He hurriedly turned toward the small figure standing at the far end of the hall.
The man wore a black cloak, its hood hiding his head and obscuring his features. Though short, he exuded an ancient, mysterious aura.
"May I ask who you are?" Liu Qian asked warily.
"Osarion, a Blood Warlock of Valyria, master of this High Tower and the true ruler of this city..."
The Blood Warlock's voice rasped like sandpaper. "Outsider, now that you have seen this history that has yet to be erased, you must have many questions."
He walked along the wall toward Liu Qian.
Without betraying his unease, Liu Qian walked in the opposite direction, until the two were circling the hall.
As he walked, Liu Qian asked, "Lord Osarion, is this the history of Valyria? But I heard Valyria originated from a tribe of shepherds on the Dothraki sea of grass."
Osarion paced onward, his laughter grating like metal scraping against metal. "Heh, heh. The Valyrians descended from shepherds? That is only half true. Do you know why only House Targaryen of Valyria could be Dragon-Riders, while the other families could not?"
Liu Qian froze. He had no answer to that question either.
"Because House Targaryen was born of unions between close relatives." Osarion's quiet voice resounded through the circular hall like a great bell. "The ancestors of the Valyrians once intermarried with a tribe of shepherds. They had no choice, for there were too few Valyrian women. Only a small number of men could marry women of their own people; the rest had to find partners among other peoples. This diluted the Valyrian bloodline. Some lost the ability to ride dragons forever, while those whose blood remained pure later became House Targaryen..."
"But Valyria's true origins lay in the Great Empire of the Dawn, in eastern Yidi. The Valyrians were descendants of the Amethyst Empress, who was murdered by her own brother and husband. After the Long Night, they migrated west of the Bone Mountains and rebuilt their civilization upon Blood Magic."
"That is the true history of Valyria."
Every word Osarion spoke struck Liu Qian's heart like an earthquake.
The Valyrians actually came from Yidi? They were descendants of the Great Empire of the Dawn?
That made no sense.
"May I ask, my lord, how could the Valyrians have come from Yidi when their appearance, hair color, and eye color are so clearly different from those of the people there?"
Osarion stopped walking, and Liu Qian stopped as well.
"Partly through Blood Magic, partly through intermarriage with westerners. The Great Empire of the Dawn was the earliest nation in recorded history to use Blood Magic. Its emperors used Blood Magic to alter themselves, allowing their bodies to evolve to some degree and granting them extraordinary sorcerous abilities. When the body is altered, its appearance changes, as do the colors of its hair and eyes."
"But why are you telling me all this? Just because I'm from Yidi?"
Liu Qian voiced the question troubling him.
Osarion's smile gradually grew dark and chilling. "Because I have been waiting for you, outsider from the east. In the black stone, I saw you visit Tyria. I saw you wield Dawnbringer and end the Long Night once more. You will become the legendary Azor Ahai, and that is my only chance to be reborn."
He pulled back his hood, revealing not a human face, but something more like a lizard's skull covered in pale, shriveled skin.
A pair of bestial eyes gleamed cold and crimson in his sunken sockets. Only two tiny holes remained where his nose should have been, while his lower jaw protruded unnaturally. His tightly closed lips formed a rigid line, as though they had never shown any expression.
Most unnerving of all were the hands occasionally visible through the gaps in his cloak. Thick, dark-gold scales covered them, their edges glinting with the cold hardness of metal, yet they also carried the stiffness of a body nearing death.
This was no human. He was a Scaleclaws monster!
Liu Qian's heart sank. Behind Osarion, the great doors slowly opened, and countless Scaleclaw Monsters identical to him emerged, staring at Liu Qian with blood-red eyes full of venomous hatred.
"These are Scaleclaws under my control through Blood Magic, stitched together from my own flesh and blood. I doubt the battle will last long... If you surrender, I will spare you some suffering."
"Once your soul has been stripped away, mine can slip into the void and occupy your body... My own body can no longer sustain me, and yours will become my new vessel... Do not worry. If you die, I will resurrect you as a puppet through sorcery before performing the spell. Even if you lose your limbs, I will stitch together a flawless body for you... Then I can finally leave this place behind..."
Osarion smiled mockingly, as though discussing something utterly inconsequential.
Liu Qian's brows knitted tightly as he cursed inwardly. This bastard wanted to possess him.
Before he could think further, all the Scaleclaws sprang at him as though responding to a command, their sharp claws spread wide and gleaming with a cold, silvery light.
Liu Qian remained calm. Scaleclaw Monsters no longer posed any threat to him; they were simply easy prey for farming Dragon Spirit experience.
He immediately activated [Wildfire] and unleashed [Dragonfire Breath] from his throat. Streams of flame as searing as volcanic lava poured over the monsters of flesh and blood, the intense heat curling and blackening the tough scales they took such pride in.
The Scaleclaws shrieked and fell from the air. Flames clung stubbornly to their bodies, crackling as they roasted, and the smell of seared meat filled the circular hall.
Osarion showed no surprise at seeing Liu Qian dispatch the Scaleclaws in an instant. He pressed lightly on a spot in the wall beside him, and the floor of the circular hall shook violently, as though an earthquake had struck.
The black paving stones slowly parted, revealing a deep, pitch-black pit before Liu Qian.
There was no telling how deep it was, but the cold air blowing from within reeked of blood and rot. Three pairs of crimson, bloodthirsty eyes flickered in its depths.
By the glow of the gemstones, Liu Qian finally saw it clearly.
It was an enormous, terrifying monster, fully thirty feet in size.
It had a lion's head, a goat's body, and a python for a tail.
Another goat's head protruded from its torso, giving it a hideous, fearsome appearance.
Those three pairs of scarlet eyes belonged to the heads of three different kinds of beasts.
It was another Chimera stitched together from flesh and blood.
A heavy shadow fell across Liu Qian's
face. He had never expected Osarion to have created not only Scaleclaw Monsters, but also a Chimera stitched together from flesh and blood.
Though it was smaller than the Purple-feathered Monster Bird, he had not killed that Monster Bird entirely on his own.
Besides, birds had plenty of feathers, making weaknesses easier to find.
This Chimera, however, had so little hair on its body that the contours of its muscles were clearly visible.
Osarion gazed at his masterpiece with rapt fascination. "A Chimera, a terrifying monster stitched together from flesh and blood. Do you see? This is the power of a Blood Warlock. A pity... a pity I have had so little time. Otherwise, I could surely resurrect the long-extinct Great Dragons!"
Osarion strained his throat, his voice taking on a bizarre pitch.
The Chimera's three differently shaped heads all glared at Liu Qian. Each opened its bloody maw, crimson fire gathering in its throat.
Outside the High Tower, Jelena and Teres were still at a standoff.
Jelena was determined to wait until Liu Qian came out.
She was not really afraid that Teres would take Liu Qian away to sweep the walls. Rather, she feared that something might happen to Liu Qian inside.
After all, she had promised her younger sister that Liu Qian would come out safely.
Just then, long horn blasts sounded from Tyria's distant Blackstone Walls.
Jelena's and Teres's expressions changed at once. They exchanged a glance, then swiftly assembled their troops and set off toward the walls without another word.
Atop the Blackstone Walls.
The patrolling guard blowing the horn still could not believe his eyes. He stared into the distance in terror, where an endless black ocean loomed indistinctly through the thick fog.
It was a vast Scaleclaws Army, advancing toward Tyria in orderly ranks.
Before you continue