Chương 52: Chapter 23 part 2

The Ancient Gold Dragon gently nudged the glowing egg deeper against the soft, radiant heat of her underbelly. Having secured her brood, the primal adrenaline that had fueled her rampage began to fade, leaving behind the crushing, agonizing reality of her physical trauma. Aurelithia slowly shifted her massive bulk, attempting to fold her wings tightly against her serpentine back. A sharp, violent shudder ran down the length of her galleon-sized body. Her right wing refused to tuck.

The colossal joint connecting the limb to her spine had been entirely shattered by the impact of Xuan Ji's Ultimate Yin. The golden scales, armor capable of withstanding dwarven siege ballistas, were cracked and weeping molten, glowing blood that hissed furiously against the cold mud. The lingering, diametric spiritual shock completely paralyzed the underlying musculature. She was an apex predator of the high skies, and she was entirely grounded.

**"My wing is broken," Aurelithia projected, her telepathic voice heavy with a grim, centuries-old pragmatism.

"The bone is fractured, and the arcane pathways within the membrane are severed. I will not be able to take flight for several weeks." ** Crown Prince Theron, standing a respectful distance away, paled slightly. Having a mythical dragon peacefully retrieve its egg was a diplomatic miracle. Having that same dragon permanently camped right outside his capital city's walls was a geopolitical nightmare.

The dragon did not wait for the humans to offer a solution. She was a Sovereign of the Peaks, and she operated entirely on her own authority. Aurelithia dug her massive, razor-sharp front claws deep into the shattered bedrock of the crater. The golden scales along her spine began to pulse with a blinding, earthen light. The ground beneath the Silverleaf Plains began to violently tremble.

"She's channeling," General Balkan warned, taking a step back as his heavy dwarven-steel boots vibrated against the mud.

"High-tier terrestrial manipulation!" **"I must protect my brood while I recover," the dragon announced, her voice echoing with the crushing weight of shifting tectonic plates.

"I shall raise a fortress from the bedrock. A spire of molten earth and stone that shall stand until the skies welcome me back." **"Stop," Xuan Ji commanded, her voice cutting through the rumbling earth with the sharp, inescapable authority of a drawn blade. The glowing light along the dragon's spine instantly halted.

The trembling earth settled. Aurelithia blinked her massive slit-pupils, looking down at the monster in the shape of a human with a mixture of confusion and lingering draconic pride.

"You are not raising a mountain in the kingdom's front yard," Xuan Ji stated practically, crossing her arms.

"If you erect a fortress out here, every surviving noble, passing mercenary, and dark-magic fanatic on this continent will flock to this city to see it. You will turn Elyndria into a an attraction, and you will put your egg at unnecessary risk." Aurelithia let out a low, rumbling hum, conceding the tactical logic.

"Then what do you propose, human? I cannot fly, and I will not leave my child exposed in the open elements.""I propose you shrink," Xuan Ji said smoothly.

"Can you polymorph?" A heavy, contemplative silence fell over the crater. For ancient dragons, their colossal, heavily armored forms were a source of pride and natural supremacy. Taking the shape of a fragile mortal was inherently restrictive, heavily compressing their mana capacity and stripping them of their natural siege weaponry. But Aurelithia was a mother first and a Dragon second.

She looked down at the glowing egg, and then back at the woman who had possessed the strength to shatter her wing, yet the mercy to spare her life. **"It has been three centuries since I last walked upon two legs," Aurelithia murmured, the telepathic projection withdrawing inward.

"But for the safety of my bloodline... I will bind my form." ** The dragon closed her eyes. What followed was not a simple flash of illusion magic, but a terrifying, awe-inspiring display of physical and spiritual compression.

The galleon-sized beast was violently swallowed by a sphere of blinding, swirling golden fire. The intense heat instantly vaporized the remaining rainwater in the crater, forcing Theron, Balkan, and the Royal Guards to shield their faces. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Inside the sphere, the massive silhouette of the dragon began to fold inward.

The sheer atmospheric pressure generated by condensing thousands of tons of mythic flesh and bone into a mortal vessel caused the air to crackle with erratic, golden lightning. When the blinding fire finally dissipated, the colossal beast was gone. Standing in the center of the muddy crater was a woman of breathtaking, terrifying majesty. Aurelithia was towering, easily standing seven feet tall. She possessed a regal, imposing posture that radiated absolute authority.

Her hair was a cascading waterfall of spun gold, falling flawlessly down her back. She was draped in an elegant, flowing gown composed of overlapping, flexible golden scales, the natural manifestation of her indestructible armor. Her face was ethereally beautiful, yet fundamentally alien. Her cheekbones were sharp, and a faint, shimmering pattern of golden scales dusted her temples and jawline. But it was her eyes that truly betrayed her primordial nature: piercing, luminous gold with sharp, vertical slit-pupils.

