Chapter 377: The Dragon Legion Strikes

"The peak of the Sudar Mountain Range is too easily exposed, so I don't recommend building the Portal there. Both Red Leaf Valley and the underground secret cave are ideal locations."

"Red Leaf Valley is situated in the Grey Wolf Mountain Range to the north. Its vegetation is lush, and the surroundings are completely desolate for hundreds of li. It's highly suitable for concealment."

"In terms of concealment, the underground secret cave in the southern Ruade Forest is even better. Unless someone knows the exact entrance, they could never dream of finding the Portal's location. However, a large city sits just ten thousand meters away, and within it stands a Titan Magic Tower."

Willy looked at Mage Hardison.

"Lord Hardison, how about we split our forces to avoid being wiped out in one fell swoop?"

"Caw! Lord Willy, great minds think alike!"

The dragon and the human exchanged smiles, but sparks of competition clashed in their eyes.

Because of the agreement between the White Dragon Lord and Grimos Raven to distribute the plane's profits based on military merit, White Castle and the Raven Council were both allies with shared interests and fierce competitors. However, one thing was absolutely certain: their alliance far outweighed their rivalry over profits.

"Then White Castle will take the underground secret cave, and the Raven Council can head to Red Leaf Valley."

Hardison nodded in agreement. White Castle's monster army did not need illumination, whereas the Raven Council consisted mostly of humans, who required light to see.

After deciding on their respective Portal locations, the three discussed their attack plan. Dumahado brought out a world map of the Muxinge Plane and spread it across the table.

Aside from the landmasses and oceans, the most striking features on the map were thirty-two Magic Towers, specifically marked with red triangular symbols. Dumahado pointed at these marks.

"You two, this is the distribution map of the Magic Tower defense system established by the Titans. These thirty-two Magic Towers monitor the Muxinge Plane with almost no blind spots. Within their detection range, if any large-scale abnormal magical reaction occurs, the Titans will discover it..."

Dumahado relayed the intelligence the Resistance Army had gathered over many years to his allies. Willy and Mage Hardison listened quietly.

Judging from Dumahado's explanation, the Resistance Army had suffered heavily under the Magic Tower defense system over the years, which was how they had managed to obtain this intelligence. Even so, the information they had collected barely scratched the surface.

Willy and Mage Hardison hailed from Nordhill, a world with a highly developed magical civilization. The two of them understood the true terror of a Magic Tower defense system far better than the plane's natives. Detecting abnormal magical fluctuations was merely one of a Magic Tower's most basic functions.

However, the human and the dragon did not interrupt Dumahado's well-meaning explanation, patiently waiting for him to finish.

"Phew..."

Having poured out years of accumulated intelligence in one breath, Dumahado let out a sigh of relief.

"You two, there isn't much I can do for you other than inciting the populace to riot and draw some of the Titans' attention. Please, you must achieve victory."

Saying this, Dumahado stood up. The other members of the Resistance Army followed suit, bowing deeply alongside him toward the human and the dragon.

"We're counting on you!"

Despite years of struggle and the secret support of a massive populace, the Resistance Army hadn't achieved a single victory. Instead, they had suffered disastrous losses, hounded like stray dogs by the Titans and their puppet regime. Dumahado had gradually realized that his enemies were far more powerful than he could ever have imagined.

Dumahado's heart had already grown cold and discouraged, surviving merely for the sake of surviving. He never expected the Raven Council's appearance to cast a ray of hope into his life. Like a drowning man clutching at a floating straw, no matter how slim that hope was, Dumahado was ready to give it his all—even if the price was his own life.

Sensing the tragic, heroic aura radiating from the man before him, Willy felt a surge of profound respect. Regardless of nationality or race, a warrior willing to march calmly to his death for his beliefs was worthy of admiration.

However, Willy felt that even if Dumahado sacrificed himself, it wouldn't accomplish much.

If the Titans, armed with a Magic Tower defense system, truly wanted to deal with a motley crew led by a native Legend, they would have had ten thousand opportunities to wipe the Resistance Army out entirely.

Willy estimated that the only reason the Titans hadn't done so was likely to find some amusement in their boring lives. If the Resistance Army actually had the capability to threaten Titan rule, Dumahado absolutely wouldn't have survived for a single day.

"Ahem. Lord Dumahado, I suggest the Resistance Army prioritize preserving your lives. The distribution map of the Titan Magic Tower defense system and the Portal locations you provided were exactly the intelligence we lacked the most. Your contributions are already more than enough."

"Caw! Lord Willy spoke the very words in my mind. It would be best if you kept your lives. We still plan on using the Resistance Army as the core to establish a new regime in the Muxinge Plane."

