Dragon-Breaking Bolt

As dusk settled over the forest, a cool evening breeze began to rustle through the trees, bringing a refreshing chill.

"Misaila," Zijin's voice drifted on the wind, "Can you tell me about Atiya?" she asked suddenly.

"Ah." Misaila was somewhat surprised. "Atiya, she was—well, a very mischievous person." She chose her words carefully. "Back then, we were all young and impetuous, ignorant of the world, and really got into a lot of trouble."

"Are the depictions in those picture books true?" Zijin pressed.

"----That matter!" Misaila's voice suddenly carried a hint of anger, "It was all that bastard Crystal Orchid's doing! I've always wanted to find her and settle this score with her!"

"Atiya, didn't you already force Crystal Orchid to retire from writing?" Zijin reminded her.

"That's not enough!" Misaila said firmly. "But now that you're in this state, you should be able to settle old scores with Crystal Orchid, right?"

Zijin gently shook her head, "How could that be? It's far from it."

The fact that someone dared to draw a doujinshi about Atiya and still survived shows that Zijin knows she can't handle her.

"What's there to be afraid of? At worst, my daughter and I can team up," Misaila suggested, a hint of expectation in her voice. "You'll help me, right?"

"It's possible," Zijin replied. She was quite direct, "But with your skill level, are you really capable of helping?"

Misaila suddenly spread her enormous butterfly wings, and in an instant, rich and vibrant four-colored elemental energy began to rapidly gather and swirl around her. "These years haven't been wasted."

"Not bad, not bad!" Zijin gently patted the scales on Misé's back. "Commendable progress!"

"There's something I need to tell you," Misaila said, a hint of pride in her voice. "The next elder of the Faerie Dragon Clan is practically confirmed as me."

"Then why don't you try even harder to improve," Zi Jin joked, "And take on Ge Lie and Lan Mo as well. Then you'll be the Dragon King, and the entire dragon race will be our family's domain!"

"Alright!" Misaila laughed loudly, "I'll work hard for five hundred years!"

Just then, a violent explosion suddenly came from the forest floor to the right and below, interspersed with several angry dragon roars! Zijin immediately turned her head and saw that in the direction where Elder Hongyao had just landed, a large area of blazing red light burst and rose in the dim forest - that was Hongyao's fire dragon breath!

This sudden and fierce battle clearly indicates that a highly intense fight has broken out!

Zijin reacted swiftly, the Divine Favor Staff instantly materializing in her hand, along with several pairs of pure Magic Power...

Magical wings, shimmering with a faint light, unfurled behind her.

"I'll go check it out!" Before she finished speaking, she had already dashed towards the scene of the accident like a streak of light.

Misaila turned around a few seconds late, then immediately unleashed the full power of the Magic Power on her wings and chased after her daughter. She noticed that the forest was dimly lit, and judging from the movements, there seemed to be quite a few goblins.

The Faerie Dragon gathered her Magic Power, and dozens of powerful Illumination of four-colored light shot forward, like a small sun illuminating the night sky.

In an instant, the illuminated battlefield was laid bare: Elder Hongyao's massive body was locked in fierce combat with the agile goblins below, spewing fiery dragon breath and waving his claws, while he vigorously flapped his wings, trying to create distance.

Being able to confront a dragon elder head-on, especially a powerful Red Dragon, clearly indicates that these attacking goblins are no ordinary creatures.

Without the slightest hesitation, Zijin raised her hand and unleashed a barrage of magical orbs gleaming with piercing light, raining down upon the area like a storm.

"Hexagon - Meteor Storm!"

Boom boom boom--!

Explosions rang out one after another, tearing open a large area of woodland and its surface with violent energy. A strange alchemical device, over three meters tall and previously concealed, was now exposed to the intense light. The device's surface immediately flickered with an unstable magical shield, barely managing to block Zijin's attack.

Under the powerful illumination of Misaila's Four-Color Illumination, the battlefield was as bright as day. Zijin could clearly see that the main body of the device was a huge vertical cylinder, its surface covered with rough metal patches and exposed pipes of varying thicknesses.

Even in the limited spaces, Magic Power crystals and shimmering runes are cleverly inlaid, showcasing the goblin's unique "mix-and-match" style to the fullest.

But Zijin dared not underestimate it. Goblin creations were known for their roughness and chaotic style, but their power and function were beyond doubt, if they did not explode.

As the proverb goes: Between goblins and enemies, one of them will always be blown to bits!

