Chapter 391: Tiamat's Support

After wringing every last drop of value from the Tower of the Ice-Bound, the dragons boarded the White Tower once again and set off toward the Territory of the Lord of Crimson Lotus.

Passing titan cities along the way, the dragons noted the heavy security on the walls. Giants stood guard every few paces, establishing an airtight patrol. Inside the walls, the entire populace had been mobilized for war, and the magic crystals atop the magic towers in the city centers were already activated.

This came as no surprise. With the main tower of the Magic Tower Defense System destroyed, the lesser magic towers would inevitably sense the collapse. Coupled with the earlier fall of the Tower of Flowing Wind, the titans on this continent were bound to be in a state of panic.

The Matron of Venom stared down at the titan commanders on the walls, a faint killing intent radiating from her scales.

"Amos, can we wipe out this city?"

"We could, but it isn't worth the effort. The Lord of Red Lotus's lair is still waiting for us."

A flash of greed flickered in the Matron of Venom's eyes, but she said no more. She had clearly developed a taste for plunder at the Tower of the Ice-Bound.

The White Dragon Lord steered the White Tower past the titan cities, flying steadily toward the distant Territory of the Lord of Crimson Lotus.

Between the Ice-Bound's domain and the Territory of the Lord of Crimson Lotus lay a vast, boundless ocean. Not long after the White Tower flew out over the waves, the Matron of Venom—who had been resting with her eyes closed—suddenly snapped them open, shock filling her emerald pupils.

"Amos! Wait! Her Majesty the Dragon Queen has sent a message!"

The White Dragon Lord halted the White Tower. The other dragons instantly leaped up and crowded around her.

"There's a situation at the Gloomy Sanctuary. The supreme existence of the titans issued a decree, calling upon all titans in the sanctuary to reinforce the Sincaro Titan World. In response, Her Majesty the Dragon Queen has also rallied the dragons of the Evil Scale Fortress to assist us. We must prepare to receive our companions from the Evil Scale Fortress."

The dragons erupted into an uproar. Invading the Sincaro Titan World was originally meant to be a private operation spearheaded by seven High-Tier Legendary Dragons, yet now both the Evil Scale Fortress and the Gloomy Sanctuary had been dragged into the fray.

The Five-Headed Dragon Queen's Evil Scale Fortress and the God of the Dark Titans' Gloomy Sanctuary were holy cities to their respective races. The dragons and titans residing within them were immense in number, and powerhouses were as common as clouds.

Worry rippled through the seven High-Tier Legendary Dragons. The situation had spiraled completely out of their control.

"Receive our companions from the Evil Scale Fortress?!" the Black King cursed. "That's just lovely! It takes at least half a year to build a custom Cross-Realm Portal capable of piercing the spatial barriers of the Abyss. Right now, our only working option is the Teleportation Chamber inside the White Tower, but how many reinforcements can a single Teleportation Platform handle on such short notice?!"

A Teleportation Platform could not operate indefinitely. Factoring in the heat generated by its magic array and the strain of its energy supply, a platform had to cool down naturally after a set number of uses. Its capacity was directly proportional to its scale and quality.

"It won't solve the core issue, but the White Tower's platform can at least tide us over," the White Dragon Lord said. "However, once fighting breaks out, the White Tower will be an essential combat asset and must be deployed to the front lines. We need to construct fixed Teleportation Platforms, and we must do it quickly, before the titans track us down."

"I agree with Amos," the Ancient Gold Dragon chimed in. "If we don't summon our allies from the Evil Scale Fortress as quickly as possible, the titan reinforcements from the Gloomy Sanctuary will overwhelm us. Once they reach critical mass, our only options will be fleeing or dying."

The proposal to build fixed Teleportation Platforms met with unanimous approval.

"Time is tight!" the White Dragon Lord continued. "I suggest we set them up nearby."

"Well, there's a problem with that!"

The Flame of the Molten Mountain rubbed his head, looking completely stumped.

"Which of you actually knows how to build a Teleportation Platform?! I only know how to fight!"

"I can build them," the White Dragon Lord replied.

"I can as well," the Crimson Flame Streamer added.

The White Dragon Lord glanced at the red copper dragon.

"The White Tower has enough materials in reserve for six platforms. We'll split the work. Each of us will handle three."

"Done," he agreed.

The Matron of Venom frowned.

"Even six platforms won't be nearly enough."

The White Dragon Lord ran the numbers in his head. The White Tower's platform maxed out at two hundred connections a day. Given the massive bulk of a dragon, it could only transport three of them per trip. A standard platform maxed out at fifty uses a day, moving only two dragons at a time.

Even factoring in the magic that shortened the cooldown of the White Tower's platform, the dragons could receive at most around sixteen hundred reinforcements per day. The titans, however, would be able to pull in vastly higher numbers. Six platforms simply wouldn't cut it.

