Jing Yu

"Oh, right, and you too!" One of the fragmented souls noticed that something was wrong with Death Knell. "Death Knell, what's wrong with you, looking like you're only half a breath away from dying?"

"Sevenfold Soul-Eroding Poison." A sinister glint flashed across Death Knell's ashen face. "I was tricked by a scholar. Although I killed her, I was still tricked into this state!"

"Even an assassination mission involving a mere few dozen scholars has been botched like this..." Jinghuo's multiple souls simultaneously expressed strong dissatisfaction. "In short, the situation is so bad that I have no choice but to move out ahead of schedule, right?"

"Yes," Nitelai said in a deep voice, "The three of us, including Hairspring Clock Hand, will bear the responsibility here. This is also his intention." Inside the Jinghuo's soul sphere, several beams of light representing different wills collided and flickered fiercely, silently debating and weighing their options. Although the orders of the chief god Jörmungandr were supreme, these ancient souls were not unaware of the principle that "a general in the field may disobey the emperor's orders." If they were to delay and ruin the important matter of plane expansion, Jörmungandr, in his rage, would not distinguish between responsibility and would surely crush them all. After all, a thousand years ago, weren't they, as the strongest Crystal Dragon in Eden, also like abandoned pawns, casually thrown into the Taya Plane by the chief god as pioneers to explore the way?

If it weren't for Jinghuo's keen senses, finding this vein of immense Magic Power hidden away and devouring all the conspicuous high-purity crystals on the surface, causing the Taya creatures to mistakenly believe it was just a barren wasteland, it would probably have been exposed long ago.

The Magic Power in the Taya Plane is an order of magnitude thinner than that in Eden, making it impossible to sustain the existence of Jinghuo. Before a permanent spatial passage is opened, he can only rely on consuming Magic Power crystals to prolong his life, spending most of his long years in a deep, silent slumber.

This continued for more than twenty years until the arrival of the first supporter, the Clock Hand Hairspring, which allowed him to re-establish contact with the "organization".

"We agree to proceed." Jinghuo finally articulated the unified will, "What is the objective?"

"Don't rush." Nitelai raised his hand and pressed down, continuing to channel his Magic Power. More magic crystals gathered towards him, soon exceeding one hundred thousand. He still didn't stop, continuing to gather more. At the same time, his undead servants carried in box after box of alchemical materials, piling them up into small mountains beside him.

"The enemy is extremely strong. I need to inscribe a large number of defensive magic arrays on your dragon body," Nitelai explained solemnly. This was also the reason why he brought more than a dozen array masters with him and arranged for Janet to transport this batch of materials.

"... What kind of enemy is this? Is it really that strong?" Jinghuo's soul sphere flickered violently in fright, conveying an absurd emotion. "Our majestic bodies, capable of shaking mountains, can't even crush a few reptiles?"

"No!" Nitelai answered decisively, "Without defensive enhancements, I suspect that the moment you step out of this mine, you'll be blasted into a pile of shattered crystals by Su Ming's inconceivable weapons that rain down from the sky!"

Two days later, the surface of Jinghuo's enormous body was completely covered by an astonishing number of high-quality Magic Power crystals that he had accumulated over hundreds of years. These crystals were now all embedded by array masters between the crystal scales that were harder than refined steel.

Countless crystals shimmering with various colors formed a complex network of magic arrays, their energy circuits merging with the Magic Power of the Crystal Dragon's origin, their shimmering light appearing and disappearing.

Jinghuo's soul sphere trembled slightly, conveying a hint of barely concealed heartache. So many high-quality crystals, if consumed sparingly, would be enough to sustain them for a very long time.

Nitelai had originally planned to rest for a while, but the presence of several dwarves could be heard outside the mine. Unaware of their own danger, they made their way straight in and entered the mine.

The three dwarves were of average strength, but extremely meticulous. Even at the cave entrance, they examined the strange scratches with suspicious eyes. One of them suddenly changed his expression and turned to rush out of the cave to report!

The "Minute Hand" members guarding the outer perimeter had no choice but to take action and kill them all.

"There's another caravan not far away; they must be their companions." Nitelai's mental senses swept across the ground. "Janet, go up and clear them away."

"Yes!" Janet bowed and accepted the order, then quickly left with her two trusted confidants.

"We can't hide it anymore." The Death Knell sighed softly. "That group is quite large, and there's a crystal mine nearby that's in its peak mining season, full of miners and guards... We have to launch our operation now."