After persuading Dumahado to abandon his suicidal assault, the human and the dragon immediately set off. Mage Hardison hurried toward Red Leaf Valley deep within the northern Grey Wolf Mountain Range, while Willy headed south toward the Ruade Forest to find the underground secret cave.

The Muxinge Plane was only a Small Material Plane with limited landmass, but it was still an entire world. Its total area was roughly over a dozen times the size of the Afiaiv Kingdom. Coupled with his heavy caution, Willy's journey wasn't going to be completely smooth sailing.

Five days later, a mysterious figure in a black robe stepped into the rain-washed Ruade Forest. He threw back his hood, revealing a fierce and domineering dragon head.

"Phew, finally here!"

Sniffing the scent of damp earth in the air, Willy let out a long breath, a look of comfort and satisfaction washing over his face.

Over the past five days, to avoid detection by the Titans, Willy had taken long detours around their Magic Towers. During the day, he traveled on foot through remote mountain forests, only taking to the sky in the dead of night. The hardship involved needed no further elaboration, but fortunately, he had finally reached his destination—the Ruade Forest.

Thanks to Dumahado's intelligence, Willy quickly found the vine-covered cave entrance. Following the downward-sloping tunnel, he entered an underground secret cave that closely resembled a miniature version of the Dark Lands.

Once inside the underground secret cave, Willy immediately took out the fully prepared Interplanar Portal. He secured the inactive, circular Portal into the slick cavern rocks, then retrieved several disc-like alchemical devices and planted them around the cave.

Magic Towers relied on magical elements to detect abnormal magical fluctuations. If they could detect magic, they could also be interfered with by magic. The magically advanced civilization of Nordhill had invented alchemical devices to jam Magic Towers long ago, and the White Dragon Lord naturally wouldn't be foolish enough to abandon the crystallized wisdom of his predecessors.

After installing the last alchemical device, Willy clapped his hands and muttered to himself in the pitch-black underground cave.

"Next, I just have to quietly wait for the right moment."

Due to the Magic Tower defense system, Willy absolutely refused to risk exposure by contacting Mage Hardison. He closed his eyes, sat down in the cavern, and waited for their agreed-upon time.

Time ticked by. His precise draconic biological clock soon awakened the resting Willy, and two bright golden lanterns flared into existence within the dark underground space.

"It's time!"

The instant he opened his eyes, Willy activated the alchemical discs designed to jam the Magic Tower's senses. A brilliant radiance of magical energy flared up, illuminating the sunless underground to rival broad daylight. The intense light lasted for only a moment before slowly fading and stabilizing. The glow emitted by the discs reflected against the cavern ceiling, forming gorgeous ripples of light.

The alchemical discs emitted a peculiar magical fluctuation that rippled in all directions. This fluctuation could interfere with a Magic Tower's detection, shielding any magical energy disturbances within a certain radius to provide cover while Willy activated the Portal.

Step by step, Willy walked toward the Portal embedded in the bedrock.

Approaching the Portal, the magic power inside Willy surged and poured into it, activating a specific mechanism within the gateway.

As a dragon, Willy naturally possessed spellcasting levels and magic power. But for an Interplanar Portal, the sliver of mana within him wasn't even enough to fill the gaps between his teeth. Fortunately, the White Dragon Lord had prepared for this well in advance.

Nordhill, Afiaiv Kingdom, the third largest island—Glamorgan.

The White Dragon Lord and the Ancient Gold Dragon stood guard in front of an unactivated Portal, accompanied by a fully prepared Mage Corps and legions of monster soldiers.

Suddenly, at the top of the dormant Portal, a starlike gemstone lit up with a soft glow, blinking as if signaling something.

"Mage Corps! Activate the Portal!"

Thousands of mages poured their magic power into the Portal in unison, the dazzling brilliance of their magic banishing the darkness of the night.

Scattered across the mountain peaks surrounding the Portal, hundreds of dragons stared at the steadily brightening gateway. Their blazing gazes looked as if they were about to spew real flames.

Roar!

The impassioned dragon roars echoed through the mountains, leaving no listener untouched by the burning battle intent within them. Infected by the roaring, the monster army found their own thirst for battle surging to the limit.

Half an hour later, the Portal's glow was fully active. The Dragon Legion continuously beat their wings, flying toward the gateway like a swarm of bees diving at an enemy.

The Ancient Gold Dragon was closest to the Portal and plunged straight into the swirling magic vortex. The White Dragon Lord, meanwhile, stood by the entrance to maintain order. After all, these dragons had merely been teachers and students in the Dragon Beast Academy; they couldn't be expected to execute orders with the absolute discipline of professional soldiers.

Under the White Dragon Lord's command, the impatient dragons shrank their massive bodies and lined up in front of the Portal. Maintaining order proved far more efficient than swarming in all at once.

