Reverse Cultural Export
After Nati's meeting with Bontou and the others ended, she returned to the place where the Floating Island Dragonkin were temporarily staying.
This place was originally a prison built specifically for them, intended as the first line of defense should they go berserk again.
To everyone's surprise, these dragons remained completely still for the first few weeks of treatment, even more so than Rohan on the shore, rendering the prison utterly useless.
Later, when the relationship between dragons and humans improved slightly, the prison was immediately converted into a temporary residence for Nati and the others. It had a single room with a private bathroom, thick walls that prevented sound leakage, and it was free. Where else could you find a house with such good conditions?
The Floating Island Dragonkin were very comfortable. When they compared their current lives with their daily lives on the Floating Island, they suddenly realized that they were more comfortable now.
"Mom, you're finally back! How did things go?"
When Nati returned, Fudolin, who had been waiting there, immediately came to greet her, followed by a group of her people. They all looked at her with eyes that held a mixture of expectation and nervousness, as if they were eager to hear the answers they wanted to hear.
"Um"
Facing everyone's gaze, Nati kept a serious expression on her face and even sighed deliberately.
Oh no! Seeing her expression, everyone's heart skipped a beat, just like Sheriff Gordon's. Some people looked utterly devastated and filled with despair.
Seeing the changes in people's expressions, Nati burst out laughing. Her laughter was truly like ice melting and spring water flowing; in short, it was incredibly radiant.
So dazzling it's almost annoying.
"What's wrong? Has the elder gone mad?" the dragons asked in the most basic of greetings.
"I was just kidding. The talks went very well, and there's no need to worry anymore."
Nati laughed, clutching her stomach and waving her hand, saying:
"As long as we put in some effort, we can eat whatever we want and never have to worry about going hungry again!"
As soon as she said this, the whole place erupted in cheers, the ground shook, and the nearby guards were caught off guard.
Labor should be rewarded; this is a natural and just principle of the world.
From now on, as long as the Floating Island Dragonkin integrate well into the local community and work diligently, they will be able to enjoy treatment that is almost identical to that of the local dragons.
Even the Floating Island Dragonkin seem to have a slightly higher value in terms of uniting the people than the local dragons. Bontou has even offered some preferential policies, such as arranging study buddies to help them adapt to the society of the Warrior Country and learn local knowledge as soon as possible.
The only thing Nati and her team need to work on now is building good relationships with the locals, starting with compensating those whose property they damaged.
"In addition, I also received my first commission from our new allies."
In such a short time, Nati has already called the Warrior Country her new ally.
"They plan to participate in Battle Festival with the full strength of the nation soon, and they will need our help then. Surely none of you will refuse to participate?"
Upon hearing this, the dragons looked at each other, staring at one another in bewilderment.
Battle Festival? They want us to participate in Battle Festival!?
Each dragon's eyes held a look of astonishment, mainly because of one thing:
What is Battle Festival?
"Our new ally is really great. He even invited us to the festival. It's hard to find such a kind-hearted intelligent being."
"The festival, I guess we'll get to eat lots of local dishes, right? I'm already looking forward to it."
The dragons discussed among themselves, all showing great interest in the Battle Festival.
"That's right, that's right! We can eat delicious local food and have a blast. After all, it's a festival!"
Listening to the discussion below, Nati put her hands on her hips and nodded repeatedly, a confident smile on her face.
She was so confident because she didn't know what Battle Festival was.
Of all the dragons present, only one realized what was happening: Fudolin. Her face changed instantly, and she ran over to cover her mother's mouth, telling her to stop talking nonsense, and whispered:
"Mom, you don't know what Battle Festival is, do you?"
"I don't know. What, it's called a festival, how could it be anything bad?"
"Hiss"
Fudolin gasped and looked at Nati with a strange expression.
Nati returned a gentle smile and even winked.
"Smack!"
Fudolin slapped her face hard, letting out a muffled groan of inner pain.
My mom wasn't always this clueless! Did she get brainwashed by Sain's food?!
She always felt that the people who came out of the Zane Dungeon had undergone a personality change, specifically...
Have they all become more cheerful and innocent?
A synonym for cheerful and innocent is "naturally silly," and to put it bluntly, isn't "naturally silly" just "dumb and silly"?
Although there is sufficient evidence to suggest that Nati and the other Floating Island Dragonkin are serious and normal when discussing important matters, they become like this when they relax in their daily lives.
Fudolin couldn't adapt at all, she just couldn't handle it!
