Chapter 514 - 506: The Mother of Xiaohai, Iron Armor Steel Fang?

Chapter 514: Chapter 506: The Mother of Xiaohai, Iron Armor Steel Fang?

"Defeated! But glorious in defeat! Those were my brother’s last words after he gave up resisting!" The Lightning Armor Dragon King’s face was filled with pride, his voice impassioned!

From its words, Mu Chen’s mind seemed to simulate the scene. The expression of that Lightning Armor Dragon standing at the peak of Holy Beast Mountain, his tone of voice... it all became vivid in his mind’s eye.

"But it would have been better if my brother had never said those words. After he spoke, one of the Holy Beasts actually stopped its sharp claws, which were about to slit my brother’s throat, and did something that every Magical Beast would despise! It kicked my brother, who was on the verge of death, off the cliff! He wasn’t even allowed a glorious death in battle! For my brother, this was undoubtedly the ultimate torment."

"Below the towering cliff were countless rock faces and jutting stones. Had my brother fallen straight down, he would have been shattered to pieces. But it was as if it were fated by the heavens. During his descent, he was caught by tree trunks growing from the cliff face. Although the force of the impact rendered the trees’ resistance useless, each time he was caught, the angle of his fall changed dramatically. By the time he was clear of obstacles, the stony ground below had given way to a vast lake. And just like that, his life was extended, if only for a short while."

"But only for a short while. Every bone in his body was shattered, he had lost an arm, and with it, the pride of a Lightning Armor Dragon. After striking countless trees, his Life Aura had dwindled to its last dregs. If not for a miracle, my brother’s life would have ended in that very lake. But, as I said, it was as if it were fated by the heavens. A miracle did happen there."

As he spoke, the Lightning Armor Dragon King took a deep breath. His expression softened considerably, yet it was tinged with a strange look as he continued, "At that time, by the side of the lake, a Magical Beast happened to be resting and drinking. It saw my brother fall. This Magical Beast was very unusual. Its Beast Realm was only Tier Six; to my brother, it was no different from an ant. Even in his near-death state, the Holy Beast pressure he emanated should have been more than enough to completely crush it."

"But strangely, the Magical Beast seemed completely unaffected by my brother’s pressure. It curiously dove into the lake, dragged my dying brother from the water, and began sizing him up with great interest."

"Don’t ask how I know all this. That Magical Beast came here once, and I saw everything through its memories. It’s a bit of a long story, but I hope you will listen to the end."

At this point, the Lightning Armor Dragon King’s expression changed. Mu Chen knew with a single glance that the King had plunged into a shared memory. Two beams of light suddenly erupted from its eyes, and a circular spatial barrier enveloped them both. Caught within the barrier, Mu Chen’s vision went black. Then, two silver beams of light shot onto the barrier’s surface, and an unfamiliar yet vivid scene appeared before his eyes.

’This is... memory reading.’

After a moment of shock, Mu Chen’s pupils focused, his expression turning solemn. The scene before him showed a colossal creature covered in shattered, yet incredibly savage and domineering, armor. It stood dozens of meters tall. If the Lightning Armor Dragon King was the size of a small mountain, then this creature was a towering, majestic peak. In the Outer Realm, it would be an absolute behemoth of a war machine.

Although its body was broken and covered in grievous wounds, its torso bent at unnatural angles, one could still feel an overwhelming, world-dominating battle intent emanating from its blood-soaked frame.

"What a terrifying Magical Beast! This... it couldn’t be your brother, Xiaohai’s father, could it?!" Mu Chen asked instinctively.

The Lightning Armor Dragon King didn’t speak, but merely nodded slightly. Mu Chen inferred the nod from the up-and-down motion of the projected scene.

"Heh... This... is truly a... sad tale... To think that I, Thunder Dominator, would end like this... Eaten by this weak little creature? So be it... It is my fate..."

It was easy to imagine—no, it was plain to see. A being who had spent its entire life in battle, whether seen or heard, exuded an undeniable aura of a King. The deep, resonant voice sounded as if it came from the primeval wilds of Ancient Times.

Using what little strength he had left, Thunder Dominator turned his massive, blood-covered head, slowly closed his eyes, and murmured, "Come on. Eat me. Then you’ll never have to fear being threatened by others again. You can become a powerful being..."

The scene suddenly went dark twice. With a moment’s thought, Mu Chen immediately understood. This memory was taken from the other Magical Beast, so the first-person perspective belonged to it. The flashes of darkness were it blinking.

Just then, the Magical Beast, having heard Thunder Dominator’s words, suddenly shifted its perspective and swam toward the depths of the lake. From its point of view, the lake was crystal clear; sunlight pierced through the water, illuminating everything within.