"Alright!" Nitelai nodded decisively. "Anyway, we're almost ready. We can finish the rest on the go. Jinghuo, let's go!" "Understood, wait for us to 'wake up'," Jinghuo's soul orb replied.

Then, the sphere of light split into several streams of light, shooting like meteors towards the largest clusters of crystals on the crystal dragon's spine and disappearing into them. After a brief silence, the sound of bones grinding as the behemoth awoke echoed through the mine. The super dragon's six pillar-like legs, which had been lying prone on the ground, slowly rose!

Rumble!

The entire mountain groaned in agony, and the boulders in the cave walls, smashed by the giant claws and body, collapsed like a torrential downpour. The mine tunnels were easily torn apart and broken like a fragile spider web! The ground undulated violently like waves, and an earthquake triggered by a living organism swept through the entire mine vein in an instant!

Above the earth's surface.

As Janet and her two attendants slit the throat of the last dwarf guard and watched the lowly life convulse in the pool of blood, a sense of satisfaction filled her chest.

Whether it was the suffocating court etiquette of the Star Empire or the complex and rigid doctrines of the Temple of Light Academy, both required her to play the role of a noble and serene princess. But only at this moment, personally taking away the sense of control that came with life, was the sweet rain that her soul longed for deep down.

In the distance, urgent horn calls and heavy footsteps echoed from the direction of the "Hidden Dragon Mountain" crystal mine. The mine's guards were rapidly assembling and rushing towards them! Two attendants, watching the surging dwarf figures, said with a hint of tension in their voices, "Princess, this group... we can't stop them!" Before they finished speaking, the ground in front of them suddenly bulged upwards without warning, and a huge hill of earth and stone rose up between Janet and the guards, sending dust and debris flying everywhere!

Janet and her entourage ascended into the air. Below, the mine guards, who had been charging aggressively, were thrown about by the sudden fissure in the ground. To their horror, they discovered that the "hill" ahead was not soil at all, but a massive, island-like body covered in dark red crystalline scales! Some of the quick-reacting dwarves tried to float or retreat on all fours, but they saw, in despair, that the ground behind them was also cracking inch by inch—another huge circular section, also covered in crystalline scales, had burst forth from the ground on this side!

Amidst the violent tremors and the overwhelming dust, the weaker dwarves were swallowed up by the churning earth and rocks!

Standing beneath the shield atop the Jinghuo or the spine, Nitelai emerged from the earth, expressionless, and casually flicked out a few rays of light. The surviving guards still struggling in the smoke and dust exploded, turning into plumes of tragically beautiful blood mist.

Jinghuo, or that body as large as a moving mountain, finally crawled completely out of the shattered earth, stretching out his limbs that had been imprisoned underground for thousands of years. He raised his huge head, took a deep breath, and emitted a satisfied soul wave.

"We smell... crystal again."

Jinghuo took a giant step, his movements seemingly slow, but in fact he entered the "Hidden Dragon Mountain" mining area in just a few steps.

He casually lifted one of his massive, pillar-like legs, and with a flick of his wrist, as if brushing away dust, several warehouses storing semi-finished crystals were blown away like paper toys! Countless half-processed crystal ore, imbued with pure Magic Power, were exposed, shimmering with an alluring luster.

Jinghuo, and with a powerful suction, a torrent of crystals surged into the unfathomable depths of its throat. Satisfied, it closed its mouth. "It's been so long since I've stretched my muscles like this. Feels great!"

"Hey, little ones, time to eat." Another voice appeared, tinged with indulgence, conveying a sense of permission.

Jinghuo's body, covered in giant scales and crystals, suddenly shed hundreds of seemingly naturally protruding "scale nodules." These nodules, as large as carriages in diameter, unfolded their segmented legs covered in dark red chitinous shells, revealing their ferocious mouthparts and compound eyes. Crystal Spawn Insect are large insects that feed on magical crystals. Like Jinghuo, they also came from Eden.

For the past millennium, Jinghuo domesticated or driven them to mine veins and collect crystals, and have always carefully controlled the number of swarms of swarms so that they do not starve to death, nor do they spend too much money feeding Crystal Spawn Insect.

As living beings, they also crave flesh and blood. The fresh dwarf corpses on the ground immediately became the target of these giant insects, and were quickly devoured by these greedy insects.

After they finished, Nitelai raised his hand, and the remaining crystals in the mine ruins that had not yet been devoured gathered around him and were sorted and piled up.

