No Substitutions Allowed

Wandering across the decaying, dark earth, Angela moved with the carefree energy of a young girl befitting her age. However, if the scene were magnified, the several terrifying Angela surrounding her would easily make this a top contender for the ten things you least want to experience. Though their shapes and colors differed, each dragon was an embodiment of evil, possessing different powers but all subservient to an evil faith, engaging in acts of destruction, devastation, lies, and conspiracy. Now, they silently watched the girl, uttering not a word.

Undeniably, they might be debating who should be the "most powerful representative of the dragon race" to fight this girl to the death. After all, these ancient dragons rarely achieve a true victory. Their strength is mostly comparable, and they are equally cunning, evil, and treacherous.

Even so, the dragons didn't underestimate the petite girl. Although she seemed like someone they could swallow whole, the dragons showed no signs of carelessness. After all, she was a familiar sent by Arcane Mage. Although she looked as harmless as a human girl at the moment, she was certainly not that simple. The destructive beam that Yi Aier had just fired still lingered in the dragons' memories. They didn't want to fight against that weapon, but who knew what kind of power this little girl truly possessed?

The only thing that could be sensed was the faint aura of death emanating from that petite body. It was devoid of any vitality, filled with the deepest death and darkness.

Dragons are not foolish enough to ignore the warnings of their instincts and intuition, but their pride will not allow them to retreat.

Although Li Lin's conditions were simple, the dragons had their own interpretations.

"Arcane Mage, you just said you wanted us to send out our strongest among them."

The green dragon flicked its tail, spewing out a stream of poisonous gas that kept strangers at bay.

"Certainly."

Sitting on the deck of the airship, leisurely watching the unfolding scene before him, Li Lin answered casually. He seemed completely unconcerned about Angela's life or death. Even though he had thrown his familiar into the midst of so many dragons, Li Lin showed no sign of worry.

"However, there is no strongest among us."

The red dragon continued, raising its head and spewing forth raging flames from its enormous, black nostrils, carrying the scent of sulfur.

"However, I think this is a good opportunity to resolve the issue."

Bai Long's cold laughter was as unpleasant as his chilling aura.

"Arcane Mage, we can all attack together, right? After all, all the dragons here are the strongest, and you haven't limited the number of people."

Before Li Lin could answer, Angela had already responded.

"Of course, no problem, winged reptiles."

Although the sound was not loud, it clearly reached the ears of all the dragons.

"It's laughable that you lowly creatures dare to try and defeat me. Bring on a few of you, and I'll show you what true power is."

"Arrogant brat!"

The red dragon roared and took flight first, its roar accompanied by a burst of raging flames that instantly engulfed the land where Anjie was. The decaying earth could not withstand such intense heat and cracked with a crisp sound. Even the other dragons immediately spread their wings and flew away to avoid the scorching flames. As one of the Chromatic Dragon Kind, the red dragon is known for its destructive power, and its mastery of fire is unparalleled.

Despite its furious appearance, the red dragon was observing the girl far more carefully than it seemed. It didn't resort to its usual tactic of overwhelming her with its Dragon Fear before attacking. After all, someone who remained unfazed despite being surrounded by so many dragons, whatever she was, certainly wouldn't be intimidated by its Dragon Fear. Therefore, it was better to choose a surprise attack and see what it could achieve.

The battle had begun, with the remaining dragons circling around, quietly and attentively watching the scorched wasteland that had become a battlefield. Wisps of black smoke rose from the rotting soil after it had been scorched by the flames, but the red dragon merely flapped its wings a few times impatiently, causing the smoke to dissipate completely.

Then he saw Angela's figure.

The gorgeous outfit, with black as the base color and deep purple as the accent, was completely unburnt, without even a trace of dirt. The long, silvery-white hair still shone brightly red in the firelight, creating an impressive sight together with the eyes.

"Is that all?"

Angela raised her eyebrows, her tone clearly laced with sarcasm.

"Really..."

She didn't finish her sentence, because the red dragon had already begun its attack again. It spewed out a ball of flame different from before, which spread through the air like a burning cloud and rushed towards Angela. The poor little girl hadn't even finished speaking when she was once again enveloped in the scorching heat. But this time the red dragon didn't stop there. After casting the Incendiary Cloud, the red dragon immediately jumped into it, concealing its form. The probing was over; now it was time for the real battle.

