Chapter 421

'Goblins, kobolds, orcs, humans, dragonborn, duergar...'

Anser carefully studied the composition of the duergar army, gradually forming a plan.

He intended to target the areas where the duergar were most concentrated, launching a devastating frontal assault to scatter their army in a single blow.

An army composed mostly of slaves had extremely poor discipline. As long as he could instill fear in them, they would easily collapse into a rout.

Once the army scattered, the human slaves would have an opportunity to escape!

There were many ways to strike fear into an enemy, and one of them was particularly simple and direct:

Transform into a dragon!

Anser planned to transform into an adult red dragon, then summon a Red Dragon Spirit and an elemental to attack alongside him.

He chose a red dragon because red dragons were notorious for their arrogance, tyranny, and utter disregard for reason.

Given the composition of this slave army, the mere sight of a red dragon would terrify them before the battle even began. They would have no choice but to flee in panic, without even considering surrender.

After all, neither surrender nor resistance could satisfy a red dragon's bloodlust!

With his plan settled, Anser wasted no time. He spread his wings and climbed to an altitude of over two thousand meters, transformed back into his humanoid form, and concentrated on casting a spell.

Innate Spellcasting + Metamagic: Enhanced Quickened Spell, Enhanced Extended Spell + 9th-level Summon Dragon!

To avoid detection, he used metamagic to accelerate the casting.

Invisible ripples spread through the void, rapidly growing in amplitude and range. Then, with a flash of light and shadow, a gargantuan red dragon abruptly materialized on the Material Plane.

Its enormous body measured over twenty meters in length, with a wingspan no less impressive. Dark crimson scales covered its muscular frame, while its ferocious head bore curved, demon-like horns. Its scarlet eyes brimmed with cruelty, and its very presence was overwhelmingly intimidating.

'Not bad!' Anser praised inwardly.

This dragon was somewhat larger than an ordinary adult red dragon.

Even when using the same spell level, different spellcasters could summon vastly different Dragon Spirits.

He cast another spell, this time a 9th-level Conjure Elemental!

The moment the magical glow appeared, the Phoenix Flames concealed beneath his skin suddenly surged, swirling and dancing around him like playful spirits.

Their golden-red hues deepened before transforming into a stream of sacred fire. It spiraled around his body several times, then came to rest behind him, forming a flaming giant six or seven meters tall.

Composed entirely of pure sacred flames, it bore some resemblance to the Phoenix Flames themselves. Its form was abstract, barely qualifying as humanoid.

'There's actually a fire elemental with properties like these?'

Anser found it rather strange to see the elemental hovering obediently behind him.

This fire elemental had a Challenge Rating as high as 15, several levels above normal, and it could even fly!

'Maybe they're naturally drawn to each other.'

He had no time to dwell on it. The fire elemental was far too conspicuous and would be easily spotted against the night sky.

Taking a deep breath, he looked down at the duergar army and unleashed the first wave of his psychological assault.

Innate Spellcasting + Metamagic: Enhanced Quickened Spell, Maximized Spell + Meteor Swarm!

Following a series of powerful, resonant words in Draconic, four enormous spheres of flame rapidly formed, illuminating half the sky in crimson.

The fireballs descended one after another, trailing long tails of flame as they hurtled toward the duergar army two thousand meters below from different directions.

The Draconic chanting continued, and a second, third, and fourth casting followed in rapid succession!

Unlike last time, these sixteen fireballs were scattered across a vast area. Some were so far off target that they might not hit anyone even if the enemy stood perfectly still.

Anser wasn't firing randomly. He had carefully calculated every impact point to ensure that almost none would endanger the humans. His primary objective was intimidation.

"Attack!"

With a wave of his hand, he summoned his Wildfire Spirit.

Then he transformed into an enormous red dragon over thirty meters long. His form was powerful, majestic, and ferocious, with an almost tangible aura of brutality. Wherever his gaze fell, his overwhelming presence inspired dread.

Compared to him, the Red Dragon Spirit beside him looked like a hatchling merely pretending to be fearsome.

This was the Overlord's Majesty manifested through his extraordinary Charisma. Not even an ancient dragon possessed such an imposing presence!

"ROOOAR!"

The dragon's roar shook the wilderness, carrying for dozens of kilometers.

Every creature that heard it was seized by an overwhelming sense of impending disaster. Their bodies trembled uncontrollably, and their hearts pounded like drums, as though the roar itself might tear them apart at any moment.

Anser felt exhilarated. Beating his dragon wings, he descended amid the meteor shower, casting enhancement spells on himself as he flew.

Fire Shield, Divine Favor, Mage Armor...

Meanwhile, the Red Dragon Spirit, Wildfire Spirit, and fire elemental had already streaked downward like flashes of crimson light.

At the same time, the duergar army had stopped advancing and descended into chaos.

Meteor Swarm was especially conspicuous at night, and since they were creatures with darkvision, they had spotted the falling meteors immediately.

The underground creatures had never seen meteors before. Goblins, orcs, and kobolds stared blankly at the sky, their instincts screaming at them to flee.

The duergar, however, clearly had their own sources of information. Their middle- and high-ranking officers quickly realized what was happening and began shouting orders, desperately trying to direct their troops out of the impact zones.

As a result, the duergar army began running around like headless chickens.

When the dragon's roar thundered overhead, countless underground creatures jolted in terror. Then they scrambled away on all fours, fleeing frantically and wishing their parents had given them two extra legs.

Quite a few kobolds and goblins were so frightened that they dropped to the ground, buried their heads in the dirt, and trembled uncontrollably.

At that moment, the meteors struck!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The fireballs slammed into the ground and exploded with deafening force. Enormous craters were blasted into the soft earth, while shock waves swept outward, carrying raging flames, shattered rocks, and debris that battered everything in their path.

Everything within a radius of more than seventy meters became a sea of fire, with towering flames and scorching waves of heat.

Relatively few underground creatures were struck directly by the meteors, but every one of them witnessed the spectacular fireworks display.

Fireworks were meant to bloom in the darkness of night. How could their beauty possibly shine in broad daylight?

The duergar army's psychological defenses completely collapsed. Its soldiers scattered in every direction, fleeing so desperately that few even noticed the dragons and fire elemental overhead.

"ROAR!"

The Red Dragon Spirit unleashed an enraged roar and swooped low at an angle, breathing a torrent of fire that carved a thick line of flames through the densest concentration of duergar.

The crowd was split in two. Burning figures flailed their limbs wildly, letting out one agonized scream after another.

The fire elemental was even more direct. It dropped into the crowd, and its Fire Aura automatically ignited every creature and flammable object within several meters. With each sweep of its arms, it could set targets farther away ablaze.

Wherever it passed, it left trails of fire and burning bodies behind. Its ability to spread flames was even more terrifying than that of a red dragon.

Taking advantage of the mobility granted by its Fiery Teleportation, the Wildfire Spirit darted from place to place, scattering Flame Seeds to strike enemies and sow chaos.

And every enemy killed by the three of them counted toward Anser's experience!

[Target killed. Gained 55 experience points.]

[Target killed. Gained 422 experience points.]

[Target killed. Gained 1,900 experience points. Level up!]

Anser paid no attention to the experience notifications flashing past. Instead, he focused his attention on a group of well-equipped duergar elites wearing grim expressions.

The duergar leading them held a warhammer in his left hand and a javelin in his right, staring coldly at Anser.

Anser circled at low altitude, making no move to attack recklessly.

'Legendary?'

He had already used his Moonlight Holy Symbol to investigate the army and confirmed that there were no Chosen among the duergar.

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