Chapter 334: 109. Friends from the Ocean
At the same time, in the Southern Continent, within the Boundless Wilderness on the eastern coast of the continent, a fierce conflict unnoticed by humans was raging. The sound of galloping hooves, intense and continuous like raindrops, awakened this quiet land, causing the Earth Spirits sleeping below the surface to scatter in fright, fleeing far from the distant chaos.
“Chirp chirp!”
“Go! Chase those traitors!”
In the midst of the dusty uproar in the distance, a dozen multicolored Dragonfolk were hastily fleeing. They originally belonged to the East Branch Tribe but had come under the rule of the Dragon Queen. However, within the New Dragon Court, they refused to submit to the authority of Queen Raphael.
The hatred stemming from the destruction of their tribe by Raphael and the contempt from other Dragonfolk led them to increasingly contemplate defection from the New Dragon Court. Finally, on a quiet night, they stealthily took the dragon magic scroll forged by the queen along with other precious treasures, intent on escaping to human cities to free themselves from the Dragon Queen’s constraints.
The Dragon Queen’s guards discovered this group of defectors at once and pursued them through Twilight Valley from the south, taking horsefolk with them as they rode north along the eastern coast. After a whole night of escape, both the fleeing Dragonfolk and the guards pursuing them were exhausted, signaling that a brutal confrontation was imminent.
“Damn it, the horses can’t go on!”
Leading the group was Halil, the chief guard and former chief of the East Branch Tribe, who had died in the war that led to the fall of his tribe. He had led the main force of the East Branch Tribe to fend off the Southern Branch Tribe’s attack, resulting in casualties on both sides. They had hoped to seek help from humans by holding out. However, they never expected Raphael to personally charge into their base from the southeast.
Not only did she slaughter all the Dragonfolk remaining in the tribe with just a few punches, but she also twisted the neck of the strongest leader into a mess, and the leader’s son also fell victim to her. Thus, the East Branch Tribe was utterly defeated. Halil was spared by Raphael and joined her new Dragon Court.
Initially, Halil genuinely wanted to join Raphael because her strength transcended all Dragonfolk, making it hard for anyone to kneel before her. But as other Dragonfolk from different branches continued to join, Halil, once in a high position within the East Branch Tribe, began to feel stifled for the first time. Moreover, due to the East Branch Tribe’s clandestine dealings with humans, they faced ridicule from other Dragonfolk. This growing resentment and dissatisfaction ultimately drove him to defect.
“Lord Halil, ahead is the Blood River Strait; there is no road ahead!”
Halil’s expression grew cold as he turned to glance back at the closely pursuing forces of the New Dragon Court and then at the steep cliff blocking their way. Beyond that cliff lay the endless blue ocean. At that moment, he found himself at a dead end, but he did not give up. He looked down at the glowing magic scroll in his hand and shouted to the Dragonfolk beside him,
“Then let’s do it! Abandon the horses!”
“Boom!”
Before Halil could finish his words, a rapidly spinning strange figure suddenly emerged from the ground ahead. The moment the back, akin to a pangolin’s shell, came into Halil’s view, he thought it was bad. He quickly pulled on the reins and warned his companions,
“Not good! It’s a Piercing Type, stop!”
But in that tense moment, a few Dragonfolk in the back who heard Halil’s voice pulled up their horses. However, the few charging ahead could not stop. The moment the Piercing Type appeared, the ground before them suddenly caved in, blocking their path like an earthquake, and those who could not stop were thrown into the deep ravine, crying out in pain.
“Well done, Famasi!”
Just as the horses ahead came to a halt, a giant spider figure descended from the sky. With two firearms in hand, she immediately shot down the two Dragonfolk that had just reacted. After tossing aside her guns, she drew a long blade hidden behind her,
“Finally caught up with you! Are you Dragonfolk or cockroaches? How are you so fast?”
“Xiya, be careful! They are Dragonfolk, very strong in physique.”
Yes, the ones intercepting this group of traitors were the notorious thieves who had robbed Fisher and Raphael before—the spiderfolk Xiya, the Piercing Type Famasi, and—
In the next second, a phantom figure descended from the sky. It turned out that a brain demon who could become intangible had been following this fleeing group of Dragonfolk from above, which was the reason why they could not escape capture.
“Give up, Halil; you can’t get away now.”
Halil glanced around. The three subhumans had the military comprised of horsefolk and other subhumans closing in. The Dragonfolk beside him, already weary from fleeing all night and under attack, could not match the opponents, leaving him with only one last resort.
“Don’t move! We surrender and will return with you to accept Queen Raphael’s judgment.”
“Lord Halil!”
The Dragonfolk hit by the firearms gritted their teeth, standing up angrily to glare at the increasingly closer pursuers, then shouted at Halil,
“Better to fight them than to go back to that hellhole! At least we can reserve some strength to report to the humans!”
Xiya’s face, adorned with six spider compound eyes, showed clear disgust. She held her dual blades poised across her chest, ready to strike,
“You think you can get away after bringing so many and still hope to escape?”
