The Shepherds Are Dense – Chapter 1214

Chapter 1212
When the Stars Fall
June 25, 1899, 2:18 AM, Ancient Kingdom of Anxi.
The future history will surely remember this moment.
A dazzling silver light suddenly shone in the deep and peaceful night sky.
A thunderclap roared above the desert.
Everyone in the world—not just extraordinary beings, but all intelligent life—heard that thunderclap at the same time.
Those who were sleeping were all jolted awake simultaneously.
It wasn’t because the sound was incredibly loud, but rather because the violent tremors in the Dream Realm expelled everyone from their dreams.
And if they looked up at the night sky, they would see it had turned an abnormal white. It was as if the clouds in the midnight sky were emitting vapors like dry ice, making the night as bright as day.
Thick, python-like silver-white lightning bolts rolled within the frozen clouds, interspersed with several net-like, blood-red, fork-shaped lightning flashes. Ferocious dragon roars continuously sounded from the sky.
The Dream Realm was continuously affecting the Material Realm, and the Material Realm itself was also influencing the Dream Realm.
The outcome of the battle in Heaven City had indeed changed the war in the Dream Realm.
Just as Arthur, leading the Knights of the Round Table, had taken Avalon in the past, proving that Authority was a more advanced form of violence than brute force… the benevolent rulers who used the Path of Authority to govern the Ancient Kingdom of Anxi had also overturned their plans due to the vengeful onslaught of the Red, who feared no death.
When the result of this war was reflected into the Dream Realm through a ritual, the Crown Lord, who had been suppressed by the Calamity Demon Dragon for a long time but had maintained a precarious balance, could no longer hold on.
In the current Dream Realm, the massive iceberg where the Crown Lord had once prostrated himself had completely shattered.
Two giant dragons, one red and one white, were tearing at each other in the sky—they were once one being, but had now split into two entities.
One was the red dragon, whose True Name was Arthur.
This was the Calamity Demon Dragon, who espoused the Path of Love and Transcendence, and was more inclined towards the identity of “Envoy of the Ring Heavenly Envoy.”
The other was the white dragon, whose True Name was Vothigern, but who had usurped Arthur’s name to descend into the Material Realm.
His self-identity leaned more towards the identity of “Crown Heavenly Envoy”—the Silver Crown Dragon, who was elevated to a Pillar God for slaying giants.
—But whether red dragon or white dragon, neither was their true form.
“The Crown Lord… didn’t send the knights…”
Eivass stood in the shrine of Heaven City, looking up at the starry sky, murmuring softly.
Although Eivass’s left eye could only see clouds, his right eye could see the battle in the Dream Realm through them.
The red dragon and the white dragon gnawed at each other, a fight like that of beasts. Neither drew the swords that represented knights; both fought to the death in the most barbaric and violent manner possible.
Claws, dragon tails, grappling, collisions—and dragon breath.
Scales, along with blood, detached from their bodies, transforming into meteors that fell towards the Earth.
—This was the Crown Lord’s meteor shower.
Beside him, besides Sharky, was Alistair, whom he had summoned—in a sense, Sharky’s mother.
It wasn’t that Eivass wanted Alistair to do anything.
He simply felt that… witnessing this moment with Alistair was quite meaningful.
Because the relationship between Arthur and Vothigern was the same as the relationship between Eivass and Alistair.
And now, the relationship between Eivass and Alistair was as intimate as family, but the relationship between Arthur and Vothigern had deteriorated to the point of mutual destruction… perhaps this was due to the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s inferior skills compared to his teacher, Hourglass Stone, or perhaps the Ring Heavenly Envoy had done it intentionally.
“After all, the Crown Lord wouldn’t want them to sacrifice themselves meaninglessly,”
Alistair also looked up at the stars and said casually, “After all, they are both ‘Arthur.’ When the red dragon occupies the position of the Pillar God, they will just have a new boss. What does the infighting of the higher-ups have to do with the workers?”
“This means that the Crown Lord does not believe he can win,”
Eivass said softly, “This is already a disadvantage.”
The Crown Lord was extremely competitive—as a Pillar God of the Path of Authority, he was the most powerful and arrogant monarch in the world. Although he could reflect on himself, he would not tolerate any form of questioning.
If the Crown Lord believed he could win, he would have definitely summoned his Knights of the Round Table to help him in battle.
This was “righteous gang warfare.” While it might sound shameless, this was precisely the combat style of the Path of Authority.
Similar to the “Preservation Technique” and “Excavation Technique” of the Twilight Path, the “Art” of The Path of Beauty, the “Spells” of the Path of Wisdom, and the “Alchemy” of the Path of Balance… the occult knowledge of the Path of Authority was called “Leadership Technique.”