"Solar Flame - Starlight!"

With a wave of her Zijin Staff, a series of fine, swift, and highly penetrating beams of blazing white light shot toward the alchemical device. Amidst the shattering sounds, the Solar Flame rays shattered the magical shield and pierced through the device's metal casing with a series of swishing sounds, creating seven or eight charred holes.

The next moment, an orange-red fireball exploded from the ground—the alchemical explosives inside the goblin device had detonated. Various twisted metal pipes and strangely shaped parts flew everywhere in the shockwave of the explosion.

Interspersed among these were fragmented magical fluctuations and strangely flickering sparks.

This scene is not surprising. Goblin creations have always been like this: magical runes, alchemical artifacts, machinery, and even strange technologies that they themselves may not be able to name are all forcibly integrated together.

Their core philosophy is. "As long as things can move and work together, that's the beauty of practicality!"

In academia, the unique "Goblin Hybrid School" is classified as a separate branch.

****

A Magic Power rainbow of light, formed by the fusion of four elements, swept across the area, uprooting large swathes of trees and blasting away the shallow soil, revealing the goblins lurking beneath and the alchemical devices they had buried—this was none other than Misaila's "Rainbow Breath."

As Faerie Dragon, she was born with a vast reserve of Magic Power, something that human mages could never hope to achieve.

Zijin quickly scanned the battlefield: Elder Hongyao Radiance was engaged in fierce combat with the strongest goblin in the enemy camp, the two sides exchanging blows and fighting intensely.

The two young dragons following him were flapping their wings to climb higher, creating a safe distance from the ground, and launching coordinated attacks.

As Misaila's "Rainbow Breath" continued to clear away the dense forest vegetation, the concealment magic and trigger-based attack arrays that the goblins had set up in various places were destroyed one after another. The remaining alchemical devices could no longer be hidden. There were seven in total, all of which were half-buried in the ground, with only the pointed cone-shaped parts with a faint light shining on their tops showing.

Just as Zijin was about to destroy the devices, the faint glow on their surfaces suddenly turned into a dazzling bright yellow!

"Activation complete! Fight them!" A sharp, piercing roar, delivered in a typical goblin accent, rang out from below!

Immediately afterwards, all seven weapons were activated! A blinding light burst forth from the bottom of the pit where they were located, accompanied by violently erupting propulsive flames and thick black smoke spreading outwards. These weapons, sparking and trailing violently undulating Magic Power, suddenly soared into the air!

One of the weapons appeared to malfunction, flashing brightly within its silo before going completely silent. However, the other six successfully ignited and roared into the sky!

With a swing of her Zijin Staff, she unleashed "Solar Flame Starburst" once more! A dense barrage of blazing white rays struck one of the projectiles, blasting it apart mid-air!

Two of the remaining five goblin weapons, accompanied by a sharp whooshing sound, turned and headed straight for Hongyao and the two young dragons who were fighting below, while the other three, as if locked onto their targets, viciously shot towards Zijin in the high sky!

Zijin suddenly realized—she and Su Ming had made a mistake! The real target of this group of goblins carrying prohibited weapons was actually herself!

Or rather, he is the new ruler of the Dragon Race!

Otherwise, the ambush site wouldn't have been chosen to be so far from the Ruby Base and close to the Dragon Race's administrative center, "The Central Court"!

In an instant, Zijin unleashed all her Magic Power without reservation! The enemy had secretly transported these weapons here and lurked so close to the Central Court; the force they had invested was extraordinary!

The various magic arrays in the forest that Misaila just destroyed were quite large! The resources spent on their concealment were definitely more expensive than the weapons themselves!

Although the aftershocks of the previous explosion suggested that the weapon's explosive power didn't match its three-ton weight, Zijin were known for their pragmatism. A small explosive charge didn't mean the weapon was weak!

This even suggests that there must be something special about it!

A polygonal shield of light, shimmering with fluorescence and sharp angles, solidified around Zijin, revealing itself to be a defensive spell cast by Misaila, the "Diamond Shield."

This is a highly effective protective spell against ranged physical attacks.

With her worries gone, Zijin hesitated no longer. The air around her fluctuated violently as multiple magic arrays were instantly deployed, and she simultaneously unleashed the power of three sets of "Solar Flame Starshine"!

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

A dense, rain-like barrage of blazing white beams shot out, meeting the three deadly weapons hurtling towards them head-on! The beams made contact with the weapon shields, creating a colorful ripple, followed by a violent explosion and a burst of flames!