“Be careful, Xiya! He has taken the high ring magic engraved by Queen Raphael; keep your distance from him!”
Just as Keli Li, floating in the sky, opened her mouth to warn Xiya, Halil’s expression suddenly twisted into a snarl. He pulled out a piece of sheepskin inscribed with magical glimmers, then pointed the scroll at the wilderness ahead.
“Run! Abandon the horses and jump into the sea!”
As soon as Halil shouted this, the magic scroll in his hand erupted with a brilliant light, and an invisible resonance gripped the world, erupting with a flame that roared like a dragon, and furthermore, as that flame spread, a series of explosive reverberations were triggered, proving the engraver’s superior understanding of magic.
But this was disastrous for the Dragon Court’s allied forces pursuing the traitors. During the day, the ocean warmed slowly, and the wild winds from the ocean blew towards the sun-warmed land. The intense flames exploded and spread towards the approaching pursuing soldiers. Although the distant soldiers halted in time and were not harmed by the fierce dragon magic, Famasi and Xiya, still nearby, suffered.
“Damn! This bastard, cough cough!”
The phantasmic brain demon Keli Li did not expect the flames to spread so rapidly. She saw Halil and his Dragonfolk fleeing quickly towards the coast, but she couldn’t pursue them as her partners were trapped in the fiery chaos.
“Bang!”
As Keli Li gazed anxiously at her partners enveloped in flames below, crystalline droplets began to fall from the sky, landing on Xiya and Famasi’s faces.
It’s raining?
Just as Keli Li was about to exclaim her gratitude for divine help, she looked up only to see the clear blue sky with no clouds in sight to produce raindrops.
“This is… seawater?”
Keli Li instinctively extended her tongue to taste the “raindrops” on her cheek, suddenly realizing the salty flavor. But why would seawater fall from the sky?
She turned to look towards the coast and saw a colossal wave resembling a tsunami rising, obscuring the sky above the wilderness. In the next moment, torrents of water fell like a torrential downpour, soaking everyone below. However, Xiya and Famasi, drenched and unable to open their eyes, showed no signs of anger, instead raising their weapons and shouting,
“The fire is out! Keli Li, the fire is out!”
Suspended in mid-air, Keli Li had yet to comprehend what was happening. Just as she was wondering if the Dragon Court had dispatched reinforcements, an even more bizarre incident occurred.
The group of Halil, who were running desperately, decided to jump into the sea to escape the Dragon Court’s pursuit. Yet absurdly, the first few Dragonfolk who leaped off the cliff quickly resurfaced, soaked and thrown back up within seconds, leaving Halil, about to jump, dumbstruck.
He turned to look back at the extinguished flames from the magic and then at his companions who had been thrown back up without understanding what happened, screaming in a panic,
“What’s going on? Why did you come back up?!”
“Down there, it seems there are people in the sea. As soon as we jumped in, we were thrown back up!”
“Who is it? Which bastard dares to treat us like this?!”
As Halil’s hysterical roar echoed, a figure suddenly sprung light-footedly from the bottom of the cliff. Under the sunlight, that radiant figure shimmered with golden light due to the sea water, dazzling in the surprised eyes of both groups. A subhuman with blue hair, extraordinarily beautiful and cute, and sporting a peculiar giant tail, leaped from the sea to stand before Halil.
The subhuman was clad in fitted golden armor, holding a golden sword in one hand, her expression showing some worry as she looked at the Dragonfolk before her, seeming unfamiliar to her as well.
“You all—are you alright? I just saw you jump off the cliff because of the flames on the shore. Don’t worry, I’ve already extinguished the fire for you. There’s no need to jump into the sea to escape.”
The young girl’s voice was sweet and pure, causing an uplifting feeling as soon as it was heard. The concern in her eyes seemed genuine, and her peculiar language transformed into recognizable Dragon Court language under the influence of Keli Li closing in.
Yes, this was Jasmine, the Whale Folk who had recently spoken with her mother Xu and left the trench to come ashore. Seeing the flames on the shore made her think someone had to jump off the cliff because of the fire, and being inherently kind-hearted, she immediately summoned the sea water to extinguish the flames for them.
However, at that moment, Halil had no thoughts of gratitude. The veins on his forehead throbbed, and the surrounding Dragonfolk believed this person before them was an enemy sent by the Dragon Court, raising their weapons towards her in unison.
“Die, you bastard!”
“Watch out!”
From afar, Keli Li sensed something was wrong. Her intangible form suddenly accelerated in mid-air, and below, Xiya and Famasi rushed towards the Dragonfolk, fearing that those traitors would harm the peculiar subhuman from the ocean.
“Boom!”
But in the next second, Jasmine, clad in armor, merely turned around, and her whale tail whipped towards them as quick as lightning. The immense force struck the nearest Dragonfolk, producing a chilling sound of bones cracking as they were sent flying one after another, causing Keli Li and the others to freeze in place, too scared to advance.
