Samuel, The Dragon God

The Pontiff leaned back on his lounge chair, lightly touching the golden halo above his head. He spoke softly, "The Dragon God Samuel is stubborn and proud, intolerant of even the slightest slight. Francis, your subordinate injured Jennifer on your journey here. Now, her master is furious!"

Du Chen, unhurried, smiled. "Your Holiness, I leave it to your judgment!"

In his heart, his impression of the Dragon God took a significant hit. A true hero knows when to bend and when to stand firm. The situation was clear: with Du Chen bringing a genuine Level Ten Deboning into the Papal Curia's fold, the Holy Church now possessed a distinct advantage against the Dragon Clan. Under such circumstances, to be unable to swallow one's pride and instead seek retribution purely out of momentary bravado was absolutely not the action of a wise monarch!

The Pontiff gently closed his eyes, softly inhaling the sandalwood-scented air permeating the Eye of Heaven Temple. He spoke faintly, "Issue the command! The Twelve Guardian Battle Gods of the Temple are to deploy with the Flame-Vine Summoning. Mas will lead the vanguard, escorting the Chariot of the Gods!"

No sooner had he spoken than Du Chen heard a metallic grinding sound from the golden dome above. He looked up to see the top of the Pontiff's "mobile palace" parting on its own, revealing a vast opening, and above it, the branches and leaves of the Eye of Heaven Forest appeared!

Next, the opening grew wider and wider. The golden walls in front of the Eye of Heaven Temple's main seat simultaneously receded to either side, revealing a grand path paved with a red, carved carpet that stretched straight out of the pavilion. Outside, Mas had already set aside his tasks. Clad in blood-red battle armor, wielding two massive axes, he stood astride a war chariot adorned with human figures!

"This 'mobile palace' is truly a magnificent contraption!"

The war chariot outside was pulled by sixteen pure white unicorns, gleaming golden all over. Its shafts ended in sharp, protruding points, and two grand banners were planted at the rear: one a black-emblazoned Pontiff's Golden Halo Banner, the other a Banner of Divine Blessings... This was an even finer treasure!

Du Chen's fingers twitched with covetousness!

"Your Holiness, please mount the chariot!" Mas, standing by the chariot's side, bowed and shouted.

The Pontiff slowly walked towards the golden chariot. "Francis, representative of the Gods in the mortal realm, I grant you the right to ride alongside the Chariot of the Gods!"

"I thank the divine grace! The glory of the Gods is omnipresent!" Du Chen replied with a resonant voice, stepping onto the golden chariot close behind the Pontiff. By the laws of the battlefield, the duty of a chariot escort was to guard the general's flank and observe the battle situation. However, the Pontiff naturally had no need for Du Chen's protection. Instead, a certain someone was already calculating how best to dismantle this rather large golden chariot and transport it away with his Precious Lotus Scripture...

"The Pontiff departs!" Mas roared skyward, striking his two massive axes together. They produced a thunderous clash, like crackling lightning. Suddenly, from the soil of the road leading out of the Papal Curia's encampment, twelve colossal, python-like vines erupted. Flames seethed upon these woody tendrils, and atop each vine's tip stood a golden-armored Battle God!

The Twelve Battle Gods roared softly, clearing a path ahead. They cleaved through the towering ancient trees of the Eye of Heaven Forest, carving a broad road for the Pontiff's golden chariot. Within the shrouded encampment, a contingent of a thousand black-armored warriors had already assembled, their steps perfectly synchronized, marching to the booming rhythm of war drums, following close behind the Chariot of the Gods!

Du Chen's blood, too, began to boil!

"When will *my* army command such might!? The thought alone is exhilarating!"

In mere moments, the shimmering expanse of Moon Lake appeared before Du Chen's eyes. Yet, he had no time to admire one of the Three Continents' natural wonders. In the sky, over a hundred colossal dragons soared, their wings thrumming and their roars echoing. Each was incomparably massive, and the sunlight that had just pierced through the trees, cleared by the Twelve Battle Gods, was almost entirely eclipsed by their forms!