Zijin frowned deeply. This explosion was not caused by her attack, but rather by the enemy's weapon detonating itself after the shield was destroyed!

Sure enough, before the thick smoke from the explosion had even dissipated, the three goblin weapons suddenly shattered from their center, each splitting into four independent sub-parts! The three weapons instantly transformed into twelve streaks of light, accelerating towards the target with convulsive trajectories!

Having been exposed to the knowledge of Su Ming rockets, Zijin already knew that the wobbling trajectory was due to uneven distribution of gunpowder in the propellant. However, the goblin's weapon, despite its twisting and turning, stubbornly remained pointed in Zijin's direction.

I really don't know how those goblins managed to do that.

With a swift thought, Zijin immediately redirected the still-burning beam of Solar Flame to sweep across the night sky! The blinding light streaked across the night sky, successfully blasting six of the sub-components apart in mid-air!

Just as the remaining weapons were about to reach her, she suddenly activated her Magic Power to dodge to the side! However, the remaining sub-parts also changed direction to the other side, dodging and passing by Zijin!

A wave of confusion washed over Zijin, but the next second, her pupils contracted in horror—these weapons were heading straight for Misaila behind her!

At that moment, Misaila seized the opportunity to cast a "diamond shield" on Hongyao below. This sudden turn of events caught her off guard, and in her astonishment, she hurriedly mobilized her Magic Power to create a shield for herself as well.

"Hahaha!" From the dense forest below, the goblin commander who had just given the orders let out a piercing and triumphant laugh. "Zijin, you'll soon taste the power of our Dragon-Breaking Cone!"

In a flash, Zijin suddenly understood the problem! The goblins had clearly learned the name of the new leader of the Dragon Race through intelligence infiltration. Dragons don't have surnames, and names starting with "Violet" were commonly used by Faerie Dragon!

More importantly— Zijin was originally, in fact, a Faerie Dragon!

So these goblins mistook Misaila for their target!

"Misaila!" Zijin unleashed all her Magic Power, transforming into a burning six-colored meteor, hurtling headlong towards Misaila!

However, the goblin's weapon had already reached its final acceleration, Misaila's massive body simply didn't have time to dodge effectively. She could only frantically pour all her Magic Power into defense, finally condensing a layer of "diamond shield" on her body to withstand the attack head-on.

Six gleaming, cold-blooded Dragon-Breaking Cone arrived in an instant! The moment they struck the "Prism Shield," two of the cones suddenly exploded violently! The raging shockwave, accompanied by a shrill scream that tore through the magical structure, shattered the shield into countless fragments of light!

"Hehe, these two are matching shield-piercing cones!" The goblin commander on the ground roared with laughter, his voice filled with cruel pleasure.

The remaining Dragon-Breaking Cone, unimpeded, pierced straight towards Misaila's massive body with a shrill whistling sound that tore through the air! The fastest one, like a venomous fang, pierced deeply into her soft abdomen!

A figure as Zijin a shooting star streaked across the sky, followed by four loud booming explosions that echoed through the air.

The power of the Dragon-Breaking Cone's external explosion may be limited, but that refers to the situation when it is exposed to air.

These insidious weapons integrate penetrating abilities against the defensive spells commonly used by Dragon Race, and are optimized for the structure of dragon scales. At the same time, their tracking mechanism can lock onto the massive body of Dragon Race, enabling them to carry out deadly pursuit over a wide area.

If you successfully penetrate a dragon's body, even a small amount of explosives can release enough energy to take the dragon's life!

"Haha, remember Zijin! The one who took your life was the Dragon Slayer - Botuni!" On the scorched earth of the forest below, littered with rubble and filled with dust, the dark green-skinned goblin looked up at the sky and let out a hysterical laugh, loudly proclaiming.

****

On Hongyao's side, the Dragon-Breaking Cone also underwent a sudden change, splitting into four.

Two shield-piercing cones exploded violently on the "diamond shield" in front of him, the violent energy destroying his own shield as well. The third one was destroyed by her scorching dragon breath.

However, the last one had already broken through all the defenses, and he could only hastily raise his Dragon Claw claw to block it!

Boom!!!

Amidst the deafening explosion, the Hongyao, resilient Dragon Claw was blasted off! Hot, bright red dragon blood gushed out like a burst dam, splashing onto the scorched earth.

