The Thousand-Year Dragon Guarding the Giant Tree

Stepping past the shattered stone gate, they entered a vast space that seemed to stretch on forever.

The ground was carpeted in grass and vines; despite being an underground structure, it was bathed in ample sunlight, with a massive tree in the center reaching toward the sky.

Just like the carvings on the gate, the tree was laden with green fruits that looked somewhat like mangoes.

"This... this is incredible. We must be at least a thousand meters underground. How could something like this even be built?"

Seeing King Brunen's shock, Luo Ya chuckled.

After all, if Fish-Man Island could have sunlight ten thousand meters under the sea, what was this? It was perfectly normal for the world of pirates to have a little "black technology."

"Something's there! Right on the tree!" Annajia exclaimed, pointing toward the canopy.

Hearing this, Luo Ya looked in the direction Annajia indicated; his own half-baked Observation Haki wasn't even as good as hers.

Vaguely, Luo Ya caught sight of a pair of enormous eyes, their emerald green hue blending almost perfectly with the leaves.

As Luo Ya focused his gaze, the creature in the tree sensed his killing intent and stopped hiding.

With a shrill cry, it dove down from the canopy.

ROAR!

A massive green beast landed on the ground, crouching on its legs like a bird. Even while crouched, it stood at least seven meters tall.

Its wings were folded at its sides, its entire body covered in green feathers, with fine white downy fur running from its jaw down to its talons.

"It's a dragon!" King Brunen shielded the two women behind him, watching the newly appeared behemoth with vigilance.

Luo Ya looked at the monster before him, finally recalling its identity.

"Isn't this a Millennium Dragon? I remember it from the anime—they say its dragon bones can be used to make an elixir of immortality."

As he recalled the plot regarding the Millennium Dragon, Luo Ya's movements were anything but slow.

While the Millennium Dragon stared at them with its large eyes, Luo Ya pushed off the ground with force, swinging Ryujin Jakka toward the white-furred chest of the beast.

CLANG!

A pitch-black, feathered wing blocked Ryujin Jakka.

Luo Ya wasn't surprised; it wasn't exactly rare for animals to master Armament Haki, especially since this one was clearly the guardian of these ruins.

Luo Ya used the momentum to kick off the wing, creating distance as he searched for an opening.

The Millennium Dragon seemed enraged by the strike, letting out a deafening roar that made Luo Ya's eardrums ache.

Taking advantage of the sound wave, the Millennium Dragon flapped its wings and charged at Luo Ya. One wing was held high, coated in pitch-black Haki, its feathers standing on end like sharp, cold blades.

CLANG!

Luo Ya was knocked back several meters by the immense force, his feet carving two deep furrows into the grass.

Shaking his numbed arm, Luo Ya held Ryujin Jakka level with his chest and slowly closed his eyes.

"Father, is Master going to lose? You have to go help him!" Madalina said anxiously from the side.

It was fortunate Luo Ya didn't hear her, or he would have given her a few extra whacks during training—how dare she question his strength!

King Brunen, however, had no time to mind Madalina's anxiety; he watched Luo Ya's movements and muttered to himself.

"Is this... is this the opening stance of the Infernal Fire Prison?" As King Brunen's words faded, four long blades made of black-red flames manifested around Luo Ya, identical in shape to Ryujin Jakka.

Once the four flame blades appeared, their tips pointed directly at the Millennium Dragon.

Luo Ya suddenly snapped his eyes open and charged at the Millennium Dragon, shielded by the four blades of fire.

CLANG!

Luo Ya's strike was blocked by the Millennium Dragon's wing once again.

SPLAT! SPLAT! Two of the flame blades bypassed the defense, piercing into the dragon's back and spraying a large amount of green blood.

ROAR!

Howling in pain, the Millennium Dragon swung its other wing down viciously at Luo Ya.

CLANG!

The remaining two flame blades crossed to parry the blow, and Luo Ya held his ground, locking blades with the wing and forcing the beast down.

Retracting his right leg, he condensed a powerful surge of Armament Haki and vibration into his foot.