Above Moon Lake, his long-unseen teacher, Zigurd, stood in a white robe, seemingly negotiating with a figure before him. And behind Zigurd, stood the 'silly child,' Aliza, whom Du Chen had missed for so long!

"Old man! Young Master is here, Young Master is here!" The moment Aliza spotted Du Chen, he excitedly waved his arms and shouted, completely oblivious to the current tense situation, and bolted towards Du Chen!

A warmth spread through Du Chen's heart. Without a glance at the Pontiff for permission, he leaped from the golden chariot, threw a playful punch at Aliza, and the two brothers embraced fiercely!

In this unfamiliar world, Du Chen recognized only three as true family: his elder brother Steve, his old retainer Foye, and his brother, Aliza!

"Heh-heh, Young Master has grown taller!" Aliza wiped away a tear, patting Du Chen's head with a guileless grin.

Du Chen playfully punched Aliza again, then looked up at his towering height of over two meters, bursting into hearty laughter!

But at that moment, an untimely, cold shout resounded, like a rumbling thunderclap!

"Are you Francis!?"

Du Chen looked up. Opposite Zigurd, who seemed astonished by Du Chen's White-Robed Archbishop's cassock, stood a middle-aged man of extreme musculature, overwhelming dominance, and terrifying might!

He stood half a head taller than Aliza. He wore golden boots and black armored trousers, his upper body bare save for a gleaming, obsidian sash draped diagonally across his chest. His broad shoulders, narrow waist, bear-like back, and iron-hard muscles all proclaimed his savage ferocity without reservation!

And his countenance... immediately brought to Du Chen's mind a massive, blood-drinking blade, steeped in gore, freshly pulled from the Slaughterhouse Battlefield amidst countless enemy corpses! Blood-red pupils, long red hair, crimson tendrils, a high forehead, and hawk-like eyes... The man himself was like a lone, formidable Battle God, capable of striking down anyone at any moment!

"Young Master, this big guy is the Dragon God!" Aliza turned and called out to the Dragon God. "What are you doing? Can't you see Young Master is talking to me?"

"Aliza, don't be rude!" Du Chen admonished, his gaze on the Dragon God. He moved to stand in front of Aliza. At that moment, Deboning, who had been concealed within the Papal Curia's battle formation, also arrived by Du Chen's side.

Zigurd glanced meaningfully at Du Chen's White-Robed Archbishop's cassock. "Your Excellency, Dragon God, with your esteemed status, surely you wouldn't stoop to squabbling with a seventeen-year-old child, would you?"

The Dragon God's piercing gaze swept over Du Chen, paused for a moment on Deboning, then settled on Aliza. "You, you have the right to speak to me thus! In days of old, your father, wielding the Blade of Heaven, defeated my Sacred Dragons of Mount Miglio in the Fallen Moon Valley, slaying thirty-seven Dragon Guards! Today, a hero's descendant possesses a hero's Prerogative!"

Du Chen whipped his head around, staring at Aliza. *Could he be the son of Ben, the Blade of Heaven!?*

*Roland! You've kept far too much from me!*

But this was no time for questions!

The Dragon God's thunderous roar boomed again. "The man beside Francis, was it *you* who injured Jennifer!?"

Deboning clenched his fists, but kept his hands tucked within his sleeves. He took a step forward and declared, "It was I!"

"Take this, one strike!" The Dragon God suddenly strode forward, his figure like a raging dragon bursting from water—no, he *was* the Dragon God! Flames ignited, and the Dragon God's hammer-like fist was already upon Deboning!

Only then did Du Chen react! But it was too late to intervene, nor did he possess the power to stop it!

Yet the Pontiff's soft, benevolent voice remained utterly unchanged, arriving almost simultaneously with the Dragon God's fist. "Do not move. The Dragon God declared 'one strike,' so it will be but one strike!"

*One strike!? Even if Deboning was a level below the Dragon God, he couldn't be so weak as to be unable to withstand even a single blow, could he?*

Du Chen's heart eased slightly. Just then, a dull thud sounded beside his ear...