The view then shifted left and right repeatedly. After just a moment, the Magical Beast seemed to find its target and darted forward. Two claws, black with strange red markings, appeared in its vision. At the sight of them, Mu Chen shot to his feet, pressing his hands against the spatial barrier as he exclaimed in astonishment, "That’s an Iron Armor Steel Fang!"

"An Iron Armor Steel Fang?"

A questioning voice came from the Lightning Armor Dragon King. But he quickly refuted Mu Chen’s claim. "No! Now that you mention it, she does look very much like an Iron Armor Steel Fang. But there are significant differences. For one, Iron Armor Steel Fangs don’t have horns, but she has two. That’s the first thing. Also, her appearance is very peculiar. In all my years on Holy Beast Mountain, I have never seen a Magical Beast like her."

’Horns? Not an Iron Armor Steel Fang? But these claws...’

The towering, resolute image of the creature reappeared in Mu Chen’s mind. He still believed his eyes hadn’t deceived him. ’Besides an Iron Armor Steel Fang, no other Magical Beast has a pair of Five-blade Steel Claws like that! Those five sharp talons, like a steel trident... according to the Ten Thousand Beasts Record, only the Iron Armor Steel Fang has them!’

The scene shook violently as its claws pierced and dug rapidly through the mud. In just a moment, a large cavern appeared before it. The lake water turned murky, but judging by the current in its vision, it was now diving deeper into the cavern.

’It’s definitely an Iron Armor Steel Fang!!’

No one was more familiar with the way an Iron Armor Steel Fang burrowed. The angle, the technique—it all revealed its true nature! ’But why are its claws pitch black? And why do they have those strange red markings? What’s more, an Iron Armor Steel Fang definitely doesn’t have horns!’

After a moment, its vision cleared. It snatched a cluster of light that shimmered with a hazy glow. The movement was so fast that even Mu Chen couldn’t get a clear look at what it was.

The perspective spun around. The current’s speed increased dramatically, and in less than a third of the time it took to descend, the creature shot out of the lake. A few leaps brought it right in front of Thunder Dominator.

Thunder Dominator was still dazed. Then, he saw the Magical Beast in his vision extend its massive claw, the one with the strange red markings. The claw held a ball of light, and before Thunder Dominator could even think to resist, it was shoved into his mouth.

’This is!! Nightlight Jade?’

The Golden Dragon Scripture in his mind immediately fed him information about the item. ’That’s a legendary Holy-Grade Medicinal Herb! Even though it’s called "Jade," it’s a genuine Medicinal Herb! And it’s supposed to be extinct!’

"Your brother truly has incredible luck," Mu Chen sighed, a faint smile on his lips.

Although using Nightlight Jade in this way was somewhat wasteful, in the face of death, any herb that could save a life was a worthy expense.

The scene went dark, and when it brightened again, it showed Thunder Dominator, utterly astonished, feeling power surge through his body and his vitality gradually return. Scenes flashed by. Mu Chen didn’t pay much attention to Thunder Dominator’s mumblings to himself during this time. He was focused on watching him recover day by day under the meticulous care of the other Magical Beast.

He watched as the wild, domineering look in Thunder Dominator’s eyes gradually softened from defiance and anger to tenderness and warmth. Time seemed to fly by, but Mu Chen knew that within an Independent Space, the flow of time was different from the Outer Realm. An hour inside could be as little as a minute outside.

By his estimation, a full three days passed before Mu Chen finished watching the fragmented story of Thunder Dominator and the Magical Beast’s life together. He finally understood the origin of Xiaohai.

"Phew..."

Taking a deep breath, Mu Chen sighed. "So Xiaohai is the child of your brother and this Magical Beast."

The Lightning Armor Dragon King’s gaze sharpened. He dissipated the spatial barrier, noted the darkening sky of dusk, and nodded. "Exactly. Xiaohai was sent here by her a year ago. As you must have seen, there were many gaps in the memories. Clearly, my brother and she did not lead a peaceful life. They probably sent Xiaohai here so he wouldn’t have to live on the run and could grow up healthy. But you’ve seen what he’s like... That child... seems to have inherited more of his mother’s bloodline..."

"I see... Can you let me see what his mother looks like?"

Mu Chen couldn’t let go of his suspicions about Xiaohai’s mother, the owner of the memories. If he couldn’t confirm it, he knew it would leave him with a great sense of regret. This was about the Iron Armor Steel Fang, after all...

The Lightning Armor Dragon King pondered for a moment before finally nodding in agreement. "Alright. But her appearance is very strange. I truly cannot describe her with words. I have to say, though, by the aesthetic standards of Magical Beasts, she is very beautiful."

As he finished speaking, Mu Chen felt Thunder flash once more in the Lightning Armor Dragon King’s eyes. A clear image was imprinted deep within his mind. The instant he saw it, his mind went blank, and his expression froze completely...