For dragons, large-scale destruction is their forte, but when facing a single enemy, their massive size puts them at a disadvantage. If it's just an ordinary enemy, there's naturally no problem. But enemies powerful enough to withstand their size become difficult to deal with, because when the threat they face is magnified dozens of times, the dragons' weaknesses are also magnified dozens of times.

Of course, ordinary Dragon Slayer wouldn't realize this. To them, dodging those huge, sharp claws and long tails with all sorts of terrifying power is already exhausting enough, but for those strong enough to resist them, the situation is exactly the opposite.

The red dragon was in the same boat; it didn't intend to rely on the clumsy methods of its kind to attack the little girl. It had its own way of doing things.

"It seems that reptiles really do have pitifully small brains, actually thinking that such a method could pose a threat to me?"

Looking at the thick red mist surrounding her, Angela frowned. This fiery mist, capable of melting armor and skin, turning them from human form into a pool of flesh, had absolutely no effect on Angela. It automatically left Angela body and deliberately avoided her. Just then, the previously calm mist began to churn violently, and then a thick, long black shadow swept in, striking towards Angela's body.

This was the Red Dragon's attack, attempting to force Angela to jump and dodge, so that it could fight in the air. It did not underestimate Angela; fighting such a formidable enemy on the ground would significantly weaken its strength, while in the air, it could launch attacks from all directions—at least it wouldn't be as passive as it was now.

However, Angela's actions completely surprised the red dragon and the other dragons who were observing the battle.

"A foolish move."

Facing the sweeping tail that could send her flying into the sky, Angela a cold shout, then snapped her velvet folding fan shut and struck the red dragon's tail head-on without dodging.

The red dragon sensed a powerful force, strong enough to rival its own, emanating from its tail. Angela's fan struck the dragon's tail precisely, forcefully blocking the terrifying power capable of leveling a castle. Then, she flicked it upwards, sending the dragon's tail flying, raising a cloud of rotting soil—which, enveloped in a fiery red mist, began to burn. It vanished before hitting the ground.

This time, not only the red dragon, but almost all the dragons were shocked. The dragons' immense power was one of their proudest abilities, and such a situation was rare even in battles between their own kind. But now, a little girl no bigger than their fingernail could actually withstand the power of a dragon's tail whip attack head-on, which was abnormal in itself. Although they had long suspected that this little girl was unusual, the current situation clearly showed that this was abnormal.

"It seems interesting."

The black dragon glanced at Li Lin, who was drinking tea, and finally understood why the Arcane Mage could watch the show so leisurely. Even with the long lifespans of dragons, they had never seen anything so bizarre. Angela's existence completely overturned the dragons' common sense. Even the well-informed black dragon still couldn't figure out what this little girl was. The only thing it was certain of was that she wasn't alive. The aura of death emanating from Angela had exceeded the limits that any living being could withstand. What exactly was she? A familiar was a mage's lifeline. Unlike ordinary summoned creatures, a familiar and a mage were bound by fate. Once a familiar died, the mage, as its master, would suffer immense damage in both power and soul. It was precisely for this reason that most mages would rather not have a familiar than take on such unplanned risks. Although the black dragon had sensed something was wrong when Li Lin proposed the duel, it hadn't expected that a familiar could be this powerful.

"Is this your new pet? Arcane Mage? I've never seen this type of being before. Where did you bring it back from?"

"Of course it's... another dimension."

Li Lin casually added a little brown sugar to his tea before replying. He had complete confidence in Angela's strength. Although these dragons were notoriously difficult to deal with, they were only minor threats in front of Angela... Li Lin didn't tell Angela about the specific characteristics and weaknesses of these dragons. Firstly, he thought it unnecessary, and secondly, he wanted to see if Angela could handle the current situation. Moreover, he had assigned Angela a small secret mission before the battle even began.

"What, afraid of failure? Black Dragon, this isn't like you... although I wouldn't object if you were to surrender now."

"How could that be? Arcane Mage, you are far too underestimating the power of our dragon race."

As it spoke, the black dragon spread its wings and joined the battle. Unlike the red dragon, it pressed its body heavily onto the earth, its weight, which would normally make the earth tremble, now seemed insignificant. With the black dragon opening its mouth, magical power gathered in the ancient dragon language began to appear. The soft, decaying earth instantly became harder and smoother than rock, then immediately transformed into sharp spikes that rose from the surface and extended into the burning clouds.