"If it's not enough, then we'll rob the titans!" the King of the Thunder Prison roared. "Their magic towers have finished platforms inside! We just need to take them, modify them slightly, and slap on a mana-gathering array to use them immediately!"

"That works," the Matron of Venom said. "On top of that, I'll commune with Her Majesty the Dragon Queen and have the incoming reinforcements bring more materials—or even fully built platforms."

"Perfect!" the White Dragon Lord declared. "The Crimson Flame Streamer and I will handle construction! Senior Black King, Golden Bulwark, King of the Thunder Prison, and Flame of the Molten Mountain, you four will raid the titan cities! Lady Gelina, I'm transferring temporary control of the White Tower to you. Steer the tower, commune with the Dragon Queen, and receive our kin from the Evil Scale Fortress."

"As a priestess of Her Majesty the Dragon Queen, it is my honor!" she replied.

With the plan settled, the dragons split up. Carrying three sets of materials, the White Dragon Lord soared out over the boundless ocean to scout for suitable construction sites.

Much like a Portal, a Teleportation Platform couldn't just be placed anywhere. It required a remarkably demanding magical environment. Most platforms were housed within the stable energy fields maintained by magic towers. Barring that, they could only be erected in natural environments overflowing with elemental energy.

Elemental Vision!

The White Dragon Lord activated his Elemental Vision to sweep for a suitable location. Relying on his supersonic flight speed and his enchanted vision, he quickly located prime spots and assembled the Teleportation Platforms. Before leaving each site, he set up anti-scrying magic arrays to mask them.

Six hours later, the White Dragon Lord returned to the White Tower, found the Matron of Venom, and handed her a rough map.

"Lady Gelina, the three platforms are finished. I've marked their coordinates on the map."

The Matron of Venom quickly took the map.

"Amos, your timing is impeccable. The White Tower's platform is nowhere near enough to keep up with the demand."

Without missing a beat, the Matron of Venom summoned three Legendary Dragons and dispatched them to the new locations to guide the incoming reinforcements.

"Lady Gelina, what's the situation out there?" he asked.

"Not optimistic. Raiding the nearby magic towers exposed our general location. The titans have begun mobilizing, and they are massing faster than I ever imagined. The Black King and the others don't dare to strike titan cities recklessly anymore."

"How many reinforcements have arrived from the Evil Scale Fortress?"

"We've pushed the White Tower's platform to its absolute limit. So far, six hundred dragons have crossed over. Six of them are High-Tier Legendary Dragons, and the rest are ordinary dragons. A massive backlog of reinforcements is still queued up at the Evil Scale Fortress waiting for transport."

"On top of that, Her Majesty the Dragon Queen sent over ten specialists skilled in constructing platforms. They've already fanned out to secure more locations."

"Then the Crimson Flame Streamer and I can finally take a breath..."

Having caught up on the situation, the White Dragon Lord took back control of the White Tower and assumed command of the dragon army. His mind raced. The titans were gathering far faster than they were, leaving the dragons at a severe disadvantage.

But it wasn't completely hopeless. The dragons' forces were highly concentrated, clustered tightly around the White Tower out on the ocean. Furthermore, the vast majority of titans were far inferior to dragons in aerial combat.

Before long, the Crimson Flame Streamer returned, submitted his map of platform coordinates to the Matron of Venom, and offered the White Dragon Lord a brief greeting before curling up to rest. A massive battle was on the horizon, and even someone as ferociously powerful as him needed to ensure he was in peak condition.

Suddenly, the Matron of Venom rushed over to the White Dragon Lord, supporting a frail, gasping green dragon.

"Amos! Something's wrong! The dragon I sent out to build a platform was attacked!"

"What happened?"

The White Dragon Lord carefully inspected the green dragon the Matron of Venom was supporting. He looked completely drained, hovering on the precipice of death. Fresh blood smeared his belly and back—the unmistakable signs of being skewered by a Spear of the Titans. Fortunately, the Matron of Venom had already healed the worst of it; the wounds were no longer fatal.

Under the White Dragon Lord's scrutiny, the weak green dragon lowered his head in shame.

"While I was flying over the ocean looking for a suitable spot, a Tide Titan burst out of the water and ambushed me. I barely managed to escape with my life."

"How many titans did you see?"

"Just one, but he was leading a squad of Tide Giants."

"Did you notice anything else?"

"..."

After questioning the green dragon on every detail of the ambush, a heavy weight settled on the White Dragon Lord's heart. It was possible the green dragon had just been unlucky enough to fly past a Tide Titan's home turf. But it was equally likely that the titans had deployed maritime scouts to pinpoint the dragons' exact headquarters.

Was it an accident, or was it premeditated?