Aurelithia held out her hands. Resting in her palms was her egg, which had been shrunk through high-tier spatial magic to the size of a large gemstone. With a fluid, graceful motion, she pressed the glowing golden stone against the center of her chest. The egg melted seamlessly into her flesh, leaving behind a beautiful, glowing golden sigil over her heart, a sub-dimensional pocket designed for protection. She opened her mouth, and when she spoke, her voice was no longer a telepathic projection in their minds.

It was spoken aloud, carrying a mesmerizing, dual-layered resonance, a smooth, feminine alto overlaid with the deep, rumbling purr of a massive predator.

"The compression is stifling," Aurelithia noted, her golden eyes narrowing as she looked down at her human hands. She flexed her fingers, the knuckles cracking loudly.

"And my right shoulder remains heavily fractured from your profound arts. But it will serve." She turned her terrifying, vertical pupils toward Ming Xuan Ji. Aurelithia did not bow, dragons bowed to no one, but she placed her right fist over the glowing sigil on her heart in a gesture of respect.

"You spared my life, and you facilitated the return of my lineage," Aurelithia declared, her dual-layered voice ringing across the silent plains.

"The hoards of the Sunlit Peaks are vast. Mountains of gold, ancient dwarven steel, and elemental gems. But no earthly treasure equates to the life of my child." Aurelithia stepped forward, her golden scales clinking softly with every fluid, predatory stride.

"I am Aurelithia Ignis-Vaelstrasz," she proclaimed, holding Xuan Ji's gaze.

"Sovereign of the Sunlit Peaks. And until the Blood God Cult is turned to ash, and the debt of my child's life is fully repaid, my strength is bound to yours. I shall walk by your side, Human."

"Ming Xuan Ji, that is my name. Or, you can address me by my title, The Heavenly Demon." Xuan Ji looked up at the towering, seven-foot-tall dragon-woman. A genuine, highly satisfied smile touched the corners of her lips. She had just successfully recruited a raid boss into her party.

"Welcome to the Vanguard, Aurelithia," Xuan Ji replied smoothly. Crown Prince Theron, having witnessed the entire exchange, felt the political and martial landscape of his continent violently shift beneath his boots. Ming Xuan Ji was no longer just a wandering anomaly; she was now the master of a faction that included a mythical force of nature. Theron was a seasoned leader. He knew exactly when to bow to a superior force, and how to solidify an alliance.

"General Balkan," Theron commanded, his voice sharp and clear, turning to his stunned military commander.

"Y-Yes, Your Highness?" Balkan stammered, tearing his eyes away from the towering golden woman.

"Deploy the men into the crater," Theron ordered, pointing toward the muddy depression where the dragon had just been resting.

"Gather the fragments." Balkan nodded sharply, barking orders to the Royal Guards. The soldiers immediately rushed into the mud. They weren't looking for weapons or cultists. They were carefully, reverently picking up the shattered pieces of golden scales that had been blown off Aurelithia's wing during the battle. In the realm of Elyndria, a single scale from an Ancient Gold Dragon was a crafting material of unfathomable value. It possessed innate resistance to thermal magic and physical trauma.

A shield forged from a single scale could buy a minor kingdom. The Royal Guards gathered nearly forty pounds of the glowing, shattered gold, placing them carefully into a heavy, velvet-lined strongbox retrieved from the carriage. Theron took the heavy strongbox from General Balkan. He walked forward, ignoring the mud clinging to his royal boots, and stopped before Ming Xuan Ji. With a deep, respectful bow, he presented the open box to her.

"A tribute, Lady Ming," Theron said, his voice entirely devoid of royal arrogance.

"The spoils of your victory. My Royal Crafters Guild remains at your disposal should you wish to forge these into armaments for your household." Xuan Ji glanced into the box. The glowing scales were incredibly dense with mana, practically radiating raw defensive stats. It was the perfect material to upgrade her party's gear to the pinnacle of this world's capabilities.

"You have a pragmatic mind, Theron," Xuan Ji praised, reaching out and tapping the heavy silver void ring on her finger. A flash of spatial distortion swept over the strongbox, instantly storing the massive haul of mythic scales into her sub-space inventory.

"You defended my city, Lady Ming," Theron replied, standing tall.

"It is the least the Crown can do."

"Speaking of what the Crown can do," Xuan Ji murmured, her dark eyes shifting toward the towering, pale-blue dome of the capital city.

"We have a slight logistical problem. My previous accommodations were severely damaged by the cult's vanguard, and my new companion requires a roof." Aurelithia stood silently beside Xuan Ji, her golden eyes completely unreadable, projecting an aura of quiet, suffocating intimidation.

"It is time to return to the capital, Theron," Xuan Ji stated, leading the way toward the massive iron gates.

"We need to discuss real estate."