Chapter 249: Return and Breakthrough

Sodmar watched the flames dance within the burning hall. Through his actions, this rival king had earned the orc chieftain's respect. Catching sight of the two corpses on the steps, he strode over, hoisted them up, and tossed them into the inferno.

With that done, Sodmar turned to face the orc army.

"Everyone, the Luonan Empire has fallen! We are victorious!"

They reveled through the night.

The next day, the orc army meticulously scoured the city. They packed the Elemental Crystals into sealed chests and delivered them to the White Dragon Lord. However, fleeing human nobility had absconded with a massive portion of the wealth; the remaining quantity of Elemental Crystals fell far short of Sodmar's expectations.

Standing beside the chests of Elemental Crystals, Sodmar cautiously observed the White Dragon Lord, his heart pounding with anxiety.

"Master, I will immediately dispatch men to hunt down the Luonan remnants," he said.

Compared to the apprehensive orc chieftain, the White Dragon Lord was far more composed.

"There is no need."

The White Dragon Lord stored away the chests of Elemental Crystals, flapped his wings, and took to the sky with the five dragons.

Indeed, there was no need. The entire Madilan World was already firmly in his grasp. Sooner or later, those scattered Elemental Crystals would find their way into White Castle's vaults through various means.

Right now, gathering Elemental Crystals was no longer his top priority. The most crucial task was establishing the symbol of the Madilan World's new era—the shared sanctuary for humans and orcs: Yage Academy.

As for the location of Yage Academy, the White Dragon Lord had already made his choice. It would sit near the border between the Luonan Empire and the Kingdom Alliance, upon the majestic Ermilu Mountains.

The Ermilu Mountains had originally served as the border between the two powers, but the mighty Luonan Empire had steadily encroached upon it, completely absorbing the mountain range into its territory.

Leading the five dragons, the White Dragon Lord flew toward the Ermilu Mountains.

Although the Ermilu Mountains were technically Luonan territory, humans rarely ventured into its towering peaks and dense forests. Because of this, the range retained the untamed appearance of primeval wilderness.

None of that, however, posed a problem to flying dragons.

The White Dragon Lord commanded the five dragons to use their dragon fire to carve out a path on either side of an unnamed, snow-capped peak.

The White Dragon himself descended upon the summit. His sharp claws pierced fiercely into the stone, shattering the rock. Massive boulders rumbled as they tumbled down the slopes.

A few hours later, the sun began to set. The golden-red glow of dusk washed over the massive white dragon resting on the newly flattened mountain summit, casting a brilliant golden sheen over the White Dragon Lord's pale scales.

Surveying the three thousand square meters of cleared space around him, the White Dragon Lord felt a deep sense of satisfaction. This place would become the dream destination for everyone in the Madilan World, and this unnamed peak beneath his feet would therefore become the world's Sacred Mountain.

Using his magic, he smoothed out the carved-out summit until the platform was as flat and pristine as a calm lake.

With the preliminary preparations complete, the White Dragon Lord retrieved the custom-made Portal. He positioned it squarely in the center of the platform and cast Transmute Rock to Mud, sinking the portal's base deep into the ground. Then, he cast Transmute Mud to Stone, firmly fusing the gateway to the platform.

Just like that, atop a snow-capped peak, an exquisite Portal stood securely embedded into a rock platform that looked entirely natural. The profound runes carved across its frame shimmered with a faint white light.

It was beautiful and mysterious.

This was the core structure of Yage Academy—the Cross-Realm Portal!

Once the work was finished, the White Dragon Lord took to the sky to inspect the mountain. The most prominent feature was naturally the flat expanse at the summit. Aside from that, there was a series of terraced plateaus situated halfway up the mountain.

These rare mid-mountain flatlands were the primary reason he had chosen this particular peak as the academy's location.

Orcs and humans would work together to construct a comprehensive campus on this mountainside, which would serve as Yage Academy's inner court.

Meanwhile, the flat terrain on either side of the mountain's base would be used to build two outer courts, one for each race.

According to the White Dragon Lord's plan, Yage Academy would be split into an inner court and an outer court. The outer court would serve for preliminary screening and generating wealth.

There were two ways to enter the outer court of Yage Academy.

The first was through pure merit. By demonstrating exceptional martial prowess or intellect and passing the continent-wide selection exams, a student could earn a spot in the outer court while paying only a small tuition fee.

The second route was for self-funded students. These individuals had to pay a massive sum of Elemental Crystals to gain admission to the outer court. This was the White Dragon Lord's method for gathering wealth.

Furthermore, the upper echelon of the Madilan World would fight tooth and nail for the privilege of paying to send their children to Yage Academy. Since the annual quota for self-funded students was limited, admissions would go to whoever offered the most Elemental Crystals.