How to describe her feeling? It's like someone from a real mecha anime has been transported into a super mecha anime.
She suddenly grabbed Nati's shoulders and shook her, glaring at her as she said:
"Wait here for a moment, I'll go find something to show you what the Battle Festival is all about!"
Nati nodded and waited obediently, and the other dragons also became interested and waited in place.
A short while later, Fudolin returned, carrying a large box of Image Stone, as well as a projection screen and equipment for enlarging the images.
She rushed out to borrow these from Lu Lu Wo.
"Mom, don't touch it. This is the first time you've seen this thing. I'll handle it."
"No, I've seen it before."
"Ah?"
Fudolin paused in her assembly, looking at her with a strange expression. "When did you see this before?"
They don't have this on their Floating Island.
Nati picked up an Image Stone and played with it, saying, "I was lucid for a while before I was infected. After learning the technique to turn into a human, I spent a few days in this city."
"Ah???"
Fudolin had even more questions, then she realized what was going on and quickly asked, "What were you doing here?"
"I originally came here because there are a lot of humans, and I wanted to warn them that they might come and attack us," Nati said embarrassedly. "But I was scared away after only a few days."
"Why is that?" Fudolin was already losing track of what was going on.
"Because when I arrived, the entire city was excitedly discussing something called 'Dragon Communion'."
Looking back, it was a terrible past.
Nati managed to infiltrate the Imperial Capital, but all she heard from the people around her was:
Did you slay the dragon today?
"No, I was a bit lax today, but I did manage to kill one while following the team yesterday."
"Haha, I killed two yesterday! Let me tell you, dragon blood is so hot and feels so good to touch, it's amazing to use it for bathing!"
"Really? I've discovered that dragon's tendon is quite delicious. I'll show you how to cook it sometime."
When Nati snuck in, it was right when the Dragon Communion was at its peak. The whole society was talking about slaying dragons, and people in the tavern were discussing either the hundred ways to kill a dragon or the secret recipes for cooking dragon meat.
At that time, Nati had little rationality left and was unable to properly assess the situation, so she was terrified by the conversation.
In the end, he left the Imperial Capital as if fleeing after only a few days, far away from this crazy city where people treated the blood and sweat of dragons as hot baths.
At that moment, she fully understood why the old dragons had taught them not to have contact with humans, and why her deceased grandfather had said that humans were all crazy.
"But now the misunderstanding is cleared up. Humans are quite friendly, aren't they? And they're not crazy. Your grandfather's view was wrong."
Nati laughed and said.
"."
Fudolin didn't know what to say, so she simply shrugged, wandered around fiddling with the projection equipment, and finally clapped her hands and said:
"Alright, these are photos of locals participating in the Battle Festival. They were taken just last month. You'll understand once you see them."
"I think this way of recording life is amazing."
"I haven't seen such a lively festival scene in a long time."
Can we order food by watching the video?
The dragons chattered excitedly, creating a lively atmosphere. If Gong Qiying were here, he would probably be reminded of the time when his teacher organized the whole class to watch a movie together in elementary school.
Seeing that these people didn't seem nervous at all, Fudolin turned the volume up to the maximum.
"Roar!"
The next moment, a huge roar from the video resounded throughout the entire "prison," and the dragons froze instantly, leaving the scene completely silent.
Radahn's ferocious face filled the entire screen, his face smeared with the blood of some unknown adventurer, making him look exceptionally grotesque.
I wonder which genius captured this scene.
After a moment of stunned silence, Yulong belatedly asked, "Is this... a festival costume?"
Without Fudolin even needing to answer, the slowly receding image silenced the dragon who had asked the question.
The image shows Starscourge General Radahn, wielding the Starscourge Greatsword, displaying unparalleled bravery in battle.
Beneath him were thousands of adventurers roaring as they launched their fearless Charge.
Under the crimson sky, Radahn wielded his blade, scattering pieces of flesh and limbs everywhere, while the adventurers, their eyes gleaming red, charged forward fearlessly, no matter how gruesome their deaths.
The scene terrified the dragons.
Firstly, it reminded me of the painful memories in the Zane Dungeon; secondly, I was a little uncomfortable seeing such a bloody scene all of a sudden.
It might sound a bit strange, but the Floating Island Dragonkin are actually very peaceful, with little to no fighting, and all of them are very docile.
The Floating Island is only so big, and everyone here is a neighbor who knows each other. Who would want to fight for no reason?
"Daughter, did you put it in the wrong place?" Nati asked for help.
