Ashen Dragon

"Orestes, follow me."

"Bring along Marquis Hart as well."

Cassius waved his wings, effortlessly tearing the space in front of him to create a massive rift, motioning for the lich to follow him before stepping inside.

"Yes, master."

Orestes followed behind, responding timidly in a low voice.

However, when he saw the red dragon's menacing smile, he couldn't help but feel that things were about to take a turn for the worse—every time this "master" smiled, it always meant some cruel oppression was about to begin.

But the lich's life box was in the dragon's hands, so he had no choice but to obey, following closely into the rift.

Hart, holding a long knife, also stepped inside with Orestes, eyes full of caution as he looked at the lich.

...

"This should be the place."

Cassius surveyed the surroundings, pressing his claws into the ground to make sure it was solid.

The sun was about to set, its golden rays casting a warm glow on the land. Surrounding them was a flat, expansive wasteland, with tall mountains, wide valleys, and sturdy stone fortresses in the distance.

Bipedal wyverns soared through the sky, and lizardfolk rode land dragon beasts across the wasteland, herding yaks toward the pastures.

This was Stormy Ridge.

The starting place of the red dragon, once the center of the Ashen Nest.

But now, this barren wasteland had become the empire's borderland, merely a breeding ground for bipedal wyverns and land dragon beasts, and a pasture for yaks and horned sheep.

The former "Giant's Mouth Cave," now the "Dragon's Cave," had been abandoned since Cassius moved to the royal palace. It had been transformed into something resembling an altar, with a golden plaque reading "Former Residence of His Majesty Cassius" hanging outside, guarded by a dozen or so struggling great goblins.

Every morning and evening, hundreds, even thousands of monsters would come here to kneel at the entrance, throwing in copper coins and praying for the emperor's blessing—to become honored dragonblood nobility with purer bloodlines in the future.

"Such nostalgia..."

"More than a decade has flown by."

Looking at the vastly changed wasteland, Cassius couldn't help but feel a torrent of emotions.

Orestes and Hart, the two undying ones, stood quietly beside him. The lich, catching a glimpse of the red dragon's nostalgic expression, quickly lowered his head, not daring to make a sound.

But hearing Cassius's casual sigh, the lich felt a shock in his heart.

More than a decade!

This amount of time was just a blink for a lich or a dragon.

But judging from the tone of the red dragon's words, it seemed he had reached this level in just over a decade!

Realizing this, Orestes silently congratulated himself on his choice. No ordinary red dragon could grow this powerful in such a short span.

This time, he had likely found a backer with unimaginable potential, possibly even reaching the level of a deity.

Soon, Cassius's words interrupted the lich's thoughts.

"However... I'm not here to revisit old haunts but to reclaim what is mine."

"Time to get down to business."

"Roar——"

The red dragon lifted his head and roared, flapping his broad wings as he slowly rose into the air.

Under his control, the immense power of the Imperial Region descended onto the wasteland, causing the Magic Web for hundreds of miles around to tremble.

"This is——"

"What, what is he planning?"

The lich lifted his head in terror; as a necromancer comparable to a Ninth Tier spellcaster, he could also sense the formidable and terrifying power.

"Boom!"

Accompanied by a heavy rumbling sound, the ground quaked, mountains shook, and almost the entire wasteland began to tremble violently.

The bipedal wyverns cried out, flapping their wings in fear as they flew chaotically into the sky; the yaks scattered uncontrollably, trying to flee the dangerous area; even the land dragon beasts clumsily ran away, emitting panicked grunts...

The ground, the mountains, the rivers...

The entirety of Stormy Ridge, no, the entire world seemed to be shaking.

"This level of fluctuation... has surpassed the Ninth Tier."

"It's, it's a legendary spell! He can cast legendary spells! That was the power only possessed in the Naiser Era!"

Orestes felt once again immensely fortunate; for someone who could wield such power, destroying him would be a trivial matter.

"His Majesty, has he become this powerful already..."

Hart also murmured to himself.

Following this, under the astonished and shocked gaze of the lich and the corpse demon——

The ground was torn asunder.

A gaping chasm like a giant mouth appeared on the flat wasteland.

On either side were neatly cut cliffs, and looking down, there was an abyss of darkness. Occasionally, falling rocks took a long time to hit the bottom.

Within this chasm, a massive underground cavern had formed. The soil and rocks were shaped by some force, making the cavern's interior look like a man-made hall.

"Alright, follow me inside."

Despite creating such a shocking spectacle, Cassius spoke casually as if it were a trivial matter.

The red dragon flapped his wings and slowly descended into the cavern, while the lich, staring in shock for a moment, followed closely on a cloud of negative energy, bringing Hart along.

"This place is..."

The lich was once again rendered speechless.

On the cavern floor, scattered everywhere, were enormous, ancient bones—he recognized them as the remains of bluefoot dragon-snakes.

All around were heaps of various items: broken giant statues, fragments of grand structures, indistinct inscriptions, torn books, and all sorts of ancient, broken weapons...

It was clear that these had once been buried under soil and rock, now brought back into the light.

Yes, this was the resting place of Storm Giant Elder Randta, the once-buried tomb containing the legacy of the Giant Empire, now forcibly unearthed by the red dragon.

Even someone as wise as Randta had not anticipated such greed from this unexpected intruder.

Not only had he stolen his "eye," but he was now mercilessly plundering everything Randta had collected throughout his life, including the relics of the Giant Empire.

"Randta... did you miss me?"

"I'm back."

Cassius grinned, his pale golden pupils brimming with endless greed.

The Eye of the Storm King, which he had risked his life to obtain, still accompanied him today—it was a crucial piece of equipment that had enabled his ascent. Now, revisiting this place, he intended to "thank" the elder properly.

However, his way of showing gratitude was to put all of the elder's collections to good use.

The lich, eyeing the scattered bones not far away, tightened his grip on his scepter—something didn't feel right.

No way... was he going to make me resurrect all these big guys?