, she could not emerge unscathed from an impact like a falling High Tower!

Without a physical body capable of bearing 'reaction force,' psionic interference with the world would weaken drastically. Even a dragon soul needed a prosthetic body as a 'container' for psionic power. This was an iron law of the world.

"Move! Crystal cabinet, why won't you move?!"

Gritting her teeth, she unleashed all her strength, even using her physical power as though pushing a cart. But the crystal cabinet could not move fast enough to avoid being buried before the High Tower came down.

Sheo had already clenched her teeth and decided to persist to the very end, even if this prosthetic body of hers was smashed into pulp.

But at that moment, a hand reached out and pressed onto Sheo's shoulder.

"I'll help too." Ethan's voice rang out, followed by an inexplicable feeling of blazing excitement that spread from her shoulder!

"Oh! Power is pouring out!"

At that instant, Sheo suddenly felt both her body and soul being invigorated. The 'dragonblood' within this prosthetic body began burning fiercely, fully activated as it erupted with one hundred and twenty percent of its power!

And in that very instant, Mercury Spring, flying alongside them and ready to help at any moment, saw a mass of almost tangible psionic flame suddenly ignite!

In a single moment, the blazing fire forcibly dragged the crystal cabinet out of the area where the High Tower would fall.

Boom!

A towering wave of dust surged up, and countless shattered stones scattered like bullets. But none of it could harm the dragon maiden now that she had raised a psionic shield.

"Thanks, Ethan."

Letting out a breath as her raised heart finally settled, Sheo could not help becoming interested in the ability of the blond youth who had withdrawn his hand. "Your ability is pretty impressive—can it invigorate not just the body, but psionic power too? Ordinary Light-Eater Dragons don't seem this powerful, do they?"

"No... this isn't my ability."

But Ethan stared somewhat dazedly at his own hand. His brow furrowed as he sensed the power that had suddenly surged within him, running through every blood vessel and nerve. "I only wanted to use my blood to help activate your Origin Matter, Sheo. But in that instant, I felt that the 'blood' within me resonated intensely with the 'dragonblood' in your body!"

"Huh, isn't that normal?" Compared to Isengard's solemn expression, Sheo did not care much about it. Laughing heartily, she patted the youth's shoulder. "You're a dragon too. It just means the dragonblood in you resonates more strongly with mine, causing an Origin Matter resonance effect!"

"No! In past research, Light-Eater Dragons have always merely been 'ancient draconic subspecies.'"

But Isengard shook his head. "Although they can devour even True Dragon blood, they are ultimately just parasitic organisms... Everyone in the Ellen Family knows that well. One could even say that our Ellen Family's ultimate goal is to capture a True Dragon, completely devour its body, and turn it into the inherited bloodline power of our family."

"Hm... that makes sense. Mother encountered Light-Eater Dragons in the past too, and the memories I received from her indeed did not carry a sensation similar to yours, Ethan."

Sheo was not embarrassed by the Ellen Family's objective. After all, too many people on Terra had True Dragons as their goal, and True Dragons had very little empathy for one another.

Rather than feeling offended, she was curious. She circled the youth once and said, "But I can feel that the power in your body is genuine dragonblood... Earlier, you clearly absorbed a portion of the Source of Dragonblood's power too, didn't you?"

"That proves you possess True Dragon blood. Every exploration team member who came here is connected to dragons to some degree."

Having said that, Sheo instead smiled. "Rather than worrying about that, Ethan, you should consider where the True Dragon blood in your body actually came from."

"Or rather, what kind of True Dragon left behind the Light-Eater Dragon as its descendant!"

"...Mm."

Ethan fell silent for a while, then nodded slightly.

Although he appeared convinced, his heart was filled with doubts.

Because unlike what Sheo had said, what he felt within his body was not merely 'a little dragonblood'... It felt as though every Light-Eater Dragon bloodline and Origin Matter organ throughout his body had begun vibrating, burning, and becoming incomparably hot.