The terrified green dragon didn't have enough intelligence for the White Dragon Lord to make a definitive call. If it was premeditated, he needed to launch countermeasures immediately.

Ordinary dragons would struggle to spot a Tide Titan hiding deep underwater. Without hesitating, the White Dragon Lord roused the Crimson Flame Streamer.

"Crimson Flame Streamer, one of ours was just ambushed by a Tide Titan. I need you to find out exactly what we're dealing with..."

"Consider it done!"

Once briefed, the Crimson Flame Streamer took off with a squad of white dragons, leaving the cloaked White Tower behind as they streaked toward the ambush site.

An hour later, the Crimson Flame Streamer and his squad reappeared within the White Tower's sensory range. The White Dragon Lord was mildly surprised.

"That fast?"

The Crimson Flame Streamer quickly landed in front of him.

"Amos, the one who attacked the green dragon was escorting a fleet."

"A fleet?!"

"Exactly! A fleet! A fleet transporting giants. That Tide Titan was their forward scout. Behind him sailed thirty-two colossal ships packed to the brim with giants. They launched from the Territory of the Lord of Crimson Lotus, and they were heading straight for this continent."

A sinister smile spread across the Crimson Flame Streamer's face.

"Of course, those giants and their ships are sitting at the bottom of the ocean now. The local marine life is probably already enjoying the buffet."

The White Dragon Lord nodded.

"Well done. Get some rest."

The Crimson Flame Streamer retreated to rest. He was only responsible for reconnaissance; the actual decision-making fell squarely on the White Dragon Lord's shoulders. From the Muxinge Plane to the Sincaro Titan World, the White Dragon Lord had already proven his strategic brilliance.

The White Dragon Lord's mind spun rapidly.

It was obvious. Constrained by their limited number of platforms, the titans were using ships to ferry giant armies from the other continents. As long as these Master Tier giants arrived in sufficient numbers, they would pose a significant threat to the dragon army. More importantly, using the giants as the vanguard would drastically reduce the titans' own casualties.

The White Dragon Lord understood. The moment the giant army swelled past a critical threshold, the titans would launch a full-scale offensive.

"Willy!"

"What is it, Brother?"

The White Dragon Lord pulled out the Portal that had originally been erected in the Muxinge Plane.

"Set up the Portal. Summon the Murloc and New Murloc armies of the Afiaiv Kingdom. Blockade the ocean and sink every titan transport ship."

After more than half a century of growth, the New Murloc population now numbered in the tens of millions. With the average New Murloc soldier naturally sitting at Level 8, they were more than capable of sustaining a full-scale war.

However, even though the New Murloc army could crush almost any military force on a material plane, in a clash of supremacy between dragons and titans, they were little more than cannon fodder.

The White Dragon Lord added, "Also, organize the water-affinity True Dragons into a support force, ready to reinforce the murlocs at any moment."

"Understood!"

Willy left.

Around midnight, the Black King and the other three dragons returned with the dragon army. They handed over eight looted Teleportation Platforms to the Matron of Venom, meaning eight titan cities in the region had just been destroyed.

The Ancient Gold Dragon sought out the White Dragon Lord to share their latest intelligence.

"Amos, the titan garrisons inside the cities are multiplying. Without the suppressive fire of the Floating Tower, it'll cost us a staggering amount of blood just to take a single city. Furthermore, we noticed the giant populations inside the walls are swelling rapidly. The titans are funneling giant armies from other cities straight toward the front lines. We need to tread carefully."

"I know. And it's not just this continent. They're importing giants from the other landmasses as well. I've already ordered Willy to summon the murlocs and establish maritime patrols."

The Ancient Gold Dragon frowned in concern.

"With a coastline this massive, policing the route from the Territory of the Lord of Crimson Lotus might be manageable, but covering the Mother of Lightning's direction... Willy is going to struggle..."

The three continents of the Sincaro Titan World were arranged in an equilateral triangle. Since the White Tower hovered directly between the Ice-Bound's domain and the Territory of the Lord of Crimson Lotus, intercepting the convoys coming from the Mother of Lightning's direction would put incredible strain on Willy. He would also run a high risk of being ambushed by titan armadas. The Ancient Gold Dragon's fears were entirely justified.

"Relax, I've already factored that in. Intercepting the giant transport ships is just a show we're putting on for the titans. The real trump card is still in my hands."

The White Dragon Lord smiled.

"Dragging the murloc army here is mostly a training exercise. After all, the murloc race hasn't experienced a real war in a very long time."

The Ancient Gold Dragon breathed a sigh of relief.

"As long as you have a plan."

After coming from the Madilan World to the Nordhill Continent, the dragon the Ancient Gold Dragon interacted with the most wasn't the White Dragon Lord, but Willy. The younger dragon had frequently sought him out for combat instruction, and the Ancient Gold Dragon had grown genuinely fond of the hardworking youth.