Even if these self-funded students ultimately failed to earn the right to step through the Portal, they would still have the chance to befriend elites from across the world. The connections they forged at the academy would carry them far on their future paths.

Through this system, the Madilan World's Elemental Crystals would flow endlessly into White Castle's vaults.

Wealth could buy entry into the outer court, but inside, strength became the only currency that mattered. Only those who passed through rigorous rounds of selection would be permitted to enter the inner court on the mountainside.

Within the inner court, the elite of human society and the orc tribes would compete together for the one thousand Portal slots available every twenty years.

One could easily foresee just how fierce that competition would be.

Only those exceptional talents, chosen one in ten thousand, would pass through the Portal to the Nordhill Continent to serve White Castle.

...

Ten days later, atop the Sacred Mountain and around the Portal's platform, the leaders of the Kingdom Alliance and the chieftains of the major orc clans gathered at the White Dragon Lord's summons.

Under the White Dragon Lord's witness, the orcs and humans signed a peace treaty. Both sides agreed to establish the Ermilu Mountains as their shared border and pledged mutual non-aggression. Any leader who violated this pact would have their family stripped of the right to participate in Yage Academy's exams.

With this, the Madilan World was bound to usher in an era of lasting peace.

After the treaty was signed, the White Dragon Lord announced the Yage Academy project. He commanded both races to construct the academy's infrastructure as swiftly as possible and to collect all manner of texts to enrich its library.

Following that, he announced the list of individuals who would accompany him to Nordhill. Most of those selected were orcs who had distinguished themselves in the war, followed by widely acclaimed, outstanding human administrators.

Under the White Dragon Lord's special decree, these individuals were permitted to bring their immediate families to settle down in Nordhill.

Finally, using the Elemental Crystals, the White Dragon Lord activated the Portal and brought the group, along with the five dragons, back to Nordhill.

And with that, the story of the Madilan World came to a close for now.

...

In the Overseas Archipelago, construction of the new capital was already complete. The White Dragon Lord named this nascent yet destined-for-greatness city Oqi City.

Exactly!

It was Oqi—an abbreviation of the white dragon family's surname, Aldrich.

Even though Oqi City had only just been built and still smelled faintly of stone dust, a massive number of residents had already moved in. Monsters of every kind strolled down the broad stone avenues.

Naturally, the monsters able to secure property rights in Oqi City this early were no ordinary beasts; they were all the cream of the crop within their respective tribes.

As these powerful monsters leisurely walked the streets, they couldn't help but look up toward the towering mountain base, gazing at the gigantic Magic Tower rising from within the massive white castle.

Even though this wasn't their first time seeing the majestic Magic Tower, they were still irresistibly captivated by its sheer scale and beauty.

This Seven-Tier Giant Magic Tower stood just as tall as Snowfall Peak behind it. Ethereal mists wreathed its midsection, while at its very pinnacle, an enormous diamond-shaped white gemstone slowly revolved, refracting dazzling light under the sun.

This was the residence of the monster army's supreme ruler, the Master of the Overseas Archipelagos, the White Dragon Lord—Amos Aldrich.

At the center of the giant white castle, on the sixth floor of the Magic Tower, the White Dragon Lord, Felicia, and Willy were each soaking in an Elemental Pool.

Resting his head against the rim of the pool, the White Dragon Lord pondered his next steps.

First, now that the new capital was finished, it was time for the nation named Yafiavi to officially reveal itself to the world.

The founding of the nation was imminent!

But this brought up an immediate question: should they declare themselves the Afiaiv Kingdom, or the Yafeiawei Empire?

In terms of sheer landmass, the combined area of the Overseas Archipelago was larger than an average kingdom, but it fell far short of imperial standards.

From that perspective, calling it a kingdom felt more appropriate.

However, if he factored in the expanse of ocean between the islands, Yafiavi could absolutely claim the title of an empire.

Because of this, the White Dragon Lord found it difficult to choose.

After mulling it over for a few hours, the White Dragon Lord decided to stick to his longstanding strategy: lay low!

After all, claiming the title of an empire was far too flashy. It went entirely against White Castle's usual style.

Moreover, while the requirements for an empire weren't strictly quantified, one couldn't just claim the title on a whim.

Take the strongest empire in Nordhill, for example—the Bolton Dynasty. Just on the surface, the Bolton Dynasty boasted three High-Tier Legends, including a standout powerhouse like the Grand Duke Silver Dragon.

The Bolton Dynasty's magical prowess was equally not to be underestimated. They possessed two imperial Floating Towers, over thirty Magic Towers scattered across their major cities, and hundreds of enchanted Warships.

In terms of military might, they commanded an ace force renowned across the Blood War Battlefield—the Sun-Setting Army.

