Chapter 257: The Eve of the Founding Ceremony

Today was the last day of winter in Nordhill. White Castle's elite troops had already arrived for the ceremony, but to maintain a sense of mystery, the white dragon's forces were stationed in a temporary military camp outside the city.

Even the wooden fences, standing several meters high around the camp, could not hold back the public's curiosity. Crowds gathered along the perimeter, peering through the gaps with friendly or inquisitive gazes to inspect the army within.

Spies from other factions were undoubtedly mingling in the crowd, but no one cared. These troops would make their public debut in Kingdom Square tomorrow anyway.

At the end of White Castle's Royal Capital Avenue, right at the foot of the royal palace mountain, lay the venue for the founding ceremony: Kingdom Square.

Festive banners already draped the high platforms of Kingdom Square. This was Gurgalu's doing; while the royal palace reveled day and night, the Two-Headed Ogre Chieftain had been working tirelessly to prepare for the founding ceremony.

He procured the celebratory banners, coordinated housing for the massive influx of visitors, organized guard patrols to maintain public order, and kept the mage troops on standby in case a sudden fire broke out in Oqi City.

Under White Castle's coordination, Oqi City's local residents had opened their doors to host the outsiders. There were simply too many visitors for the city's inns to accommodate.

Whenever this many people gathered, security issues were bound to arise, making round-the-clock military patrols a necessity.

But make no mistake, these patrols were not meant to protect the local residents. Any monster capable of settling in the exorbitantly expensive Oqi City was undoubtedly an elite among their kind, typically possessing extraordinary martial prowess.

The patrols were primarily there to rush to crime scenes as quickly as possible—lest the criminals be beaten to death by angry monsters before the guards even arrived.

Perhaps realizing this, the vast majority of the visitors behaved themselves, managing to get along quite well with their hosts.

Of course, no matter the world, there were always a few blind, foolish thieves who stirred up trouble in search of fortune or a quick thrill.

Even if these fools weren't caught red-handed, they were quickly rooted out by the noses of the gnolls and the magical tracking of the mages, then clapped in irons and thrown into prison.

Hogger, serving as the temporary captain of public security, publicly declared that if this were in the past, his explosive temper would have ensured not a single one of them survived.

Over the past few days, one thorny case had given Hogger a headache: a thief who, after being caught by a resident, remained completely unrepentant and boldly claimed to be the royal grandson of a certain nation.

However, by the time the city guards arrived, this royal grandson was on his last breath. The monsters didn't care about his background; they beat him up first and asked questions later.

Thanks to emergency first aid from the clerics, the royal grandson barely survived.

Yet, the royal grandson still failed to read the room. Upon waking up, he threatened revenge, only to be gang-beaten by the furious residents a second time until he went into shock.

If Hogger hadn't arrived in time, the unlucky kid—now suffering multiple fractures across his entire body—likely would not have lived to see the next day's sun.

After dragging the thief back to the prison and looking into his identity, Hogger discovered that the boy really was the junior of a VIP guest attending the ceremony, brought along just for the spectacle.

Disinterested in playing mahjong, the royal grandson had left the royal palace in search of excitement. Treating the monster-filled Oqi City like a playground for adventure, he had randomly picked a house to burglarize and nearly got himself killed in the process.

Hogger felt a massive headache coming on. If mishandled, this could spark a diplomatic incident, so he immediately reported the matter to the White Dragon Lord.

The White Dragon Lord was equally speechless. Fortunately, no one else had been hurt. He informed the boy's elder about the matter. This guest was not only a prince from a developed nation in the South, but also a legendary powerhouse.

However, neither of those titles meant anything to the White Dragon Lord. Even the prince's High-Tier Legend ancestors would have to speak to the dragon in a negotiating tone.

Stirring up trouble right before Yafiavi's founding ceremony was unacceptable. If this legendary powerhouse did not provide a satisfactory explanation, the White Dragon Lord would have no choice but to make an example of him.

The White Dragon Lord would never forget the look on that legendary powerhouse's face upon hearing the news—turning green one second and purple the next, just like a chameleon.

After a moment's thought, the legendary powerhouse offered a high-tier magical item in exchange for the victim's forgiveness. Thus, the White Dragon Lord pardoned the royal grandson rotting in the jail.

With his junior having done something so shameful, the legendary powerhouse had no face left to stick around. He immediately found an excuse and departed, taking his entourage and the trouble-making boy with him.

And so, the matter was put to rest.

Thanks to the cooperative efforts of the army and the citizens, Oqi City avoided any uncontrollable violence despite being overcrowded.

Order within the city remained strictly controlled, but wind and clouds were beginning to gather in the sky.