Drill Dragon Nail! He kicked the Millennium Dragon squarely in its soft underbelly.

BANG!

The Millennium Dragon was sent flying backward, and the two flame blades took the opportunity to cross-slash at its neck. It had to be said that being a dragon meant something; even though the blades tore through flesh and blood, they failed to decapitate it.

After the kick, Luo Ya sheathed Ryujin Jakka, preparing to end the battle with Line-Cutting Void.

This was currently Luo Ya's strongest single-target technique; its only drawback was that it required a charge-up to perfectly compress his sword intent.

Just as the Millennium Dragon lost its ability to move and lay on the ground spitting green blood, a shout interrupted Luo Ya's focus.

"Stop fighting, Master! It means no harm!" Madalina shouted, running toward the Millennium Dragon to stroke its slashed wound.

The Millennium Dragon let out a faint, mournful cry, its dragon eyes fixed on Madalina.

"Heh, how boring." Hearing this, Luo Ya sheathed Ryujin Jakka, lit a cigarette, and walked over to the Millennium Dragon.

Watching the human and dragon communicating without any barriers, Luo Ya scratched his head.

"She is my disciple. From now on, you are responsible for protecting her. Nod if you understand; if you don't, I'll cut you down."

He exhaled a cloud of smoke as he finished speaking.

"Master, stop scaring Ala." Madalina rolled her eyes at Luo Ya before explaining the sequence of events to the group.

It turned out that Madalina had been a magnet for small animals since she was a child, though she couldn't actually understand what they were saying.

However, powerful creatures like the Millennium Dragon possessed higher intelligence than ordinary animals, and it was only through this downward compatibility that Madalina was able to understand its speech.

As it turned out, this tree was the very deity depicted in the murals at the entrance.

The reason that kingdom revered this tree as a god was because of the fruit it bore, which could enhance both physical fitness and mental strength when consumed.

The animals of that country had their intelligence significantly boosted after eating the fruit, allowing them to communicate with humans, while humans experienced a massive surge in mental power alongside their physical improvements.

The two had guarded the kingdom in perfect harmony.

Later, the kingdom was destroyed in a catastrophe, and the Millennium Dragon had been placed on the tree since it was small to guard the Divine Tree.

Ala was the name its former master had given it, and that master was the great swordsman who had left the Red Flame greatsword outside the gate.

After hearing Madalina's account, Luo Ya hurriedly asked if there were any restrictions on consuming the fruit. If there weren't, he was ready to give it a try.

Upon learning that this foolish dragon, Ala, would just eat until it was dizzy and couldn't stomach any more, Luo Ya stood up and climbed to the treetop. He signaled for Annajia and King Brunen to take off their clothes to catch the fruit, then plucked a large quantity.

Once he finished picking them, Luo Ya grabbed one and started eating. The fruit looked like a mango and tasted much like one, too, except it didn't need to be peeled and the flesh was green.

After finishing one, Luo Ya exclaimed that it was satisfying. Not only was it sweet and tangy, but he clearly noticed that the dissolution rate of the two Great Grade swords in his Soul Space had increased slightly. His body, however, felt no obvious changes.

One had to realize that Luo Ya's soul strength was not like that of others; he could feel an improvement from just one fruit. In contrast, after Annajia and the others ate the fruit, they acted as if they were drunk, walking with a staggering, wobbly gait—a clear sign that their mental strength had increased so much that they couldn't control their bodies.

Luo Ya wiped his mouth and packed up the remaining fruit, waiting for the others to recover somewhat before speaking.

"Madalina, this Millennium Dragon belongs to you from now on. Brunen, you are responsible for delivering the rest of these fruits to my room."

"No problem, Lord Luo Ya. Madalina, you stay here and look after Ala; we will head back to contact a doctor to treat its wounds."

Madalina immediately agreed.

Seeing this, the group picked up their bundles and left the secret realm. Along the way, King Brunen hurried back to the palace, worried that Ala might not survive its injuries.

After all, they had essentially stumbled upon a powerful combat asset; it would be a great pity if it died because of a delay in medical treatment.