It was mysterious knowledge about how to rule and manage others. It included teachings on tangible and intangible speech and behavior, as well as supernatural powers such as mind control, telepathy, memory retrieval, deterrence, and contracts.
—A follower of the Path of Authority without subordinates, what was the difference between him and a general without soldiers or an emperor without ministers?
When the Silver Crown Dragon chose not to deploy the knights, his defeat was already sealed.
“The warriors of humanity in the past once adhered to the Path of Power of the Supreme Heaven and became the ‘strongest’ among humans…”
The voice of the Lord of Scales and Feathers echoed from beside Eivass.
Eivass turned his head and saw that he was also standing with his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky together.
The Lord of Scales and Feathers leisurely said, “And at that time, Arthur realized the limits of humanity.
“Even if humans trained to the extreme and reached the Fifth Tier of the Path of Power, they would still be unable to contend with giants and dragons of the same tier. This was an absolute unfairness predetermined since birth.
“He wanted to transcend this limit. He tried many methods… such as using potions to enhance his muscles, using alchemical devices equipped externally to his body, using divine arts with blessings, or learning combat techniques like the Path Adaptation that overdrafted the body’s potential…
“But all this failed. Strength is strength, weakness is weakness. A warrior weighing over a hundred kilograms could not possibly contend with a dragon weighing over a hundred tons, no matter what. The power of a Fourth Tier young dragon alone was several times greater than a Fifth Tier warrior. He revered the Path of Power and wanted to obtain strength that surpassed all others.
“Just as a baby cannot tear apart a Gundam no matter how much medicine it’s given—unless the baby is as tall as the Gundam.”
The Lord of Scales and Feathers implied, “And the Ring Heavenly Envoy gave Arthur an opportunity. One that could make this baby as tall as a Gundam—even giving him the possibility to pilot a Gundam himself.”
This was precisely the initial motivation for the Crown Heavenly Envoy to become a dragon.
To slay a dragon with a mortal body, to absorb dragon factors with the power of an Ascencist… and thus become a dragon.
“When he was still a mortal, he could kill dragons; so how powerful was he when he became a dragon? No one dared to disobey him. Even the emperor of the Hrasal Empire at the time abdicated his crown, throne, and authority to this dragon.”
When everyone absolutely feared the ruler, policies would be implemented very quickly. And if the ruler was incredibly powerful, this fear would quickly turn into worship and pride.
“The current territory of the Hrasal Empire was conquered by the former Crown Heavenly Envoy. He was too powerful… He withstood countless assassinations and curses, yet none could shake his great body and his absolutely righteous rule. In the end, he shattered the world barrier with his physical body, ascended to the Dream Realm, and became the Pillar God of the Path of Power—because he was not resurrected from the Origin River, even Supreme Heaven had no chance to act against him.”
The Lord of Scales and Feathers said slowly, “But a great warrior who, when still a mortal, envied, was jealous of, and coveted the body of a dragon… how could he bow to Supreme Heaven?
“Just as dragons surpass humans, so do Pillar Gods surpass Heavenly Envoys. He once stole the body of a dragon, so why couldn’t he take another step forward and seize the position of Pillar God?
“Thus… came the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s plan. It was the first Ouroboros Ring ritual, a trial run of the Ouroboros Ring… Half of the Crown Heavenly Envoy was cut out and placed into an ordinary human body. He named his newborn self Vothigern—meaning ‘Great Monarch,’ ‘Supreme King,’ which is the original meaning of the ‘Crown’ in ‘Crown Heavenly Envoy.’
“But when he regained a human body and the ability to dream and progress again… his ambition began to swell. Perhaps he didn’t have to be just Vothigern… perhaps he could be Arthur? Perhaps he could be the Crown Heavenly Envoy?
“Perhaps… he could also become the future Pillar God? Monarchs are unwilling to share power with others, and Vothigern was no exception.”
At this point, the Lord of Scales and Feathers glanced at Eivass and Alistair.
The implication was self-evident.
If one ruled another self as a monarch, the other self would also want to rule oneself; if one loved another self as a lover, the other self would also love oneself.
Just as the Ring Heavenly Envoy wanted to kill Eivass, Eivass also wanted to kill the Ring Heavenly Envoy.
Excessively similar “twin mirrors” would inevitably cause a rebound in their attitudes towards each other.
“—And this thought was the beginning of everything.”
The Lord of Scales and Feathers sighed, “Today is the end of the story.
“Just as a drop of wine or a scoop of dregs cannot turn back into the original grape…
“Whether Arthur or Vothigern, even if they devour each other, they can no longer return to their former selves.”