On the other side, the moment the Ancient Gold Dragon emerged from the Portal, he spotted Willy standing by the entrance. The two shared a tacit nod before shifting into their draconic humanoid forms to wait off to the side.

The dragons arriving in the Muxinge Plane gathered behind the two of them. As time passed, the ranks swelled larger and larger.

Suddenly, the Ancient Gold Dragon sensed a detestable presence approaching from afar. A terrifying burst of killing intent shot from his eyes.

"They're finally here."

Radiating a murderous aura, the Ancient Gold Dragon marched out of the cave, with one dragon after another following closely behind.

The alchemical discs shielding the magical fluctuations had their limits. At the exact moment the two Portals linked, a violently surging magic wave blasted in all directions. Not even a multitude of alchemical discs could fully mask such a torrential magical disturbance.

But it didn't matter. The alchemical discs had completed their mission. The dragon army had already arrived.

...

The Storm Titan, Ulandis, flew under the starlit sky, leading a flock of storm giants toward the abnormal magical fluctuation. In his heart, he even felt a little excited.

Ulandis was a member of the Hand of Blood Legion under the command of the Lord of Red Lotus. His assigned duty was to garrison one of the thirty-two Magic Towers—the Tower of Resounding Winds.

Late this night, a shocking burst of magical fluctuation had suddenly erupted from within the Ruade Forest, which fell under the Tower of Resounding Winds' jurisdiction.

Such a massive magical disturbance could be a Legendary Mage casting legendary magic, a large-scale magical apparatus activating, or even a precious treasure being born into the world.

But from what he could see, the forest bore no signs of destruction, making legendary magic highly unlikely.

If it was a treasure, however...

Ulandis couldn't help but let his imagination run wild. If he offered the treasure to the Lord of Red Lotus and won his favor, he could be transferred out of this backward, primitive plane early. He would get a promotion, a raise, and marry...

Roar!!!

A multitude of impassioned dragon roars shattered Ulandis's daydream. The overwhelming dragon might washed over the Master Tier giants, leaving their limbs weak and nearly causing them to lose control of their flight.

"This dragon might?!"

A chill shot straight from the soles of Ulandis's feet to the crown of his head. Terror seized his heart; this was the dragon might of a High-Tier Legendary Level!

"Damn it! How could a dragon of this level exist in the Muxinge Plane!"

Unable to care for his paralyzed subordinates, Ulandis abandoned them and fled back toward the Magic Tower, staring in sheer horror at the dragon army swarming out of the forest.

"I have to inform the Lord of Red Lotus! The dragons have returned for revenge!"

When the Titans first invaded the Muxinge Plane, there had originally been several dozen dragons native to the world. The Lord of Red Lotus personally led an army to exterminate them all. A handful—no more than a person could count on one hand—had desperately fled into the void, fighting for a silver lining of survival in the endless abyss.

Ulandis assumed that those surviving dragons had found reinforcements.

Led by several Legendary Dragons, the dragon army tore the handful of Master Tier storm giants in the sky to shreds.

Ulandis had no time to worry about his subordinates. He fled madly toward the Magic Tower as a terrifying aura closely pursued him, exuding a staggering dragon might in a game of cat and mouse.

Even the Storm Titans—the absolute best flyers among the Titan Race—could not outpace a Peak High-Tier Legend Ancient Gold Dragon. Ulandis was overtaken, and in less than five minutes, the Ancient Gold Dragon pierced his heart with a single claw.

After slaughtering Ulandis, the Ancient Gold Dragon flew non-stop toward the Tower of Resounding Winds.

Assaulting a Mage Tower was exceptionally difficult, but if the tower had lost its master, the task became much simpler.

Although they could easily capture the Tower of Resounding Winds, the dragons dared not use a Titan Magic Tower. Heaven only knew what magical arrays the Titans had installed inside.

Golden liquid fire poured down from the peak of the Tower of Resounding Winds, swallowing the entire Mage Tower in golden flames.

The Tower of Resounding Winds was built on a small hill, right beside a large human city.

Awakened by the commotion echoing from the Tower of Resounding Winds, the slumbering populace rushed to high ground. Scrambling atop the City Wall in sheer terror, they watched a colossal, nightmarish beast spewing fire from the sky. The flames cascaded like a waterfall, completely engulfing the Tower of Resounding Winds.

"Dragon! Dragon! Dragon!"

Deep inside the Ruade Forest, the White Dragon Lord and Willy stood by the entrance to the underground secret cave, watching monster after monster step out into the open.

Beside the White Dragon Lord, the dragon army clustered around the corpses of the Storm Titan and the storm giants. Thrilled, they threw their heads back and howled at the sky, their roars piercing straight through the clouds.