Sensing the moisture in the air, Gurgalu frowned. He turned and headed for White Castle, reporting the situation to the White Dragon Lord, who was currently chatting with friends.

A magical array maintained a constant temperature and air pressure inside the royal palace, so the White Dragon Lord hadn't noticed the changing weather outside.

Upon receiving Gurgalu's report, the White Dragon Lord teleported directly into the Magic Tower.

The founding ceremony was tomorrow morning; it absolutely could not rain. Soggy ground and rain-drenched banners would severely dull the luster of the event, and the White Dragon Lord refused to let that happen.

The White Dragon Lord rested his dragon claws on the Mage Tower's floating Control Core. Magical power surged within his body, and the elements around the Mage Tower began to converge.

One of the Mage Tower's functions was to massively amplify the power of spells. The principle was easy enough to understand; judging strictly by its exterior shape, the Magic Tower was basically a super-sized magic wand.

Changing the weather in a specific region wasn't entirely difficult—it just required a Gale Spell to blow the clouds away. However, it wasn't exactly simple either, because the spell's area of effect had to be massive, requiring metamagic techniques.

Of course, for the White Dragon Lord backed by his Mage Tower, this was a piece of cake.

An incantation spilled rapidly from the White Dragon Lord's lips.

"Gale Spell: Legendary Rank!"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Centered on the crystal at the peak of the Mage Tower, a howling tempest blasted upward. The cloud layer was ripped apart, billowing out in all directions.

The citizens of Oqi City watched in amazement as a hole tore open in the clouds right above the White Tower. A beam of golden sunlight pierced the gap, bathing the snow-white body of the Magic Tower in a dreamlike radiance.

The White Dragon Lord channeled energy from the Elemental Pool to sustain the super-massive Gale Spell.

Before anyone could react, the hole in the clouds expanded rapidly. Sunlight steadily reclaimed the sky for tens of thousands of meters around Oqi City, the warm rays shining down upon its residents.

On the main street, a gnoll shielded his eyes from the sudden brightness, a profound sense of pride swelling in his chest. This is our kingdom. A powerful kingdom that not even the weather can obstruct.

The gathering clouds overhead had caused anxiety for more than just Gurgalu. Many residents had worried that a heavy downpour would ruin tomorrow's founding ceremony; the monsters' anticipation for Yafiavi was just as intense as the White Dragon Lord's.

In fact, many monsters were looking forward to the nation's establishment even more than he was.

To the White Dragon Lord, whether Yafiavi was founded or not wouldn't fundamentally impact his life.

But for the monsters of the Overseas Archipelago, they were being upgraded from wild beasts to citizens of Yafiavi. From then on, they would have their own motherland and a spiritual pillar to lean on.

For decades, the city of trade, Kasos, had served as White Castle's gateway. It had allowed the long-isolated monsters of the Overseas Archipelago to access information from the outside world.

The first few words of a greeting from human outsiders often included questions about which kingdom they hailed from. Consequently, the concept of a "nation" had taken root in the monsters' consciousness.

Meanwhile, when monsters greeted each other, they typically asked which tribe they belonged to. Whenever they did, they could feel the peculiar stares of the outside visitors.

Gradually, they came to understand that "nation" was a far more advanced term than "tribe"; it was a symbol of a higher level of civilization.

The public outcry to establish a kingdom had grown louder and louder. This strong, collective desire of the masses was one of the reasons the White Dragon Lord had decided to found the nation.

The White Dragon Lord had no idea that his minor act of changing the weather had instilled a profound sense of pride in the monster-filled city. Viewing the scene through the Mage Tower's omniscient perspective, he saw the clear skies above Oqi City and felt deeply satisfied. He let his Gold Finger maintain the magical output so the clouds wouldn't gather again.

Time trickled by, and night gradually fell.

Tonight, the guests in White Castle did not continue their all-night gaming sessions, instead going to sleep early to rest and recharge for tomorrow's founding ceremony.

The White Dragon Lord, however, found it difficult to sleep. He stood at the top level of the Mage Tower, gazing down at Oqi City, where most of the lights had already been extinguished.

Rumble!

A flash of white light illuminated the sky. The White Dragon Lord looked up, and a moment later, the faint sound of thunder drifted over.

It was raining in the distance, but Oqi City remained bathed in starlight.

If one were to look down from the sky at this moment, they would see a bizarre sight: right in the center of dark clouds where silver lightning danced wildly, a perfectly round hole had been carved out. Within that gap, a majestic city backed against a mountain stood quietly, resembling a beast crouching upon the earth.

The rain poured on while the White Dragon Lord pondered in the dark of night.