Seeing the stunned expressions on her people's faces, Fudolin finally felt relieved and said with a sinister grin:
"That's right, this is the Battle Festival. The goal of the festival is to take down this man who's bigger than a mountain."
She pointed to the menacing Radahn, and the atmosphere became even more deathly silent.
"This... this kind of massacre is called a festival?" Nati asked incredulously. "What are humans thinking? Why do they stupidly rush in when they clearly can't beat them?"
"Foolish? Perhaps," Fudolin said, shrugging. "My human friends say it's their noble Warrior spirit."
"."
Nati scratched her head, opened her mouth as if to say something, but seemed unsure of what to say, and finally scratched her head again.
She retracted her earlier assessment of humans as very friendly and muttered to herself:
"Grandpa was right after all, humans are all crazy."
All night long, the dormitories of the Floating Island Dragonkin echoed with the howls and wailing of the dragons.
Because if they want to stay in the Warrior Country, it means they will have to fight against Radahn soon, and there's no way they can win!
However, by the next day they had returned to normal, and even seemed quite cheerful, mainly because the Warrior Country had sent people to discuss cooperation.
The collaboration involves exploring Gourmet Area that seasoned adventurers either don't have time for or don't want to visit, searching for legendary cooking utensils and recipes scattered throughout these Gourmet Area!
This request strikes right at the heart of the Floating Island Dragonkin!
Western Continent, the Great Demon City.
In the past few months, the leadership of the Great Demon City has undergone a major reshuffle, mainly because most of the priests died unexpectedly for unknown reasons.
Only a handful of people, including Priestess Ounuo La, remained alive.
This forced the Great Demon City to prioritize the selection of new priests as its most urgent task, but fortunately, the new priests have now been selected.
After a fierce struggle and intrigue, the position of High Priest, fell to Ounuo La.
It was well-deserved; no one thought the decision was wrong, and everyone wholeheartedly supported Ounuo La.
Because this young priest successfully conquered the scattered demon Horde across the continent through ruthless means, he "voluntarily" brought them into the fold, with the major Horde leaders centered around the Great Demon City.
The Kingdom of Demons!
Although the new nation still has various problems, it has largely achieved the unification of the Western Continent!
This was a feat that only the birth of a Demon King could accomplish in the past, and the forces he assembled would immediately split apart as soon as the Demon King died.
It can be said that the demon race is not a race capable of forming a stable nation.
But it didn't matter to Ounuo La, as long as the new nation could remain stable while she was alive!
The Great Demon Tree, Impaling Thrust, stands as always in the center of the Great Demon City, seemingly unchanged for thousands of years.
Built atop the Great Demon Tree were the priests' residences, and beneath them stood the Royal Palace, a symbolic building of the new nation, housing the mascot King, chosen by the Horde chiefs who held power.
These things are not worth worrying about; Ounuo La herself doesn't care about them.
No one lingered near the Great Demon Tree. When High Priest Ounuo La took office, she established a new rule: no one could touch the Great Demon Tree without her permission.
The gruesome deaths of those old priests are still vivid in my mind; who knows what demons and monsters they will see when they read the memories of the Great Demon Tree?
The Great Demon Tree hasn't received any interesting memories lately, and Ounuo La's attention isn't on them either, but rather on something else.
Inside the priest's temple, the ornately dressed, or rather, flamboyantly beautiful Ounuo La sat on the main seat, speaking to the attendants beside her in a tone Great One:
"Have those silly dragons quieted down yet?"
When she asked that question, her fists clenched tightly, showing that she was quite unsettled.
"Report to the High Priest: Absolutely not."
The attendant also wore a helpless expression.
"They demand strawberry cream cakes, dorayaki, brandy, lobster, Roasted Whole Pig Rainbow Fruit, gem meat, and so on every day. We can't find any of these ingredients at all, so they're making a huge fuss now."
"Yeah."
Ounuo La's forehead seemed to bulge with anger as she said with a forced smile, "These beasts seem to be unusually active this time. Do they think they can do whatever they want just because they are an indispensable fighting force for the country?"
Anyone with eyes could tell she was angry, but what was the reason for her anger?
"This time they failed again to convert their relatives in the human world into their own people. They haven't succeeded even once in hundreds of years, yet they swore they would succeed this time. In the end, they were the ones who were affected in the opposite way, which is unprecedented for them! What use are they anyway!"
Very unusually, Ounuo La slammed her fist on the chair, seemingly a little disoriented.
