He spoke in a slow, deliberate cadence, his tone practically dripping with mockery.
“The ice crystal horn of a white dragon, the toxic saliva of a black dragon, the nerves of a gold dragon beast, the ashes of a thousand spellbooks, and forty-nine days of ceaseless chanting.”
“Although using such a high-end prayer ritual on someone who hasn't even transcended is a bit of a waste...”
Oter closed his eyes slightly, his chest slowly rising and falling as he spread his wings wide with a look of pure relish.
“...I believe it is just right.”
“White fox-kin, I also appreciate your cunning. Let these offerings serve as a grand funeral for the two of you.”
...What he failed to notice was the bizarre expression that had cropped up on Bai Xiaodu's face below.
Nudging the frowning Lingxin with his elbow, he quietly leaned in.
“Sister Lingxin, that ritual sounds pretty formidable. What do you think?”
Lingxin let out a bitter laugh.
“Xiaobai, if things really go the way he says, my chances of winning might drop to fifty percent.”
“Furthermore, once he receives that temporary empowerment, both the frequency and intensity of his spells will skyrocket. Coupled with a dragon beast's already overpowered physical strength, it will be very difficult for me to protect you during the fight.”
“I know you came up here so quickly because you probably wanted to test yourself against a dragon beast for some rare practical training, but given the current situation...”
Bai Xiaodu's wine-red eyes went wide.
This dragon beast had stacked so many buffs, practically looking like he was ready to sacrifice everything he had, yet she could still pull off a fifty-fifty?
Hadn't her strength been forcefully capped at Rank 0.9? Or had he severely underestimated Lingxin's innate combat talent?
Or perhaps, once someone transcended, they immediately established an astronomical gap between themselves and ordinary mortals?
Keeping this mental note in mind, Bai Xiaodu lowered his voice.
“That's not my main point. What exactly will this ritual summon? Could a deity who controls a Pathway actually cast their gaze down here?”
Lingxin sighed helplessly.
“It's hard to say. Deities are highly unique existences, and even I don't know much about them. However, one thing we can be sure of from experience is that they often cast their gaze down in response to intense emotions and thoughts in the conscious mind. The setting of the 【Ashes Library】 is during the early stages of the 【Great Counteroffensive】, when the Empire had already clearly sounded the horn of war.”
“This gold dragon beast risked being skinned and deboned to cross through the active warzone just to find a way to ascend. With that kind of ferocity and willpower, even if he doesn't draw the attention of some ethereal deity, he might actually summon a legendary transcendent expert from the annals of history.”
After hearing her explanation, Bai Xiaodu's expression became even stranger.
He hesitated for a long moment before finally lowering his head and asking rather sheepishly, “Um... if there were disrespectful words directed at the deity during a ritual like this—I mean, hypothetically speaking, just a what-if—what kind of punishment would one usually receive?”
Hearing Bai Xiaodu's rambling questions, Lingxin assumed the boy was just a little frightened.
Amused, she turned around and pulled him into a hug. Seeing him merely staring up at her blankly with his fox ears pressed flat, she leaned down and planted a feather-light kiss on his cheek.
She kept her voice as calm and gentle as possible.
“That sort of thing is impossible. No one would seek their own death like that. People go through unimaginable hardships, risking their minds and obsessions, all just to meet a deity, to gain even the slightest sliver of their favor and win a chance to turn the tide.”
“At least... I have never heard of such a thing happening.”
Well, you're about to see it today.
Before Bai Xiaodu could finish his silent snark, a furious roar echoed from above.
Oter glared down at the two of them, thoroughly displeased.
One monkey, one fox. First they were chatting, and now they were hugging and kissing right in front of him!
What the hell, we're in the middle of a fight! A fight!
Oter hesitated no longer. His rough dragon claws manipulated the whiteboard with the dexterity of human wrists.
Starting from number one...
Select, select, select, select—select all!
He quickly threw a robe over his shoulders, draping it over himself in a highly comical fashion.
And this too!
A deafening roar reverberated through the hall, sending bone-chilling echoes through the space.
“O great, omniscient, and omnipotent supreme Dragon God!
