Chương 184: Reborn as the Dragon — Chapter 184 - Novice Village Core Fragments Gathered

At first, Su Nian thought it was just a minor incident, a sea monster attacking a coastal village, something like a regional quest the players might handle themselves. But the more he listened, the more the picture shifted. Massive numbers of professionals. Mountains of equipment. Teleportation arrays. Teleportation arrays? In an age of declining magic? Do you have any idea how many magic cores it takes to power one of those, let alone a worldwide network? Are you serious? He didn't need it spelled out.

These "professionals" were clearly the players. And that Storm Worm King had to be the newly marked World BOSS, it had destroyed four Starter Villages, exactly one more than he had. Without the System's warning, that title would've landed squarely on him, with every player on the planet lining up to take a shot. He used to think: so what? World BOSS sounds incredible. What a title. He didn't think that anymore.

If players could move freely through teleportation arrays, being a World BOSS was just a slow walk to your own execution. Su Nian's expression darkened. This A-san player had it all figured out, hadn't he? Rattle the cage, redirect the threat, let the dragon take the heat. The disaster had landed exactly where they'd aimed it. But furious waves don't care who stirred them. They swallow the tide-raiser all the same.

"Good intelligence," Su Nian said.

"Do you have anything else?"

"Uh... no." Haergeji shook his head. Then immediately tacked on:"Great dragon, while we have nothing more at the moment, we are willing to provide you with fresh intelligence whenever you need it. Always." [Congratulations to Celestial Dynasty player Li Chen for reaching Level 30, the first player to do so! Reward: one set of Pseudo-Grandmaster Equipment, two Warrior Skill Selection Coupons.] [A player has reached Level 30. World realism index increased. All players' pain perception is forcibly raised from 0 to 10%.] Two bright red notifications drifted across Haergeji's vision. He blinked, confused, and felt, without quite knowing why, that something had gone very wrong. A faint, needle-sharp sting crept across his face. The blisters the dragon's hot breath had scorched into his skin were making themselves known. That 10% was instant.

"Worm." Su Nian stepped closer, his voice dropping to something cold and quiet. His dragon eyes were flat with killing intent.

"Your face keeps changing. What else are you hiding?" [Ding! Host, please note: players' pain perception has been forcibly raised to 10%.] Players have pain perception now? Su Nian's expression didn't flicker. But inside, he was absolutely delighted. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. He owed his little treasure Anna at least two celebratory licks for this. Even 10% pain was a massive nerf.

The gap between zero pain and any pain at all was enormous, it changed everything about how players could be fought, captured, broken. And as the leader of a monster faction, capturing players going forward was going to unlock a whole new range of possibilities.

"This... great dragon, I just... I suddenly needed to relieve myself! I'm not hiding anything! I have always been completely open with you, every single word, nothing held back!" Haergeji was sweating. His face itched and burned at the same time, and the urge to scratch was almost unbearable, but the dragon was staring directly at him and he did not dare move.

"Mm. Very good." Su Nian pulled back his breath and raised his head.

"I, the dragon, keep my word. I will not burn you to death." Haergeji and the other A-san players sagged with visible relief, their faces breaking into grateful smiles, thinking they'd made it through. The black dragon's massive claw rose. It came down like a thunderclap. BOOM!

"You, urghh —" Haergeji and his people died under the claw. Even at only 10%, the pain dragged screams out of them before the end. Afterward, Su Nian wiped his claw on a nearby bush. New notifications surfaced. [Congratulations, host. Starter Village eliminated. A-san No. 4 Starter Village player respawn point has been refreshed. Locating...] [Location failed. A-san player Starter Village location cannot be detected.] [Congratulations, host. Novice Village Core Fragment x1 obtained.] [Your exposure has increased. Eliminating further Starter Villages will result in you being marked as a World BOSS.] The failed location was no surprise. That innate ability of theirs had always been the wall. Honestly, if he hadn't stumbled across a dying lizard on the road that pointed him toward this village, he probably never would have found it at all.

"Four Novice Village Core Fragments. Finally." Su Nian gave a satisfied nod.

"Took long enough." Back at the lair, he could finally begin building their own monster faction Starter Village. Whatever special functions a monster Starter Village came with, he genuinely had no idea, but the thought of finding out was oddly exciting.

"Brother~ I'm back~" A soft, sweet voice floated over from nearby. Anna came fluttering toward him on her small wings, reached up with both hands, pulled his dragon face down toward her, and planted a loud kiss right on his snout. A tiny, perfect lip print on black scales. She was spotless. Not a speck of ash or blood anywhere on her. Her small feet were bare against the earth, pink and delicate, and she wore a bright, clean smile like sunlight through leaves, a flower fairy at play in the forest.

Completely unrecognizable from the little witch who had been flying around the Starter Village minutes ago, swinging a massive Greater Fireball and hurling it into everything in sight.

"Good timing. Let's go home." Su Nian gave her pretty face two slow licks. Anna squinted her eyes and leaned into it, entirely pleased with herself. The elf and the dragon shared that moment, until Rolls-Royce lumbered into view from somewhere behind them. The two dragons launched into the sky. The vast monster army fell into formation below, and together they swept back toward Silvermoon Forest. Left behind was a single human girl, watching them go. Aya had meant to say something to the black dragon.

He had saved her a second time now. She owed him at least that much, some acknowledgment, some thanks. It was the right thing to do. But before she'd found the nerve, he was already gone, leading his monsters into the sky without a backward glance. He hadn't even seemed to notice she was there.

"What do I do now?" She looked out over the ruins of the Village of Evil. Nothing left of it. Go back? Return to the village that had raised her, that had raised her specifically to offer her up? Aya wasn't a saint. She was just a girl. She couldn't forgive what they had done. If even one person had said a word in her defense — even one — she could have let it go. She could have gone back and tried to move on. There hadn't been. Then something surfaced in her memory.

The black dragon had someone with him, a strange elf girl, close by his side. The two of them had been unmistakably familiar with each other. Maybe the dragon lord didn't despise humanoid creatures as much as she'd assumed. Maybe he'd even be willing to take on a servant. Someone to run errands. Handle the small things. The brightness in Aya's eyes grew. She stared at the empty sky where the dragons had vanished. That direction, cross the Morrigan Plains, and you'd reach the Silvermoon Mountains.

The dragon lord likely made his home somewhere near there. Possibly even closer, somewhere out on the plains themselves. The girl pressed her lips together. There would be danger on the road. Plenty of it. She took the first step anyway, moving toward the setting sun, not looking back. ➤ Next: Dungeon