Translator: AnubisTL
"Why didn't the metallic dragon come with you?"
Iron Dragon Solgorn, noticing the absence of the Red-Silver Dragon, pondered aloud. "She rarely communicates with us. In Dragon Valley, she mostly guarded your slumbering grounds. But I suspect the metallic dragons possess some knowledge about dealing with abyssal rifts."
Metallic dragons are devoted to maintaining peace and justice.
Demons, representing chaos and evil, are their sworn enemies. The Red-Silver Dragon Deborah's inheritance should contain information about abyssal rifts.
Upon hearing the question, the red-iron dragon's expression momentarily turned unnatural.
He scratched his head and said, "She's been guarding me for so long. Now that I'm awake and no longer need guarding, she's gone off somewhere to relax."
Is that really the case?
The mind mage dragon's eyes gleamed with suspicion, sensing a hint of guilt in his brother's demeanor.
"The metallic dragons only listen to you."
"Let's ask her when she returns. She might be able to help."
Though Iron Dragon Solgorn sensed something was amiss, he wisely refrained from pressing the matter.
"This abyssal rift cannot be eliminated for now. What do you want to do with it?" the iron dragon asked, turning to Garos.
Garos shook his head slightly and clapped Solgorn on the shoulder with a clawed hand. "Solgorn, you're primarily responsible for managing the territory, and you've never disappointed me. Since we've already determined the general direction, handle it as you see fit. Consult me only on matters of significant importance."
The Ironforged Clan.
No, it would be more accurate to call them the Ironforged Tribe now. Their current prosperity was largely due to Iron Dragon Solgorn's efforts.
During Solgorn's periods of slumber, Garos had been overwhelmed by the task of managing the ever-expanding territory and its familiars, leaving him with little free time.
Dragon Valley still lacked a sufficient number of capable administrators.
So far, only the iron dragon had proven qualified. Red Dragon Samantha excelled at practical alchemy, but managing the territory would be too much for her. White Dragon Treacy could only serve as a brute enforcer, and Fairy Dragon Vera was utterly unreliable.
The red-silver dragon might have been suitable, provided she returned to Dragon Valley.
"Very well," the iron dragon said, nodding heavily as he felt the weight of Garos's claw on his shoulder.
White Dragon Treacy turned to the iron dragon and said, "I can guard this abyssal rift. If any demons crawl out, my claws will crush them."
The iron dragon nodded in agreement.
After a moment of contemplation, he turned to the hybrid centaur, Elvie, and said, "Elvie, the Fertile Plains are primarily managed by the centaur tribes. Now that an abyssal rift has appeared here, and you happen to possess the pegasus power to suppress its expansion, I'm assigning you to lead a portion of the guards and work with the white dragon to oversee the rift."
"If any demons emerge, the white dragon will kill them, and you can cleanse their abyssal qi. If the demons are too powerful or numerous, remember to send an immediate distress signal for reinforcements."
Next, the iron dragon issued orders to the sorcerers and shamans of Annihilation's Eye, instructing them to establish warning and trap spells around the abyssal rift to prevent unaware creatures from stumbling into it, while also creating a defensive barrier against the demons.
Afterward, additional battle group units would be stationed here, remaining on standby at all times.
Throughout the entire command process, Garos observed silently from the sidelines.
He noticed that Iron Dragon Solgorn's thinking had become more meticulous. When issuing orders, Solgorn now considered many minor details he had previously overlooked, his thoughts clear and his instructions orderly.
"Impressive. This must be the enhanced mental acuity gained from becoming a mind mage."
"Given the current scale of the Ironforged Tribe, I had worried Solgorn might be overwhelmed. But it seems he's still within his management capacity, though it's no easier than before—the burden remains heavy."
Garos mused that he should find some "assistants" for Iron Dragon Solgorn.
Managing the territory and its familiars, handling countless trivial matters—these tasks were mentally exhausting. Even a mind mage dragon couldn't sustain this indefinitely, especially since Solgorn was only a novice in the field.
Furthermore...