Though the Sun-Setting Army numbered only ten thousand, every single soldier was an elite. Their rank-and-file consisted of High Tier professionals, Master Tier professionals served as mid-to-low ranking officers, and legendary practitioners acted as their high-level commanders. Even their legion commander was one of the Bolton Dynasty's three High-Tier Legends—the Imperial Marshal, Orbis Lutherd.

In contrast, White Castle's strength was far more meager. They only had a single Magic Tower that couldn't fly and a handful of enchanted Warships. While they weren't lacking in High Tier combat power, their numbers suffered a steep drop-off at the Master Tier. When it came to the Legendary Rank Level, there was an outright gap.

With such a stark contrast, declaring Yafiavi an empire would likely only invite the world's ridicule.

However, the White Dragon Lord wasn't discouraged in the slightest. The Bolton Dynasty was Nordhill's most powerful empire and had existed for millennia, whereas White Castle hadn't even been established for seventy years. Give the White Dragon Lord another thousand years!

No!

Just five hundred years! That was all the time the White Dragon Lord needed to feel fully confident that White Castle's power would catch up to the Bolton Dynasty.

Barely more than seventy years had passed since his birth, yet he had already built a faction that forced most kingdoms to look up in awe. He had also secured a true foundation to rely upon—his Magic Tower.

Although his Magic Tower wasn't a Floating Tower, the exorbitant cost poured into its construction granted it combat capabilities that rivaled one.

Coupled with his own strength that paralleled a High-Tier Legend, as long as he remained within the Magic Tower's amplification range, the White Dragon Lord feared no one—unless Merlin Heavenly Principle came in person.

With this, White Castle's rule over the Overseas Archipelago was utterly unshakeable.

Thinking of this, the White Dragon Lord felt he could finally sleep peacefully.

Suddenly, catching sight of Dragon Brother and Dragon Sister nearby, he recalled another matter: ordinary Dragons officially entered the Adult stage around eighty years of age.

Now, Dragon Brother and Dragon Sister weren't far from reaching the Adult stage. In at most two or three years, they would fall into a deep slumber and transform into genuine Legendary Dragons.

That realization reminded the White Dragon Lord of something else—the Bloodline Advancement Ritual.

Dragon Brother and Dragon Sister were both still ordinary Dragons, while the White Dragon Lord was an Ancestral White Dragon. If he used his own blood to perform the Bloodline Advancement Ritual for them before they entered their slumber, the two siblings would reap tremendous benefits.

Boosting their strength also meant elevating White Castle's overall power. The White Dragon Lord immediately decided that right after the nation's founding, he would begin preparations for the Bloodline Advancement Ritual.

Hmm...

He could even include the Earth Dragon King in the process.

With his decision made, the White Dragon Lord comfortably closed his eyes, savoring the feeling of being enveloped by magical elements.

The complete lack of magical elements in the Madilan World had made the White Dragon Lord wildly uncomfortable—like stepping out of a pristine natural environment straight into the suffocating smog of an imperial capital.

Now that he was back in Nordhill, he naturally wanted to luxuriate in the sensation of being enveloped by magical elements.

Here, in the safety of his Magic Tower, the taut string of tension in the White Dragon Lord's heart finally snapped, allowing his body to completely relax.

Suddenly, the liquid Magical Energy inside the Elemental Pool surged wildly, drilling straight into the White Dragon Lord's body.

Startled, the White Dragon Lord instantly realized that his opportunity to advance into a Legendary Mage had arrived. He hurriedly calmed his mind and focused on breaking through to the Legendary Rank.

For the longest time, relying on his Level 19 Half-Step Legendary Rank Mage level, the vast magical knowledge from his Dragon Inheritance, and a Dragon's boundless mana, the White Dragon Lord's spellcasting capabilities were in no way inferior to those of a true Legendary Mage.

But at his core, the White Dragon Lord was still just a Half-Step Legendary Rank Mage. With his Mage level halted at that threshold and no breakthrough opportunity in sight, he had always felt a sense of helpless frustration.

Breakthrough opportunities, however, weren't something one could find simply by searching hard enough.

After returning to Nordhill, soaking in liquefied magical elements with his mind in a state of ultimate relaxation, the White Dragon Lord's long-awaited opportunity had finally surfaced.

Thanks to the profound accumulation of his past efforts, the White Dragon Lord's breakthrough proceeded without a hitch. When he opened his eyes again, he saw that the Elemental Pool beneath him had been drained completely dry, and the liquid in the three adjacent pools had dropped by nearly half.

Dragon Brother and Dragon Sister stared at their awakened older sibling in pleasant surprise.

Willy spoke up.

"Congratulations, Brother."