Chapter 748: Duel of the Dragons

"ROAR—"

Tinia slowly climbed up from the ground, the claw-mark still on her face, yet her expression remained ecstatic. Drool dripped from her mouth as if she were still savoring that slap.

The white dragon lowered her head and murmured, "Master, please forgive me... I misunderstood..."

It seemed curing this white dragon’s innate madness was still a long and arduous journey.

Cassius sighed and looked away from her, extending a claw to conjure a clear magical projection.

In the image was a vast, crystal-clear lake surrounded by mountains. Hundreds of multicolored chromatic dragons circled above it, gathering and letting out thunderous roars.

This was Lake Twar, located at the Ember Empire’s southeastern border—the "duel arena" Cassius had chosen for the dragons.

"So many dragons..."

Tinia stared blankly at the magical image. It was the first time in her life she had seen so many true dragons gathered in one place.

"Why are they gathering there? Is there some precious treasure hidden beneath that lake?" The white dragon tilted her head, a hint of greed flashing in her eyes.

It was a dragon’s instinct. Not even Tiamat’s oracle would typically draw over a hundred true dragons. Perhaps... only something extraordinarily valuable could lure so many chromatic dragons.

"What do you think?"

Cassius replied flatly.

Tinia scratched her head, then suddenly realized something was wrong. Her expression changed dramatically, even becoming ferocious: "The oracle! It’s the Dragon Queen’s oracle! All those chromatic dragons are female!"

She stared at the image, her eyes filled with fury. Her scales bristled and her back arched like she’d seen her mortal enemy.

Tinia turned to Cassius, grinding her teeth. "Master, those lowly bitches dare covet your bloodline—I’ll tear them to pieces! I’ll make them regret ever being born!!"

Cassius gave her a glance. "You planning to fight a hundred at once? Or provoke divine punishment from the Dragon Queen and become a traitor to the chromatic dragons?"

Tinia hesitated, stammering, "Th-then what should I do? Are we just going to sit by and watch them..."

Cassius said, "I will hold a traditional dragon duel at Lake Twar. Only the victor may meet me. I want you to participate—and make sure the Dragon Queen’s candidates all lose."

"I see." Tinia nodded thoughtfully, her gaze turning firm. "Don’t worry, Master. I will win. I won’t bring shame to your name!"

Cassius nodded slightly, then pulled out an ancient warhammer that emitted a frosty mist.

—It was a shard of "Father of Frost," Matalotok.

As a divine artifact, Matalotok could split into weapons that carried a portion of its true power. The one Cassius held was one such fragment.

With Cassius’s permission, it could release up to 70-80% of the original’s frost divine power.

"Master, this is..."

Tinia’s eyes widened. She instinctively licked her lips. The chilling aura made her feel incredibly comfortable.

She could sense immense pressure—the aura of divine frost, extremely enticing to an ice-aligned dragon like her.

This was a divine artifact!

At that thought, Tinia couldn’t help but gasp. Was Cassius going to lend it to her?

Cassius added, "Among the oracle-receiving dragons are many the Dragon Queen holds in high regard. Even you may struggle against some of them.

This shard of Matalotok aligns perfectly with your attributes. I bestow it upon you."

What? A gift?

Instantly, Tinia’s already limited brain was flooded with shock and joy.

This was a divine artifact!

Even as a fragment, it was still an artifact-level treasure, priceless—worth more than mountains of gold.

Even a dragon god like Tiamat would consider it a precious possession.

Among chromatic dragons, such treasures were buried deep in lairs, even swallowed, never to be revealed. If discovered, they’d kill to protect the secret.

Yet her Master had casually handed one out! That went against everything dragons stood for!

Wait... Was this a test? To see if I covet his treasure?

That ogre once told me this was called... a trial?

Thinking this, Tinia’s eyes sparkled, but she forced herself to suppress her instincts and froze in place.

Seeing the trembling white dragon frozen on the spot, Cassius couldn’t help but chuckle. "What, don’t want it? Then I’ll take it back—"

"M-Master, wait!"

Tinia finally lost control, pouncing forward and clutching the frost-imbued hammer, licking it frantically.

Her expression was joyous as she rolled on the ground like a puppy with a new toy, completely forgetting Langpu’s serious teachings.

After a while, she came back to her senses and knelt in front of Cassius, tail wagging wildly. "Thank you for the gift, Master! Thank you, thank you!!"

Yep, a white dragon really was just a husky in disguise.

Cassius shook his head helplessly. "I gave you that hammer to use in battle, not to bury in your lair. Go test its power."

Tinia nodded vigorously. She gripped the hammer tightly in her claws. Its runes glowed icy blue, radiating a freezing aura.

"BOOM—"

In the distance, howling winds blew and the earth shook. A massive glacier rose from underground near Dragonblood Mountain, unaffected even by the searing surroundings.

"ROAR!"

The white dragon opened her mouth and pushed magic-charged freezing fluid through her throat like usual.

But this time, empowered by Matalotok, she spewed a thick beam of icy blue energy. The rocks struck by the beam instantly froze, their surfaces layered with white frost.

The frost spread rapidly for over a hundred meters, freezing everything in its path. Even airborne moisture crystallized into pristine white and pale-blue ice shards.

Cold winds swept the land. The air turned misty white, filled with snowflakes and ice crystals.

"Master, I feel so strong now!" Tinia exclaimed in delight.

"Father of Frost really does sync well with white dragons. I bet Solrem used ancient white dragon parts in its crafting."

"With this artifact, Tinia’s power now exceeds that of ancient white dragons. Beating those other females should be no problem."