If... this reaction was what they called dragonblood resonance, then the blood of the Light-Eater Dragon was genuine True Dragon blood!

But that raised another question.

"Leaving aside why it is so weak despite being 'True Dragon blood'..."

"What Spark, what civilization, gave birth to a 'True Dragon' like the Light-Eater Dragon, which devours other life to elevate itself?!"

Isengard's heart was truly full of anger and conflict toward his own 'blood.'

—It was because of this blood that I was conceived and born within a conspiracy!

—It was because of this blood that my father despised me, my uncle tried to assassinate me, and my maternal grandfather manipulated me like a chess piece!

—But it was also because of this blood... that I could stand upon this stage, alongside first-rate geniuses like Ian, Sheo, and Anfa...

Blood was a blessing. Blood was a curse.

Blood did not come because it was prayed for, nor did it leave because it was resented.

Blood was life, and blood was also the soul.

Isengard did not hate or reject the blood and darkness within himself... He only wanted to understand what the incredibly intricate array of inscriptions that had flashed across him when he absorbed the Source of Dragonblood's power truly represented.

What meaning did that darkness possess, capable of bearing the radiance of the Sun God Bird while also absorbing True Dragon blood...

"What... am I?"

Just as the blond youth bitterly mocked himself and questioned his own origin.

At the center of the Xenobiology Research Institute, encircled by the twelve High Towers.

The enormous dragon skeleton of the second-generation True Dragon swayed slightly.

After the loss of the seals from five High Towers, the Source of Dragonblood's power overflowed with even greater intensity... Yet precisely because of this, faint crimson-gold light began to shine within the six hollow cavities in the ancient dragon corpse's skull.

At the same time, the 'crystal cabinet' forged from Dragon Crystals beside Sheo and Isengard also lit up with crimson-gold radiance.

Light slowly arose in the giant dragon skeleton's eyes. It looked at Sheo and Isengard, who for some unknown reason instinctively raised their heads to look at the dragon bones.

In that instant, apart from those six sunset-like lights, the entire world dimmed.

"Huh?!"

Then, beneath Mercury Spring's astonished gaze, Sheo and Isengard vanished amid a distortion of subspace—and vanishing along with them was the crystal cabinet that perhaps recorded all the technical data and past memories of the Xenobiology Research Institute!

—Subspace Labyrinth · Dragon Soul Slumber Chamber—

Above a pitch-black sea, the blond youth looked around blankly. He did not know when he had arrived here.

"Th-This... I've been transferred?"

Isengard immediately understood his situation, but he could not figure out why. Suppressing the unease in his heart, he calmly surveyed his surroundings. "It's completely dark here, but this place is enormous. There's a reservoir beneath my feet... Is this the Xenobiology Research Institute's reservoir? Or some kind of marine biology lab?"

Just then, Isengard suddenly heard a majestic voice.

Then came light!

The pitch-black sea was illuminated in an instant. Yet what appeared before the blond youth was a grotesque sight enough to terrify most people—

Blood!

Dragon blood!

A sea of crimson-gold blood, with things drifting within it that gave off crystalline patterns of light. Rather than living creatures, they resembled the innards of some colossal machine!

This was an ocean made of dragon blood and organs. Before Isengard, six brilliant golden eyes like gemstones floated in midair, looking down upon the youth from above.

Descendant of dragon blood, junior of a thousand years hence, bewildered human...

The majestic voice came from all directions. Frozen in shock and unable to move, Isengard realized that the source of the voice was the endless sea of dragon blood beneath his feet, as well as the organs and "eyes" before him!

Among this flesh and blood, a will that was dying yet not dead, extinguished yet not gone, slowly uttered its final words: You are the Key of All Things... You are the End of Darkness...

Dragon of a Thousand Stars, you are the origin and end of all things.

I recommend a friend's book, titled "I Am Not a Trainer," by Beichuan Nanhai!

Synopsis: An urban beast-taming story. It follows the daily life of a chef who encounters companions and raises pets, farms, and cooks delicious food through cuisine.