Holy Father of Magic, Arcana, and Transmutation!
Hear the praise of your servant, and decree the doom and death of those who defy you!”
“Pay the price for your arrogance!”
Boom!
The moment his last syllable fell, hundreds of thousands of golden light beams erupted from beneath his feet like a volcanic eruption.
They did not shoot outward in straight lines, but instead refracted, twisted, and vanished in midair, only to reappear in unexpected spots.
Darkness, fire, frost, lightning...
Elements of all kinds materialized out of thin air, slithering across the floor like venomous serpents.
In an instant, the hall transformed into a living hell!
The ground trembled, and the echoes boomed.
An indescribable, overwhelming sense of powerlessness and insignificance welled up in Bai Xiaodu's heart.
He hurriedly glanced at his status bar, only to find that he had already been slapped with several negative debuffs.
With a profound exhaustion creeping into his limbs, Bai Xiaodu tried to invoke 【Gust】 to dodge the incoming damage.
Although 【Heart of Iron】 was still active and the spell rune formed rapidly, something unexpected happened. Just as the spell reached the point of release, it was instantly torn apart by the chaotic elements filling the air.
This ritual even came with an environmental debuff!
“O Dragon God...”
The praise of hundreds of voices rose simultaneously, crashing over them like relentless, violent waves.
At that moment, the arrogant Oter completely shattered the window. Shards of glass rained down with a sharp clatter, catching the surrounding light and gleaming brilliantly.
His massive, hideous body whipped up a terrifying wind pressure, his golden scales shining. Hovering in the air for a mere second, he abruptly tucked in his wings. Like a heavy artillery shell fired from a barrel, he shrieked through the air like a reaper, diving straight toward Bai Xiaodu!
The slender, silver figure stood frozen in place. The cocktail of negative debuffs made Bai Xiaodu feel incredibly sluggish.
At his current speed, there was absolutely no way he could dodge this attack.
Not far away, anxiety flickered in Lingxin's eyes. She rapidly condensed an icy, shield-like spell in her hands, then swung her arm and hurled it. Bai Xiaodu instantly felt a wave of refreshment wash over him as a protective shield buff appeared on his status bar.
He quickly took a few deep breaths, his hands rapidly forming the spell rune for 【Gust】 as he prepared to roll out of the way.
If he took a full-force collision from this gold dragon, even Ultraman's warning light would start flashing red.
This thing was covered in scales and pure muscle; it looked heavier than an African elephant.
With this kind of charging speed, it had likely used some sort of spell amplification as well.
What was worse, Bai Xiaodu had set his pain simulation to one hundred percent for the sake of realism.
He had tried to change it earlier, only to be told that settings couldn't be altered mid-game.
He had absolutely no desire to experience what it felt like to be run over by a dozen steel coils.
However, plans could never keep up with changes.
The surging waves of chanting echoed up from below, reverberating through the hall and ringing clearly in everyone's ears.
But...
Upon hearing the actual content of the praise chant, the two of them and the dragon suddenly fell dead silent.
The worry and solemnity on Lingxin's face morphed into confusion, then utter bewilderment, before she seemed to realize something and stared at Bai Xiaodu in sheer shock.
The arrogance and wild triumph on Oter's draconic face vanished in an instant, replaced by immediate confusion.
A split second later, that confusion morphed into absolute terror, as if the end of the world had suddenly come for him.
As for Bai Xiaodu...
He sighed, a look of utterly helpless resignation washing over his cute face.
It's just a game. Everything happening right now is just in a game. In reality, I have always held the utmost respect and love for all deities...
The forced chanting echoed continuously throughout the hall. To show his sincerity, Oter had intentionally cranked the volume to the absolute maximum.
It was too loud. Way too loud.
Dammit, this dragon's flattery was just way too over-the-top.
Listening to these words, Bai Xiaodu felt like his ears were being violated.
“Dragon God, listen up, you're nothing but a piece of trash!”
“Listen up, you're nothing but a piece of trash!”
“A piece of trash!”
“Piece of trash!”
“Trash!”
Rate on N.U.