Cassius nodded in satisfaction. With a claw, he conjured a teleportation gate to the south. "Go, Tinia. Don’t disappoint me."

"Yes, Master! I’ll freeze those filthy dragons solid!!"

The white dragon let out a joyful roar. She swallowed the hammer, flapped her wings, and dove into the portal.

Cassius looked at the magical projection in the air and chuckled. "Now this... will be entertaining."

Ember Empire, Thrace Region, Lake Twar.

The lake was surrounded by mountains with no roads and home to dangerous beasts and monsters. Few ever came here.

But now, it was bustling like never before. Dozens of helicopters hovered nearby, and over ten thousand elite troops were on alert.

Most eye-catching were the dragons.

Some soared through the sky, others rested by the lake, while a few had already gotten into brawls. Their chaotic roars mingled.

In half a day, only 70-80 dragons remained near Lake Twar.

Green and blue dragons—more orderly types—banded together in small groups to fend off stronger rivals and earn their place.

Red dragons, proud and solitary, stood alone, brimming with undisguised hostility toward every other dragon.

To them, every female dragon here was a rival, a competitor for the chance to bear the Dragon Prince’s offspring and receive divine favor.

Yet every red dragon was supremely confident, each believing Cassius would choose only a strong, powerful red dragon like herself.

As for white dragons?

Considered the shame of dragonkind, white beasts, few ever made it to Lake Twar.

Even the few smart white dragons who came from afar were often driven off by red dragons, leaving wounded and whimpering.

"Kristina, you actually showed your face here? Do you really think Cassius would want a dumbass like you?"

Green dragon Vesuvela sneered, casting a scornful glance at the blue dragon.

The green dragons behind her all let out sinister, raspy laughs.

In recent wars, Kristina’s family had suffered greatly. Much of their territory was taken by metallic dragons, and their hoard plundered. Other chromatic dragons delighted in their misfortune.

"That’s because Her Majesty’s promised reinforcements never arrived..."

Kristina glared at the green dragon, lightning crackling around her. "Maybe try masking that acid stench of yours, green-scaled lizard."

"Our Farias family received the oracle first. I met Cassius years ago and was welcomed as a VIP guest."

Behind her, several blue dragons flapped their wings, lightning crackling, growling threateningly at the green dragons.

The green dragons continued mocking. "It’s because of your incompetence that the Dragon Queen had to issue an oracle!"

The blue dragons roared with electric fury: "We’ll see who gets to His Highness first, you loudmouthed lizard!"

"Heh."

Amid the tension, nearby Volcanis sneered. She was a mature red dragon, twenty meters long, known by bards as the "Tyrant of Molten Blood."

Lounging on a high rock, she looked down at the green and blue dragons with open disdain.

"Pathetic. Look at your frail little bodies, huddling like pitiful humans for warmth."

"How could His Majesty Cassius possibly be interested in such weaklings?"

With that, Volcanis stood tall, flexing her red dragon muscles with pride.

"Only a red dragon like me is worthy of fulfilling the oracle—bearing the Dragon Prince’s strongest heir."

"We are Her Majesty Tiamat’s favored, born rulers of the chromatic dragons, destined to lead our kind back to dominion—"

"ROAR—"

Mid-speech, a majestic roar rang out, carrying icy winds.

"Who dares interrupt the mighty Volcanis?!"

Furious, Volcanis turned her head, fire blazing in her golden eyes, and spotted a white figure.

"A white dragon?"

The red dragon bared her fangs in a furious sneer. "A laughable white beast—who allowed it here?"

"Who gave it the nerve—to interrupt me?!"

The other chromatic dragons looked up, murmuring in surprise.

"Another white dragon?"

"I can’t believe one showed up. Ridiculous."

"But doesn’t it look... different?"

"Am I seeing things?"

"A normal white dragon wouldn’t show up like this..." Vesuvela frowned.

She scrutinized the newcomer, eyes narrowing. "We all came from the south. But she’s approaching from the north—that’s Ember Empire territory."

"And her appearance is odd too. Could she... be sent by His Highness?"

With that thought, Vesuvela whispered to her companions, "Don’t act rashly. Wait and see."

"That damn white dragon’s name... was it Tinia? Annoying creature. She ruined everything for me last time."

Kristina recognized her instantly, grinding her teeth.

As the white dragon neared Lake Twar, the crowd finally saw her clearly and gasped.

She beat her broad wings, her body sleek and muscular. Her white scales shimmered with frost, like icy armor, radiating cold mist.

What stunned the dragons most was her size.

She was even larger than Volcanis, a mature red dragon—likely over 25 meters long!

"What a massive white dragon!"

"Is she... an ancient white dragon?!"

"Why is she here? White dragons that age shouldn’t even be able to reproduce."

Even the mature red dragons froze in shock.

But Volcanis quickly regained composure and blocked her path. "Old hag, I’m here on the Dragon Queen’s orders to bear His Highness Cassius’s heir!"

"Who let you, a decrepit white dragon with one foot in the grave, show up here?! Filthy beasts like you are forever beneath us!"

Red and white dragons had a vast power gap.

Reds were the strongest of the chromatics. Whites were the disgrace of dragonkind—beasts. Even ancient whites couldn’t easily beat a strong, mature red.

To Volcanis, this was a perfect opportunity to establish dominance and warn off the other fools.

More importantly... it was her chance to flaunt her strength and lineage. Maybe she could catch Cassius’s eye and earn Tiamat’s divine favor!

It all sounded perfect.

She never once considered: she might lose.