The intense pain and the shockwave from the explosion made his vision go black, but he endured the dizziness and used his incredible willpower to activate his Magic Power to forcefully seal the gushing blood from his severed arm.

"Tsk, you're lucky, you only lost a claw." Botuni walked over with a hint of regret.

The goblin warriors who had been responsible for holding off Hongyao were now all dead at his feet. Botuni himself was not particularly strong in combat and knew that he had no chance of survival.

But his face was beaming with an almost twisted, gleeful smile. In his eyes, successfully killing this newly emerged leader of the Dragon Race was equivalent to completely averting the future annihilation of the Gray Ridge Goblin Kingdom!

Hongyao endured the excruciating pain and scanned his surroundings. The two young dragons who had come with him were each targeted by two of their split offspring. One of them managed to escape, suffering only a few bleeding wounds, but the other was struck in a vital spot, its massive body already slumped on the scorched earth, lifeless.

Witnessing the tragic death of the young junior, Hongyao's eyes instantly turned red! Destructive dragon breath rolled in his throat, but at the last moment he forcefully suppressed his unwillingness to let the culprit die so easily!

"Wait a moment." A cold voice suddenly rang out.

Zijin's figure appeared in mid-air and slowly landed. She had just been caught in the violent explosion near Misaila, and her clothes were torn in many places by shrapnel. Her forehead and hair were also covered with large patches of charred marks from the explosion.

But her breathing was steady, indicating that she had not suffered any real serious injury.

Zijin came to Hongyao's side, extended her left hand, and placed her palm on Hongyao's horrifying severed arm wound. Cold Magic Power surged out instantly, and a layer of crystalline ice quickly covered the wound, freezing the flowing dragon blood.

"I have something to ask you." Zijin turned back, her icy gaze piercing Botuni. "You goblins, daring to attack a dragon, do you want the entire Gray Ridge Kingdom reduced to dust?!"

"The one who attacked you was merely a treacherous merchant guild," Botuni grinned, sitting down without flinching. "It has absolutely nothing to do with the great Gray Ridge Goblin Kingdom."

"Ha." Zijin's voice was sarcastic. "Do you think we'd care about this pointless cover-up?"

"Of course not!" Botuni laughed loudly, his laughter tinged with madness. "The essence of war isn't who started the conflict first! Only when your dragons grow stronger will our Gray Ridge be destroyed! That's the naked iron law!"

"You launched an assassination just to eliminate this possibility?" Hongyao's voice was filled with disbelief and rage.

"Yes!" Botuni declared decisively, his eyes gleaming with the satisfaction of his calculated scheme. "In the past thousand years, your Dragon Race has never produced a leader like Zijin! As long as we extinguish this spark that leads you towards integration and cohesion, and allow you to continue in your disorganized, primitive, and self-governing state, Gray Ridge will naturally be safe!"

"We will repay blood with blood!" Hongyao roared thunderously. "You Gray Ridge goblins, it has been far too long since you have experienced the sharpness of a dragon's claws!"

"National war isn't about individual brute force!" Botuni sneered mercilessly. "Declare war on Gray Ridge? You might gain some advantage in the early stages of the war by having a large army. But do you have the capability to organize continuous logistical support, medical care, and rotating combat teams to launch a truly decisive war?"

An orderly war with the entire population mobilized? You dragons, once you leave Dragon Valley, you probably can't even feed yourselves three meals a day!

"You—!" Hongyao was speechless for a moment, his sore spot hit.

Hongyao's wound had been gently frozen. The blue glow of the Zijin hand gradually dissipated. She withdrew her left hand, then gathered Magic Power again to completely freeze and preserve the broken Dragon Claw claw of the Red Dragon Elder.

With Stacy around, limb reattachment is possible.

"So what will you use to attack? Your production and logistics system, riddled with holes and infiltrated like a sieve?" Botuni looked up triumphantly at the angry but powerless Hongyao. "Without Zijin, you'll never have this capability! And Gray Ridge only needs three years to produce enough Dragon-Breaking Cone. Then you won't even need to go; my compatriots will come to visit!"

Botuni abruptly stopped, realizing he had said too many things he shouldn't have! He looked at Zijin in astonishment, realizing with disbelief that he had unknowingly fallen under her spell.

A slight smile played on Zijin's lips. The "Open Heart" spell was even more effective than interrogation when dealing with assassins!

Although her initial intention in researching this spell was to use it on someone with unclear intentions.

As a scholar proficient in magic, she can find alternative ways to solve problems.