It had been decades since he arrived in this world, and he had long since adapted to his new identity and life. Yet in this very moment, he felt somewhat adrift.

Yafiavi was about to be officially established.

This marked the realization of the White Dragon Lord's long-standing goal of finding a foothold in this world. In fact, he had massively overachieved.

But with the completion of the goal he had chased for so long, the White Dragon Lord felt somewhat aimless. What would his direction be moving forward?

Should he just sleep peacefully and enjoy life? Should he expand his influence and turn the Yafiavi Kingdom into the strongest empire in Nordhill? Or perhaps he should strive in his cultivation to acquire immense power and dominate the multiverse?

Very quickly, however, the White Dragon Lord cast aside his confusion.

Only kids make choices; this lord wanted it all!

In truth, the White Dragon Lord's original dream was merely to gain enough strength to protect himself, carve out a little corner in this dangerous world, and quietly live as a wealthy dragon.

But as he climbed higher and higher, seeing more and more, he realized he had only brushed the tip of the iceberg in this magnificent world.

The vast and mysterious Star Realm, the blood-soaked Bottomless Abyss, the treacherous Bator Hell, and the serene, beautiful Mount Celestia—these realms gathered countless powerhouses of the multiverse.

Even if the White Dragon Lord lived to the Ancient Dragon stage, he would only just rival a Weak Divine Power. Forget the multiverse; he wouldn't even be the strongest within Nordhill.

Moreover, "Weak Divine Power" referred to deities without any formidable backing. For a Weak Divine Power deity like the mother of evil dragons, Tiamat—whose true body inherently boasted an exceedingly high Creature Level—even an ordinary Greater Divine Power would not have a guaranteed chance of victory.

Looking at the entire multiverse, the current White Dragon Lord had only just broken out of the category of the weak.

Thinking of Merlin Heavenly Principle, and the leader of the Winter Legion, the Master of the Winter Legion—who was every bit as strong if not stronger than Merlin—the White Dragon Lord let out a sigh. He still had a very long road ahead of him.

The White Dragon Lord's power was divided into two main parts: the combat strength of his true dragon body, and the combat strength derived from his Mage class.

The growth of a dragon's true body relied entirely on the accumulation of time. The early stages were smooth sailing, but the further along he went, the harder it became to improve. The path after becoming an Ancient Giant Dragon was something the White Dragon Lord would have to slowly figure out on his own.

In the later stages, it was actually less difficult to progress in the Mage class. Merlin Heavenly Principle was an excellent example. The Ancient Gold Dragon had lived for tens of thousands of years, yet its strength had not even reached the realm of Weak Divine Power. Meanwhile, Merlin Heavenly Principle was only a few thousand years old, but his combat power rivaled an Intermediate Divine Power.

Therefore, the White Dragon Lord made up his mind to shift his focus entirely onto his Mage cultivation.

Mage cultivation required massive amounts of resources. If he had to gather them all entirely on his own, the White Dragon Lord would spread himself too thin, no matter how strong he was. A powerful kingdom would be his best backing.

Resources for the Legendary stage were manageable, as most could be found within Nordhill. But the experimental materials required by a High-Tier Legendary Mage could often only be obtained from other planes.

The White Dragon Lord silently rejoiced that he had been born in such a powerful plane as Nordhill. As long as he was willing to spend the money, he could buy all these things.

Of course, the "money" here didn't refer to vulgar objects like gold coins, but rather points within the Council.

Currently, the White Dragon Lord didn't have an urgent need for points, but once his Mage level broke into the High-Tier Legend realm, he would need an enormous amount of them.

A lack of long-term planning would inevitably lead to immediate troubles.

Stockpiling extra resources was never a bad idea.

There were two primary ways to earn points. The first was by executing missions issued by the Council, such as White Castle taking on the job of clearing out monsters in the East Sea. The second was by exchanging resources for points; materials like the Mithril and Elemental Crystals in the White Dragon Lord's possession were constantly in demand by the Council.

However, his Mithril inventory was limited, and the day would come when the Madilan World's Elemental Crystals were completely mined out. Idling around and eating through his mountain of wealth simply wouldn't do.

Exploring foreign planes was the fastest way to obtain resources, so the White Dragon Lord planned to do exactly that to acquire more.

Exploring foreign planes meant dealing with troublesome native creatures, but it also entailed a series of trivial tasks: clearing out less dangerous organisms, gathering resources, and managing transportation.

A prosperous, powerful Yafiavi Kingdom would serve as the white dragon's greatest assistant in conquering other planes.

The White Dragon Lord grew increasingly eager for the Yafiavi Kingdom's very first step: the founding ceremony.