“Hey, hey, why all of a sudden… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to! Can’t we just talk it out?!”
Jasmine looked helplessly at the Dragonfolk she had struck, who were now unconscious or worse. She panicked; having seen others approach with weapons, she instinctively retaliated without any of the rich combat experience her mother possessed. Would she end up inadvertently killing the very people she rescued?
“You’re safe, that’s what matters! I truly thank you. If it weren’t for your help just now, my companions probably would have been hurt. Let me introduce myself; I am Keli Li, a scout from the New Dragon Court. May I ask who you are?”
Keli Li was the quickest to react, floating next to Jasmine to take her tangible form. After introducing herself, she curiously studied the large whale tail behind Jasmine. She was familiar with many subhumans from the Southern Continent, but she had never seen one like Jasmine.
A subhuman from the ocean?
“Ah, I’m Jasmine, a Whale Folk from the ocean. Oh wait, I can understand you! How amazing! By the way, Miss Keli Li, may I ask what was happening here? Is this the Southern Continent? And what is the New Dragon Court?”
Keli Li stared, astonished, at Jasmine, who seemed completely clueless about the situation onshore. After taking a good look at her peculiar armor and confirming she bore no malice, she chuckled and turned back to explain to Jasmine about the groaning Dragonfolk lying on the ground.
“I apologize for not having explained the situation to you earlier. We were capturing traitors from the New Dragon Court when we unintentionally got blocked by the flames they sparked. Thanks to your timely intervention, they were nearly able to escape to the sea. And yes, this is indeed the Southern Continent. Although I’m not sure why you are here, I must warn you that this place is not safe; fighting and bloodshed abound.”
Jasmine’s eyes lit up at this, her heartbeat quickening at the mention of “bloodshed and fighting,” but a second later, she secretly steeled herself and calmed down.
I truly made it to the Southern Continent! I heard that my mother set foot on the Southern Continent during her youth and progressed rapidly here, laying the foundation for her future reputation as the Ocean Empress. I must also train well, just like my mother, before the war arrives; only then can I become a mythical being and rescue Fisher from the ocean of war.
“Tread, tread, tread!”
Suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed ahead. Jasmine looked over and saw countless subhuman soldiers of various types approaching. Among the increasingly close ranks were Dragonfolk, Horsefolk, Batfolk, Sheepkin, and Spiderfolk.
Jasmine was stunned by this sight. It was her first time seeing such a harmonious gathering of various subhuman types. This reminded her of a term Keli Li had mentioned earlier.
The New Dragon Court.
Keli Li noticed Jasmine’s shock and turned with a smile to reassure her,
“Lady Jasmine, the New Dragon Court, unlike the Dragon Queen, advocates for the unity of oppressed races on the Southern Continent to jointly collaborate against invading forces and reclaim their homeland, creating a peaceful and pleasant home for subhumans. Although you may not be a subhuman of the Southern Continent, I’m sure the Dragon Queen would be very curious about you as a subhuman from the ocean.”
Jasmine turned to look at Keli Li, whose hair and brain were completely transparent, listening to her sincere invitation,
“In that case, please allow me to invite you to join us back to the New Dragon Court for a visit, even if it’s just to express my gratitude for your help.”
Jasmine waved her hands in embarrassment, saying, “I didn’t really help much; I just did it as a matter of course. But…”
Her words trailed off as she looked at the various subhumans capturing a few Dragonfolk, who were talking to each other. Even though some struggled with the Dragon Court language, the atmosphere genuinely attracted Jasmine. She felt a strong interest towards the Dragon Queen, the leader with such beautiful aspirations.
“I am indeed very interested in the Dragon Queen of the Dragon Court. If you don’t mind the disturbance, please let me temporarily follow you back to see your queen.”
Keli Li smiled and nodded. In the distance, Famasi and Xiya, armed with firearms and weapons, were walking over. They first glanced at Jasmine and then asked Keli Li,
“What’s going on with this one?”
“Xiya, Famasi, let me introduce you. This is Lady Jasmine, a Whale Folk from the ocean, and it was she who helped you escape from the flames, assisting us in capturing the traitors. I’ve already invited her as a friend to visit the Dragon Court, and I believe Raphael would also like to meet a subhuman from the sea.”
“Ha, there’s a subhuman in the sea? I thought there were only fish and those huge human ships!”
Xiya scratched her head and said so.
“Xiya, mind your manners.”
Jasmine didn’t get offended by Xiya’s words; instead, she found this harmonious atmosphere amusing and chuckled.
“Everyone, get ready to set off; we are returning to Twilight Valley now!”
Hearing Keli Li’s words, the encircling subhumans turned, and Famasi and Xiya brought over the combat vehicles they used to transport them, as riding horses was not practical for spiderfolk due to their physiological structure.
Jasmine climbed onto the transport vehicle with them, heading south to meet with the Dragon Queen named “Raphael” in the New Dragon Court located in Twilight Valley.
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(End of Chapter)