The "beasts" she referred to were actually the objects that Gong Qiying had commissioned the city lords to find.
The original dragons.
For the demon race, the Prime Demonic Dragons a powerful force that could not be ignored. Various Horde tried to win them over, at least to ensure that they would not become enemies.
More importantly, the Prime Demonic Dragons possessed a magical ability— the Demonic Dragon Plague.
Through blood ties, the Prime Demonic Dragons could continuously transmit their evil desires to other dragons who were not dragons but had a blood connection with them, causing infection.
In other words, the Floating Island Dragonkin. Besides them, there should have been other branches of dragons.
Prime Demonic Dragons accumulated desires for years or decades. When their evil desires swelled up, they spewed them out on other dragons, causing Demonic Dragon Plague. Those infected by the plague could become dragons themselves and eventually fly to the Western Continent to join their ranks.
The plague once infected many dragons, causing the number of demon dragons to multiply. As a result, their power was feared by the demons, and the demon dragons were treated as honored guests.
However, this situation later changed.
For a long time, no new dragons flew into the Western Continent, and the plague seemed to have lost its effectiveness.
The truth is, only the Floating Island Dragonkin can still spread the plague. The other branches of the dragon clans have long been infected, and only the dragon clan on the Floating Island has escaped danger time and time again.
The number of dragons had not increased for a long time. Prime Demonic Dragons were a little anxious. This time, they tried a killer move, sending the plague, which had expanded to its limit, over.
This led to the dragon attack on the Warrior Country.
If it weren't for the intervention of the Zane Dungeon, they should have succeeded by now.
The Prime Demonic Dragons had been preparing for this for a very long time, unleashing the plague at maximum power. Their pent-up desires had driven them to the point of mental instability, making it a desperate gamble.
Unfortunately, Sion made his move.
Not only was the plague eradicated, but the Prime Demonic Dragons also encountered something unexpected.
Because the power of this plague was unprecedented, it caused a certain degree of spiritual connection to be formed between the Prime Demonic Dragons and the Floating Island Dragonkin, allowing them to intermittently transmit spiritual influences to each other.
Yes, they influence each other.
Considering the fate of the Floating Island Dragonkin, it's easy to imagine what happened to the Prime Demonic Dragons.
"It's terrible, High Priest! The dragons are starving and have started gnawing on the Great Demon Tree!"
A priest rushed over.
"They've rebelled! Beat them to a pulp!" Ounuo La completely lost her composure and appeared to be furious.
After the plague failed, the Prime Demonic Dragons was affected and had been a hungry dragon for several weeks.
When their food reserves ran out, they would plunder, and if that wasn't enough, they would raid other Horde for food, but they could never get enough to eat.
According to them, the reason their appetite is not satisfied is that—
"The food here is awful! We want to eat what they ate before!"
"They" refers to the Floating Island Dragonkin.
How could the demons possibly have any delicious food? They can't even make a cake; at most, they bake some sweet dough. Their food culture is so poor it's appalling.
So the dragons have now gone berserk.
"Sigh," Ounuo La sighed, sitting back in the main seat. "They're all such a worry."
Fortunately, while the dragons were going on a rampage, they were also influenced by Baylor, and now they were filled with fear of giant creatures that could roar loudly. Using this characteristic, Ounuo La was able to deal with them for the time being.
I just don't know when their mental state will return to normal.
"Can't we have some good news?"
Seeing Ounuo La's gritted teeth, her subordinates exchanged glances and stepped forward to speak:
"High Priest, the Messengers returned from the human world this morning with a letter."
"Why didn't you say so sooner?"
Ounuo La angrily grabbed the letter and casually flipped through it.
But after only a few glances, she suddenly paused, then sat up straight and began to look at it seriously.
This wasn't intelligence gathered from humans on a regular basis; it was something her personal Messengers was searching for, and no one else knew about it except her.
In other words, information about the Abyss!
The sender's name was Dorian, Ounuo La remembered; he was a very senior and capable Messengers.
After watching for a while, a seductive smile appeared on Ounuo La's lips as she murmured to herself:
"So that's how it is, it's an underground city."
The guards beside her naturally couldn't understand what she was saying, and they didn't dare to try to understand.
Ounuo La finally had her long-standing question answered, and her mood instantly improved.
Her slender fingers tapped rhythmically on the chair armrests, and with each tap, an idea came to her mind.
It's time to send our most reliable men to the human side.
Go and explore the underground city that appears in the abyss.
Then, let's be friends.