It must be said that the black dragon's plan was indeed very shrewd. Even if Angela had enough strength to withstand the red dragon's tail whip, it didn't mean she could handle the surprise attack that appeared from beneath her feet.

The power of magic is undeniable, and Angela naturally understood this.

Faced with the spikes shooting towards her from beneath her feet, Angela chose to dodge, her figure appearing and disappearing between the spikes' attacks, dodging the black dragon's magical assault. However, as the spikes suddenly burst open, transforming into weapons with greater lethality and area of effect, Angela was forced to change her course.

"The clown's tricks are utterly useless against me!"

Facing the overwhelming, exploding debris, Angela smiled arrogantly. She retreated swiftly, her speed so great that she left only a fleeting afterimage amidst the fiery clouds. But the battle was far from over. A chilling cold froze the ground before her, smoothing it as a mirror, even the red dragon's fiery clouds were temporarily unable to penetrate it—and the other dragons seized the opportunity to plunder!

"Hmph, it's useless even if we all attack together."

Angela kept talking, but her rapidly retreating figure suddenly stopped. Even someone as powerful as her was dealing with a dragon for the first time. The unfamiliar and unknown always bring unpredictable dangers. Angela's behavior was far less arrogant than she claimed.

Realizing she was surrounded, Angela quickly changed her strategy, leaping into the air and abandoning her ground advantage.

The red dragon, lurking in the fiery clouds, was waiting for this moment to arrive.

Huge, sharp claws, capable of easily tearing through solid city walls, reappeared, grabbing at Angela. The little girl, now suspended in mid-air, was no longer able to forcefully shake off the attack as before. However, the red dragon's claws only missed their mark in mid-air. Just as it was about to seize Angela, the little girl vanished again, reappearing not far from the dragon's claws. Although she wanted to say something to mock the slow-moving behemoth, the green dragon's attack forced Angela to swallow her venomous words. It roared and charged into the fiery cloud, its massive body slamming directly into Angela's.

If the red dragon's attack was merely an appetizer for Angela, then the green dragon was a truly formidable opponent. Unlike the other Chromatic Dragon and the book, the green dragon's body was enveloped in a pale green, highly corrosive aura. It could corrode anything that touched its body, transforming them into something repulsive in another form.

Angela was unaware of the green dragon's power, but that didn't mean she would risk it. Although these dragons possessed long lifespans, the little one was no pushover. As the green dragon opened its maw and spewed out a pungent venom, Angela quickly distanced herself. However, this time she wasn't entirely successful. The white dragon's spell forced her to slow down to avoid the ice cage that had appeared out of nowhere behind her. This resulted in several drops of the highly corrosive liquid splashing onto the hem of Angela's skirt, mercilessly corroding several holes in it.

This finally made Angela angry.

"You lowly reptiles!!"

With Angela's furious roar, a powerful, blood-soaked whirlwind suddenly appeared. It mercilessly dispersed the surrounding fire clouds, and even several dragons that had intended to join the battle and launch a sneak attack were forced to retreat several steps to avoid the immense power that they could not withstand head-on.

Then, they noticed that the girl floating in the air had changed.

A pair of large, black, bat-like wings extended from the girl's back, reflecting an unsettling, cold light. Angela's eyes, now a vibrant crimson, stood out starkly against her pale face.

"Very well, I admit I underestimated the intelligence of you reptiles."

Looking at the wound on the hem of her skirt, which was less than three centimeters in total, Angela gritted her teeth and said. Then, she snapped open her fan, which faintly emitted a spiritual glow. The death power that had been hidden within Angela was now unsealed, and even the sea, which had long been silent due to the corruption of evil, seemed to respond to this fear of death, suddenly emitting a huge crashing sound. Under the gaze of those crimson eyes, all the dragons felt a chill in their hearts. The emotions contained within them were all too familiar to them—filled with excitement, destruction, and devastation, a perfect fusion of evil. Even among the Chromatic Dragon Kind, none possessed such eyes.

Then, Angela tolled their death knell.

"Now, I shall take this seriously, you reptiles. Pay the price for your rudeness."