Death Knell unfolded a map and quickly found her way. She fired a series of signal flares to indicate the direction, "Go this way, there's more water there." "No problem!" Jinghuo responded with a soul wave, taking giant steps that shook the earth, and thundered towards the new "granary".

Dragon Race Central Court Government Affairs Center.

Because several dragon elders were present, the negotiations with the dwarves were held in this venue, which could accommodate dragons.

The area around the venue was heavily guarded and under strict security.

Stacy strolled briskly over to a dwarf guard and lightly tapped his gleaming shoulder armor with her fingertips.

"Hey, handsome," she said, her voice rising at the end, "Are you free tonight? Want to hang out?"

Hughes, disguised; Wanshi, his eyes visibly stiffened... "Duty calls, I cannot obey." He tried to maintain his guard's posture, lowering his voice, "Hey, what's going on!"

"Tsk tsk." Stacy chuckled. "A Saint -Saint Rank expert, condescending to disguise himself as a mere guard—such dedication is truly 'admirable.'" "Forced by circumstances, I suppose." Wanshi's voice carried a hint of helplessness. "The Temple of Light's infiltration methods have really frightened us all; we have to be careful. So," he changed the subject, "Are you really going to make this appointment, or are you just faking it? If not, don't get in my way."

"Yes! Of course!" Stacy nodded immediately, beaming. "However, it's for academic purposes. I have a young man here who's been disfigured and is no longer handsome. He desperately needs your miraculous healing touch, otherwise I'm afraid he'll never be able to get married."

Wanshi immediately understood who she was referring to. During today's diplomatic activities, Ruixiuli, the guard beside Su Ming whose face was covered with hideous scars but whose aura was unusually restrained, had indeed left a deep impression on him.

"Those scars on his face are indeed quite troublesome," Wanshi pondered for a moment, "However... if you and I join forces, we can significantly improve the situation."

"Then it's settled. I'll wait for you to get off work," Stacy readily agreed.

"... Really not going?" Wanshi asked, somewhat unwilling.

"No, I've been eating very well lately," Stacy said. "I'm even considering leaving the profession."

Wanshi looked at Stacy in surprise. "You actually have a day when you say things like that?"

"Who could have predicted that?" Stacy replied, a hint of tenderness flashing in her eyes.

"... Remember to prepare some good wine," Wanshi muttered. "What is lost on one front may be gained on another."

"That's easy to do!"

Just as Stacy was about to turn and leave, a commotion suddenly broke out among the dwarf officials. A dwarf secretary, disregarding etiquette, rushed to King Star Pickaxe's side and whispered something urgently in his ear.

King Star Pickaxe face had been showing a hint of joy due to the progress made in the negotiations, suddenly turned ashen-faced.

"What has happened?" Elder Zhimeng Weaver, seated in the main seat, noticed something amiss and inquired.

"The situation is dire!" Star Pickaxe exclaimed urgently. "I urgently request that Ainz Bone King and Bay Owl come to discuss this matter immediately—it's extremely urgent!"

Su Ming and Zijin, who were nearby, arrived together. They quickly learned from King Star Pickaxe about the shocking change at the "Hidden Dragon Mountain" crystal mine: an unprecedentedly enormous dragon-shaped creature was crushing towards the border between the Dwarf and Dragon Valley with overwhelming force! "Great!" Su Ming immediately summoned Miao Xin, "[Rainbow Drone, take off immediately, go see what this thing is.]"

[Whoosh~ Business is here!] Miao Xin's response was filled with barely suppressed excitement.

The skeleton pig's soul fire suddenly surged, activating in the Ruby Base office. Its four hooves clattered on the polished floor as it transformed into a blurry skeletal shadow, heading straight for the drone control room.

Su Ming suddenly felt like a parent looking at a child who was looking forward to the New Year.

You don't know the cost of firewood and rice until you're in charge of the household!

"That jinx Stacy!" Zijin gritted her teeth, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "At the academic conference, I'm nominating her for the title 'Death Wish'!"

With the temporary command post established, King Star Pickaxe did not rush back to his homeland but stayed behind. He realized that the speed and quality of intelligence he obtained from Su Ming probably far surpassed that of the dwarves' channels.

"Borrow an area from them to set up our own magical communication array!" Star Pickaxe ordered the accompanying dwarf officials.

"Yes, sir!"

(There should be two more 4k chapters today)