Chapter 191: The Missing Flame Demon

After the gold dragon left, the White Dragon Lord, in high spirits, took the token it had given him—a golden scale—and flew toward the Great Orc Prairie.

The social system of the Orcs in the Madilan World still operated under the ancient chieftain system. The various tribes were scattered across the land. Only when faced with war would all the Orc warriors gather and, under the leadership of a grand chieftain, unleash terrifying combat power.

The position of grand chieftain was elected from among the chieftains of the three strongest tribes. During times of peace, these three chieftains took turns holding the title.

Currently, the position of grand chieftain had just rotated to the chieftain of the Warcry Clan. The White Dragon Lord flapped his wings and flew toward the Warcry Clan's territory.

He planned to use the Orcs' written language to record the knowledge in his mind, hand it over to the Orcs, and let them tinker with it on their own.

In fact, this was exactly what he did.

After the White Dragon Lord presented the golden dragon scale to the Guardian of the Warcry Clan—a red dragon—all of his requests were met with the clan's full cooperation.

When the Warcry Clan's craftsmen forged the first qualified recurve bow right in front of him, the White Dragon Lord nodded in satisfaction. He left the Warcry Clan and flew toward the Blood Axe Clan.

Beneath the blue sky and white clouds, the White Dragon Lord leisurely glided across the heavens. On the ground below, cattle and sheep grazing on tender grass simply felt the space overhead darken. They jerked their heads up, but finding that the source of the shadow was already far away, they relaxed and went back to eating.

After flying for several hours, the White Dragon Lord arrived in the skies above the Blood Axe Clan's camp. He found that Gnosh Bloodaxe had indeed not disappointed him.

In just a few short days, the Blood Axe Clan, which originally had fewer than a hundred members, had expanded into a small clan of two to three hundred. The clansmen who previously could only sleep out in the open were now living in brand-new cowhide tents.

Roar!

A resonant dragon roar echoed through the sky as the White Dragon Lord descended from the heavens, landing in front of the Blood Axe Clan's camp.

A black shadow darted out from the Orc camp. It was none other than the Nether Panther he hadn't seen for days—Yuir.

"Yuir, what have you and Gnosh Bloodaxe been up to these past few days?"

"At first, with my help, Gnosh led the Blood Axe Clan to ambush a human smuggling caravan, acquiring a massive amount of supplies. He used the plundered wealth to buy a large number of cattle and sheep. Then, he started absorbing wandering Orcs, and the Blood Axe Clan became what it is now."

The Nether Panther looked back at the large expanse of brand-new cowhide tents behind him. He had watched with his own eyes as this tiny clan grew to its current state in just a few days.

The White Dragon Lord nodded inwardly. Gnosh Bloodaxe had some brains after all; he had immediately put a super combatant like Yuir to use and pulled off a major heist right off the bat.

Thieves robbing thieves!

But the consequences of such a heist weren't something an ordinary person could handle. To dare smuggle across the borders of the two races, how could the masters behind the caravan possibly lack connections?

"Did you clean up the loose ends?"

"Rest assured, Master, not a single enemy escaped."

The White Dragon Lord nodded in satisfaction. If the loose ends hadn't been dealt with and the enemy traced the melon to touch the vine and found them, the White Dragon Lord could have easily solved the Blood Axe Clan's troubles.

But if that had been the case, Gnosh Bloodaxe's value in the white dragon's heart would have drastically decreased.

After all, what the white dragon needed were subordinates who could solve problems for him, not ones who caused him trouble.

During the brief pause in the conversation between the Nether Panther and the White Dragon Lord, Gnosh Bloodaxe also reacted. Holding a battleaxe in one hand and a crossbow in the other, he hurried out of the camp toward the White Dragon Lord.

A joyful smile hung on the Orc chieftain's face. Over the past few days, the Blood Axe Clan had grown stronger day by day. His clansmen no longer had to live in their old, tattered tents, suffering the wind and rain. Nor did they have to worry about what they would eat the next day after finishing their dinner.

All these changes were entirely because the Blood Axe Clan had the white dragon's backing. Otherwise, even with ten times the courage, he would never have dared to attack a human smuggling caravan!

Gnosh Bloodaxe quickly walked up to the White Dragon Lord, set his fine steel long-handled battleaxe aside, and dropped to one knee, holding the crossbow high above his head with both hands.

"I offer you my highest respects, Great Master. Your servant swears in the name of the Beast God, the Blood Axe Clan will forever follow in your footsteps."

The White Dragon Lord looked at the crossbow in the Orc's hands. It was exquisitely crafted, its surface engraved with gorgeous patterns—unmistakably the style of human nobility.

This was likely the most precious spoil of war from that battle.

"Very good, Gnosh! I accept the Blood Axe Clan's loyalty."

As soon as the words fell, a Mage Hand lifted the crossbow.

The Orc had never seen magic before and was utterly stunned by the White Dragon Lord's display, his gaze toward the white dragon turning even more fanatical.

"Now, I bestow this crossbow upon you. I hope you will put it to good use."

To an Orc, this crossbow was a precious treasure, but to the white dragon, it was completely useless. Rather than keeping it as a mere decoration, it was better to give it to the Orc so the weapon could realize its true value.

The crossbow spun in the air before returning to the Orc's hands.

Gnosh was taken aback for a moment before he snapped to his senses. He received the crossbow with both hands, wild with joy.

"The Blood Axe Clan will absolutely not disappoint you, Master!"

"Excellent."

The White Dragon Lord nodded in satisfaction.

"In a few years, the Orcs will engage in a decisive battle against humanity. During this time, you must drill your troops and be ready for war at any moment."

"Yes!"

...

A day later, inside the Ancient Gold Dragon Lair on Dragon Island.

"What! The Flame Demon is missing?!"

The White Dragon Lord exclaimed. After thinking for a moment, Amos spoke.

"That's impossible! His wing is still injured. It couldn't have healed that fast!"

The Ancient Gold Dragon, Adelaide, was equally puzzled.

"At first, I found the Flame Demon's tracks. I followed his footprints all the way, but at a certain point, they just suddenly vanished!"

The White Dragon Lord frowned. He hadn't sensed the Flame Demon crushing the Scale. Bound by his oath, even if the Flame Demon Lord had found a way to leave this plane, it was unlikely he would depart immediately, because he first had to tell the white dragon the method of leaving to terminate the oath.

"Could he have used flight magic to leave?!"

The White Dragon Lord quickly overturned his own guess. Until he found a way to replenish his magic, the Flame Demon was unlikely to waste his mana on travel.

Amos took out the Flame Bead left behind by the Flame Demon and rapidly chanted an incantation.

Locate Creature!

The Flame Bead contained a trace of the Flame Demon's spiritual essence. By using High Tier magic—Locate Creature—he might be able to sense the Flame Demon's location.

But the magical aura flashed and vanished instantly. Amos received no information.

"Strange! Senior, is there any place in the Madilan World that can isolate the effects of magic?"

Without even needing to think, the Ancient Gold Dragon blurted out.

"Storm Bay!"