Relying solely on the iron dragon to manage the Ironforged Tribe's territory and familiars was unrealistic and unsustainable. A single decision-maker was prone to oversights and even errors. For the tribe to develop in a more orderly and proactive manner, a more robust system was needed.
Suddenly, Garos's gaze sharpened, and he whirled around.
The other juvenile dragons sensed the anomaly and turned to look as well.
Under their watchful eyes, the abyssal rift began to glow. Dark purple light pulsed like veins across the ground, and the rift pulsed rhythmically, emitting an even denser aura of evil than before.
A cacophony of abyssal tongue erupted from within.
"Ah! The Material Plane! It's the Material Plane!"
"I smell the delicious scent of flesh and souls!"
"Slaughter! My claws thirst for blood!"
"..."
Hum— As the rift twisted, five ferocious figures emerged from the abyssal rift. They possessed razor-sharp claws and fangs, their black skin crisscrossed with vein-like patterns, and bat-like wings sprouted from their backs.
Roaring abyssal tongue, the language of slaughter and destruction, they materialized in the Material Plane.
Overwhelmed with excitement, they bared their fangs and extended their claws toward the creatures of the Material Plane.
Then.
Under the cold, watchful eyes of the surrounding dragonkind, the quasit froze mid-motion, like frogs suddenly spotting venomous snakes.
Dragons?
Dragons!
We're doomed!
Chaos, evil, bloodlust, and savagery were the demons' very nature. Yet these low-ranking quasit, when confronted by creatures far stronger than themselves, felt terror.
They were also known by a more common name:
Imps—tiny demons, barely a meter tall.
Imps craved victory and yearned for the power wielded by other demons. But as the lowest rung of the abyssal hierarchy, they were constantly bullied by their superiors, fostering a coward's heart. They bullied the weak but cowered before the strong.
Evil dragons also dwelled in the abyss, occupying a dominant ecological niche that no ordinary demon dared challenge.
"Back to the abyss! Back to the abyss!"
The quickest among them turned and scrambled toward the abyssal rift.
Boom! A slender, white dragon tail lashed through the air, slamming into the ground with earth-shattering force. The impact reduced the imp to a pulpy mess.
Frightful presence!
The other quasit bared their fangs, hissed, arched their backs, spread their bat-like wings, and unleashed their frightful presence.
But all were resisted, having no effect whatsoever.
White Dragon Treacy spread her wings, charged at the quasit, and with a few swift swipes of her claws, crushed them all to death.
"Demons? Mere weakling vermin," she sneered, frost billowing from her nostrils as she spoke.
"White Scale, are you truly so proud of slaughtering a few quasit?" Red Dragon Samantha scoffed. "In the abyss, they're less than insects—just ubiquitous trash."
Enraged by Samantha's insulting nickname, White Dragon Treacy seethed inwardly but swallowed her pride, choosing not to retaliate.
Since awakening from her dragon sleep, the red dragon's life grade had soared to 12, equivalent to a young red dragon in her early forties, thanks to abundant resources and her relentless pursuit of knowledge.
True to her word, she had challenged the level 13 white dragon to another battle.
The battle ended with the red dragon's victory over a higher-level opponent.
"Pride is the root of all sins," the red-iron dragon warned. "Never underestimate your enemies. quasit may be weak, but they excel at finding spatial rifts. By discovering pathways to the Material Plane, they prove their worth. If they return to the abyss alive, they will bring back more demons."
The inheritance had taught him that quasit were countless in the abyss, impossible to eradicate completely.
Individually, they were weak, with a life grade around 2.
But combat was not their purpose. They served as cannon fodder for the abyss's invasions of the Material Plane, guiding other demons and acting as emergency rations.
Where quasit died, the ground splattered with their blood and bone gradually became corrupted, tainted with evil qi.
Elvie stepped forward, spreading her wings to unleash a pure, holy light. Wherever her radiance touched, the abyssal taint evaporated with a hiss like cold water meeting hot iron, restoring the corrupted ground to its original state.
(End of the Chapter)
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