Dragon Crisis

Dragon Crisis.

"Judging by the pattern and size, it was definitely a Dragon Scale. But it wasn't from a Dragon—it was from one in human form. I just don't know whether this scale belonged to a Dragon Speaker or a Dragonblood!" Lotner's eyes held both doubt and caution.

Whether Dragon Speakers or Dragonbloods, both possessed Dragonkind bloodlines. Neither was easy to provoke.

William reached out and took the not-so-large Dragon Scale.

The material information appeared immediately.

Dragon Scale: A scale shed by a Dragon Speaker.

Grade: Silver.

Seeing this, William frowned slightly. Both Dragon Speakers and Dragonbloods possessed Dragonkind bloodlines, and their bloodline potential was usually no weaker than that of the Elves—perhaps even stronger.

They basically all possessed bloodline potential at Grandmaster-Class or above.

Especially since they all had the Transformation skill. After transforming, their bodies would be covered in scales, greatly increasing not only their defense and recovery, but also their attack power, movement speed, and more. In short, it was an all-around boost to their attributes.

The difference between Dragon Speakers and Dragonbloods was that Dragon Speakers were NPCs upon whom Dragons cast Dragon Tongue Magic, granting them part of their bloodline abilities. They were servants of Dragonkind.

Dragonbloods, on the other hand, bathed in Dragon Blood themselves, though doing so carried a high chance of death.

But regardless of which kind they were, anyone with Dragonkind blood could not be underestimated.

However, there was one point.

Dragon Speakers were rare. Whether Elemental Dragons, Metallic Dragons, Gem Dragons, or the like, they were all extremely stingy creatures. They rarely offered their blood for servants or followers, then used Dragon Tongue Magic to transform them into Dragon Speakers.

That made Dragon Speakers even rarer. Yet comparatively speaking, they were certainly stronger than Dragonbloods, because aside from Transformation, they could also wield powerful Dragon Tongue Magic.

As for Dragonbloods?

They could basically only rely on slaying Dragons!

It was hard for humans and Dragons to get along. There was only one choice: getting **ed to death unilaterally.

Dragonbloods were also divided into several levels.

But the most common were Dragonbloods who bathed in Common Dragon Blood, and Dragonbloods who bathed in Dragon Heart Blood.

"They're all things that can improve attributes. Should I try it someday?" William stroked his chin. After players entered the game, there were only so many races they could choose from, but by the middle and late stages of the game, there would be countless ways to change races.

But changing races came with both advantages and disadvantages.

Choosing to become a Dragon Speaker basically meant betraying the human faction.

Because unless you subdued a Dragon and had it cast Dragon Tongue Magic on you, turning you into a Dragon Speaker—

You could only choose to become its servant.

But choosing to become a Dragon Speaker meant changing factions. Once you changed factions, the reputation and favorability you had accumulated in your original faction would definitely be wiped clean, and the things you could come into contact with would become far fewer.

From then on, quests, storylines, main quests, and so on would likely have nothing to do with the majority of players.

But the benefits were obvious as well.

It was equivalent to entering a long-term hidden quest. If you did well enough, you might even become a top-tier player.

Of course, if he did not want to change factions, then he would have to subdue a Dragon and become a Dragon Knight. But such an impressive title was obviously tied to a top-tier quest that could only be completed in the late game...

The requirements for Dragonbloods were not so high. After all, Dragon Slayers loved bathing in Dragon Blood and drinking Dragon Blood to strengthen themselves. But in the early and middle stages of the game, how many players would have the chance to bathe in Dragon Blood? And who could say that bathing in Dragon Blood would definitely turn someone into a Dragonblood? It was all based on probability!

Even a newborn dragon hatchling was not something early-game players could contend with.

Those adorable-looking hatchlings only needed to breathe once, and it would be a group AOE attack.

No matter how happily or excitedly the players shouted, corpses would fall in droves. The scent of roasted meat would fill the air, making even the neighboring Orcs drool with envy.

As for the players' damage?

It could not break their defense at all!

Of course, some players with extraordinarily high Luck might strike it rich, such as encountering a dying Dragon or having an NPC happen to give them some Dragon Blood.

"It's said that Dragons have always lived atop East Sea Snow Mountain. This Dragon Scale should have spread from there!" Lotner gradually shifted his gaze eastward.

East Sea Snow Mountain was also located within Blackleaf Forest, near the sea in the Southeastern Corner.

Its highest peak stood at a full thirteen thousand meters. Above six thousand meters, not even grass could grow. The mountain was covered in snow, filled with strange rocks, and was also an active volcano.

But Lotner did not know exactly what kind of Dragon lived atop East Sea Snow Mountain.

William narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "Never mind that. East Sea Snow Mountain is more than three hundred li from the territory. No matter where this Dragon Scale came from, we don't need to care."

However, when he turned to leave, he could not help feeling a headache. Version 1.0 of the game was the story of two duchies fighting for supremacy, and it was also the main quest players could participate in.

But that did not mean nothing would happen in Blackleaf Forest, nor did it mean that the other nations and territories of the Legendary Continent were free of war.

He remembered now. After occupying Border Territory, Steel Duchy often clashed with the races of Blackleaf Forest.