"Oath!" Botuni cursed. The moment the other party came down, he froze Hongyao and continued casting the spell, creating a potential psychological suggestion: I'm busy writing, I don't have time for you.

"Fine, so what if you know!" Botuni retorted angrily, "Our Gray Ridge's defenses are impregnable! Do you dragons have any way to reverse this situation?!"

"Thank you for informing me." Zijin's voice was eerily calm, yet contained a chilling coldness that could freeze one's soul. "I am also very grateful that Gray Ridge values me so highly. This generous gift—I, Zijin —will repay it a hundredfold!"

"You?" The Botuni expression froze instantly, replaced by utter confusion. "But—aren't you Bay Owl?!"

The name "Zijin" has never been known outside the world of dragons. When she travels and roams the world, she always uses the names "Bay Owl" and "Ailisha". Even those who know of "Zijin's" existence, including Su Ming, have never publicly referred to her by that name.

Zijin was too lazy to waste any more words with this seemingly insignificant enemy. She raised her hand and cast an invisible binding spell on Botuni. Botuni was quite straightforward; knowing he was doomed, he immediately committed suicide without hesitation.

However, a phantom of a coffin appeared around him, and the light of the exorcism runes that had just lit up around the goblin was instantly wiped away by an invisible hand, without even a ripple, as if it had never existed.

"Desecration Coffin!"

Botuni's soul was pulled out of the illusory Ling Shu in a daze, with an unprecedented blankness. He had been determined to carry all the secrets and give his all, but now it seemed like a huge joke!

"Always playing this self-destructive soul trick, isn't it annoying!" Zijin said coldly, a small crystal bottle appearing in her hand. With a casual wave of her hand, Botuni's bewildered soul was stuffed into the bottle by an invisible force. The bottle cap closed, and sealing runes lit up and disappeared on the bottle.

This is the scholar's way of tackling problems—when faced with a problem, they rely on their profound knowledge and research background to find a solution.

****

"Misaila —how is she?" Hongyao Throne asked cautiously, his voice low, despite the excruciating pain from his severed claw.

He caught a glimpse of the horrific scene during a lull in the fierce battle: the Dragon-Breaking Cone had just pierced deep into Misaila's abdomen, followed by a violent explosion.

It was only after witnessing that terrifying scene that he made a decisive move, sacrificing one of his Dragon Claw to block the last Dragon-Breaking Cone aimed at him, thus narrowly escaping with his life.

"Still alive, not in any danger," Zijin replied succinctly.

Rewinding to just a few minutes earlier, at that critical moment, Zijin burst forth with her maximum speed, cutting in front of Misaila and forcefully entering the trajectory of the Dragon-Breaking Cone!

"Wind Wings·Furious Dance!"

Countless sharp cyan wind blades erupted around her instantly! These rapidly spinning blades shredded and pulverized the three incoming Dragon-Breaking Cone!

Now that it is known that the weapon's explosive power is not great, Zijin has no need to worry. She can break it at close range and then rely on her shield to withstand the damage!

However, the shockwave and shrapnel from the explosion at such close range still violently impacted Zijin and also affected Misaila, leaving numerous scratches on their bodies.

Ignoring everything else, Zijin used the immense momentum of her high-speed charge to clench her right fist, gather all her strength, and slammed it down hard on the tail of the Dragon-Breaking Cone that was deeply embedded in Misaila's abdomen!

Bang!!!

Several crisp sounds of bones cracking rang out! The deadly Dragon-Breaking Cone was savagely blasted away by Zijin, piercing through Misaila's back!

Almost instantly, the Dragon-Breaking Cone's battle-force exploded behind the Faerie Dragon, the shockwave tearing her pair of magnificent butterfly wings to shreds, blood and shattered scales scattering everywhere!

The immense pain caused Misaila's vision to go black, and she almost fainted on the spot. Zijin immediately used her Levitation Spell to support her massive body and land her on the scorched ground.

"How are you feeling, Misaila?" Zijin bent down and quickly checked her injuries.

"It hurts—it hurts so much—" Misaila clutched her mangled abdomen, tears glistening in her enormous dragon eyes, her voice trembling with sobs.

"Then everything's alright." Zijin patted her, then got up and headed towards Hongyao.

"No—don't tell Zisu!" Misaila cried out, enduring the pain and mustering all her strength.

Zijin didn't even turn her head. "Dream on! I'll send someone to tell her as soon as I get back!"