*BOOM!*

The Dragon God's fist struck towards Deboning's face. Deboning chose not to meet him head-on. His body shuddered, folding back with uncanny agility, evading the Dragon God's punch. Then, his hands moved like scissors, snapping towards the Dragon God's wrist!

A gleam flashed in the Dragon God's eyes. "Good!" he exclaimed, allowing Deboning to clamp onto his wrist. His feet remained planted, and his other hand, also clenched into a fist, shot out from his waist!

Deboning gritted his teeth, his hands seemingly glued to the Dragon God's wrist. He had no choice but to arch his back and bend his knee, using it to block the Dragon God's upward thrusting punch!

The collision of fist and knee was the dull thud Du Chen had heard.

Looking again, the Dragon God stood completely unmoving. Deboning, with a "thump-thump," stumbled back a few steps, his right leg trembling slightly. Yet, he bore no visible injury, and a cold sneer played on his lips!

True to his word, the Dragon God, after his single strike, clasped his hands behind his back and fixed his gaze on Deboning. "Jennifer was not wrongly injured! Among my Four Great Divine Dragons of Mount Miglio, only Thorog, perhaps, could contend with you!"

Having spoken, the Dragon God no longer looked at Deboning, but instead fixed his gaze upon the Pontiff!

"Sama, what is your intention in inviting these Divine Envoys to Moon Lake!? Are you trying to intimidate *me*, Samuel!?"

The Pontiff smiled faintly. "Dragon God, it is merely a coincidence. The Ten-Year Pact is due in these very days, and yet your Dragon Clan has been aggressively pressing, tying up the Gods' representatives in the mortal realm here in the Eye of Heaven Forest. Thus, I had no choice but to invite the Divine Envoys..."

The two, one unyielding and one conciliatory, began to exchange accusations.

Du Chen came to Deboning's side and whispered, "How was that?"

Deboning likewise whispered, "I do not know if the Dragon God used his full power. Judging by the intensity of that single strike, if he truly wished to kill me, it would take him at least ten more strikes. And if his speed is truly only as he displayed, I have over an eighty percent certainty of escape!"

*Did the Dragon God exert his full strength? That was a question Du Chen had no way of verifying!*

"What if Flaying and you joined forces? Is there a chance of victory?" Du Chen asked, his expression grim.

Deboning hesitated for a long time, offering Du Chen no answer!

Du Chen rubbed his nose, glancing at the negotiating Dragon God and Pontiff. From the recent exchange and the Dragon God's accusations, he had figured it out: the Dragon God didn't care at all that Deboning had injured Jennifer. His true target today was the Divine Envoys!

*Damn it, the Pontiff even claimed the Dragon God was here to settle scores with me, acting like the Old One stepping in to protect me... What a sly old fox!*

All of this transpired in the woods on the southern bank of Moon Lake, near the Papal Curia's encampment. Du Chen's gaze swept left and right, discovering the Divine Envoys' Cloud Banner unfurled on the western shore of Moon Lake, right by the water. However, the area around the Cloud Banner was enveloped in mist, making it impossible to discern any activity within!

*Not being able to see clearly is fine. As long as that Cloud Banner is a sacred artifact, then none of you will escape!* Du Chen smiled faintly.

At that moment, the Dragon God, unable to out-argue the Pontiff, suddenly roared skyward, his voice reverberating furiously across Moon Lake. "Divine Envoys! I, Samuel, respect your Gods, but what exactly is the meaning of your arrival at the Eye of Heaven Forest at this critical juncture!? I, Samuel, demand an explanation!!"

To dare challenge the Divine Envoys, whom even the Pontiff wouldn't lightly offend—what incredible arrogance! The roar deafened Du Chen's ears, yet his eyes remained fixed on the direction of the Cloud Banner!

This was Du Chen's first time witnessing the Cloud Banner's transformation firsthand... In his professional jargon, it was called...

...casing the joint!