Many races appeared in every major battle, including but not limited to Orcs, Gnolls, Trolls, and more.

If Steel Duchy had not ultimately defeated Blackrock Duchy and sent a large number of troops to garrison Border Town, this place would very likely have been completely occupied by the foreign races.

The reason those people repeatedly invaded Blackrock Duchy's territory was because powerful forces supported them from behind.

Dragon Speakers appeared many times among them, causing Steel Duchy heavy casualties and forcing Steel Duchy to send several Epic-Class experts to guard Border Town.

But the two sides seemed to hold a deep-seated grudge against each other. Neither was willing to take a step back, and they continuously launched great battles. Tens of thousands of players took part over long periods, and the rewards were plentiful.

Only after some players dug deeply into the quests did they understand.

It turned out that the Dragon of East Sea Snow Mountain had once been ambushed by Steel Duchy. That battle could be called a mutual defeat. Even after the Dragon spent half a year recovering from its injuries, it had never fully recovered.

But with its mind clear, it was already able to command its clans and servants to wage war.

"So this means I have a ninety percent chance of dying?" Thinking of this, William could not help cursing inwardly. His Border Town happened to lie on the boundary between the two sides, a strategic location that both sides had to fight for. Whoever occupied this place first would gain a favorable advantage.

Even if William of his previous life could have avoided Steel Duchy's attack, he probably would not have been able to hold Border Town.

Because if the Dragon of East Sea Snow Mountain wanted to attack Steel Duchy, it had to seize Border Town first. The other places were not nearly as valuable.

And Steel Duchy likely knew the Dragon would retaliate, which was why it had used the Mithril Vein as a pretext to destroy William in his previous life...

"So, from now on, I still have a year and a half to develop. Only by becoming strong myself and building a powerful army can I firmly establish myself in Border Town. Otherwise, no matter who attacks, if I want to survive, I'll have to abandon this territory!" William clenched his fist. He did not want to start the game by rolling up his bedding and running away.

His legendary father had left him a territory with an exceptionally advantageous location. He could not give it up lightly.

"But if Steel Duchy wants to ambush the Dragon, I might be able to reap the benefits. I didn't know before, but now that I understand, I definitely need to make some plans.

"If Steel Duchy is still so shameless and keeps passing over my head to stab the big Dragon in the ass, then it really isn't taking me, the king of the wilderness, seriously!" William narrowed his eyes, looked at the Warriors who had already gathered the supplies and equipment, and waved his hand.

"Send all three hundred Orcs into the Iron Ore Vein. Everyone else, come home with me!"

"Yes, my lord!" A resounding cry echoed through the night sky as the remaining Elven Warriors followed their brave and resourceful lord back to the territory.

And along the way—

William raised Dawn Sacred Battle Aura to Level 5.

He raised the other three skills to Level 3.

Only then did he use his remaining experience on himself.

William was now Level 14.

He distributed the twenty-four free attribute points he had obtained between Agility and Strength.

His health had also increased significantly.

Dawn Sacred Battle Aura

Grade: Legendary

Level: Lv5 (0/1600 EXP)

Battle Aura: 550/550

Recovery Speed: 15 per second.

Activated effects and skills are as follows

Effect: The power of all Battle Aura skills is increased by 5%.

Effect: Strength +8, Constitution +8, Agility +8, Intelligence +5

Effect: Health +450

Effect: Stamina +200

Battle Aura Guard: A Battle Aura Shield equal to the user's Battle Aura can be generated around the body. Consumes 40 Battle Aura per second. Base Defense: 150. Attacks exceeding the defense limit can consume Battle Aura or even shatter the shield.

After the shield disappears, it can be activated again after 5 seconds.

Light of Dawn: Adds 50% of Battle Aura to a Battle Aura skill, increasing attack power by 210%. Cooldown: 26 minutes.

(Every 5 levels, attributes, effects, skills, and so on will be upgraded once.)

(The attributes granted by Battle Aura receive bloodline bonus effects!)

Elf God's Blessing (Passive)

Level: Lv3

Skill Effect: Increases the power of ranged physical attacks by 15%.

Cost: None

Cooldown: None

Lv3 Effect: Additionally increases true damage by 3%.

Deadly Volley

Level: Lv3

Skill Effect: Consumes 130 Battle Aura to fire 3 arrows in succession. If all hit the enemy, the first arrow deals 140% damage, the second arrow deals 160% damage, and the third arrow deals 180% damage.

Has a certain chance to inflict Bleeding.

Lv3 Effect: If all three arrows hit the head, the third arrow will definitely deal 150% critical damage to the enemy. (Effect cooldown: 30 seconds.)

Cooldown: 7 seconds.

Battle Aura Slash

Level: Lv3

Skill Effect: Consumes 50 Battle Aura to swing a sword aura forward. Hitting an enemy deals 160% damage and has a certain chance to inflict Bleeding.

Lv3 Effect: The sword aura has knockback and tearing effects, depending on the situation.

Cooldown: 3 seconds.

"The advantage of a legendary Battle Aura manual lies here. As long as a skill reaches Level 3, its special effect can appear early!" William chuckled. He had to admit that he was becoming increasingly confident about surviving in the future.

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