After the two dragons, one large and one small, took their seats at the head of the table, the high priest of the Temple of Light and the chief wizard of the Temple of the Undead, who were supposed to speak, had their hands full with their respective young lords. Therefore, the task of summarizing the main focus of the meeting fell to Yorkshire, the President of the Alchemical Guild, who was seated in the third position on the left.
As for the dragons seated in the head positions, they brazenly adopted an attitude that showed they didn’t take the meeting seriously. After all, the fact that the Dragon Clan provided the council chamber and participated in the meeting as part of the continent was already a considerable show of respect, and no one dared to trouble the Dragon Clan.
The Grand Magician Yorkshire, being the gracious gentleman that he was, stood up and adjusted his magical cloak with both hands. Then, he cleared his throat and, from within his robe, brought out a magical record book, beginning to “chant”: “I am Yorkshire, and I greet you all!”
He did not use the common crystal orbs for recording used throughout the continent; it was clear that he was an old-school mage.
Yorkshire was a quintessential gentleman magician, the founder of the third-largest neutral faction among the human race, which had flourished despite the rule of the Light and Dark forces on the continent. He had made friends with various races and received polite responses from everyone. After a brief pause, he continued speaking.
“So, for the first Grans Continent Defense Council meeting, I, Yorkshire, will be presiding. First, please allow me to introduce the current situation in various parts of the continent…”
As Yorkshire’s soothing voice continued, he gently manipulated the magical elements at his fingertips, causing the pages of the book to slowly open. He copied the contents of a certain page mentioned by him countless times, and identical magical pages flew in front of each of the attendees.
This was a map of the entire continent, and on the map, the extent of the invasion by the outsiders was represented with vivid, flowing red ink, clearly illustrating its progress. The infection area was expanding slowly but visibly.
Yorkshire’s tone became more solemn as he continued, “I believe that all of you gathered here today already know…”
Everyone’s gaze turned somber as they looked at the several areas outlined in blue lines within the red ink range.
Yorkshire’s pale hand rested on the massive stone conference table and made a slight sound. His gentle voice quickened, “The space-time in these places has begun to destabilize! But what you may not know is that it’s not just the power of space-time; the very rules of these places are slowly changing!”
“What?!”
“The rules of the land?!”
The room erupted into astonishment. Aside from a few high-ranking leaders of top races, many were unaware of the changes to the rules that Yorkshire mentioned.
As a result, many leaders of various races changed their expressions, especially those from distant regions or those comfortably situated far behind the Dragon Abyss. Although they had attended the meeting due to the prophecy and the disruption of space-time, they still held some underlying relief that the continent was in crisis but the Dragon Clan stood on their frontlines.
However, the mention of changes in the rules forced everyone to confront the situation. The rules were also known as the world’s power, a force that even the dragons feared.
When it manifested in the world, it meant…
Inside the conference hall, the various faces, each with their unique appearances, simultaneously displayed a pallid complexion.
Could it be that the very source of their worlds, which had nurtured them, was choosing to stand on the side of the outsiders?
Observing everyone’s growing concern and unified attention to this impending crisis, Yorkshire smiled contentedly, narrowing his eyes slightly, and then began to speak to reassure everyone.
…
The meeting proceeded smoothly.
Unbeknownst to anyone, a certain “little horn” atop the heads of the dragons sitting at the main seats was silently and confidently observing the proceedings.
Yorkshire was not just an exceptional mage; he also possessed a talent for public speaking. Using eloquent rhetoric, he transformed the continent’s crisis into a unifying force. Leaders from various races, each with their unique prejudices, set aside their differences and decided to face this continental crisis together.
One member of the Shadow Clan, a race not known for its strength but for its skill in subterfuge, cautiously spoke up from behind the Demon Lord Shura.
“My clan is willing to infiltrate the ranks of the outsiders to gather more information for everyone.”
The Shadow Clan was a branch of the Demon Clan, and the reason they had obtained a seat at the meeting, albeit in the position of a rear attendant, was because, on the invasion map of the outsiders, the red ink had already started seeping into the territory of the Shadow Clan.
This proposal from the Shadow Clan garnered the attention of all the high-ranking figures in the room.
Normally inconspicuous and remaining hidden in the shadows, the Shadow Clan’s leader was exposed for the first time to the gaze of so many powerful individuals. He trembled with fear but, driven by the hope of saving his people, he gritted his teeth and repeated his offer.
In his heart, he could only hope that if he put in every ounce of effort, perhaps, just perhaps, he could save his fellow clansmen.
On the main seats, where control had been temporarily relinquished due to the curiosity of the dragon hatchling, Jing Nian observed the situation from the Dragon Soul Space.
This small and pitch-black member of the Shadow Clan had a pair of dim and lifeless eyes filled with despair, hope, and supplication.
Unfortunately, the Grans Continent was not part of the interstellar society where Jing Nian originated from. Here, the law of the jungle prevailed, and the weak found it challenging to garner sympathy.
Even the Dragon Clan, Jing Nian’s favorite, didn’t pay much attention to the complex emotions in the eyes of this Shadow Clan member. They only showed a slight interest in his proposed plan to infiltrate.
Of course, if he could contribute something valuable, his clan might receive some assistance.
The Shadow Clan leader understood this, and after he finished speaking, he nervously looked towards the conference’s host, Yorkshire. He secretly felt fortunate that, due to the incident just before the meeting, the conference, which should have been presided over by one of the two temples, had been handed to Yorkshire, the chairman of the relatively more compassionate, kind, and sympathetic Alchemists Guild.
However, much to his disappointment, Yorkshire, through the information gathered from all the races, had already deduced the first piece of vital information about the outsiders, shattering the Shadow Clan’s hopes.
The white-haired yet youthful-looking mage gazed at the pitiable Shadow Clan member with compassion but couldn’t conceal information about the outsiders out of sympathy. He spoke, “The first piece of information is that the outsider players possess a special means of identification.”
“Whether it’s their own status as outsiders or information about the native inhabitants of the continent, they seem to be able to directly access it, possibly even to the extent of knowing the strength of the races and even their names. This method, I believe… can be called ‘Viewing.'”
In front of the long oval table, several faces looked at Yorkshire in shock, unable to believe it.
But soon, magical pages displaying information about the outsiders were presented in front of them one by one.
Yorkshire’s voice sealed their fate, “That’s right, it’s something only a Prophet can do.”
“So, disguising and infiltrating to observe among the outsiders is not a feasible strategy,” Yorkshire slowed down his voice slightly and directed a sentence towards the unfortunate Shadow Clan member with a lowly status.
The Shadow Clan member took a while to recover from his shock, and then all the complexity in his pitch-black eyes vanished. He slowly retreated behind the massive throne of the Demon Lord Shura, almost as if he had never existed.
On the surface, the dragons sitting in their seats appeared as calm as statues, showing impatience and disinterest in participating in the meeting. They gave off an air of “I’m here just to give you face.” However, in reality, they were all quite gossip-hungry.
On the surface, the dragons actively participating in the meeting were only the five generals, Hesse, and Jing Nian’s young dragonling. But in reality… at this moment, all the dragons were connected through their dragon consciousness. They were simultaneously watching the live broadcast of the meeting while energetically chatting in their own little groups.
Dragons from the seventh tier and above actively joined the discussion. Those in the lower three tiers had to remain diligent in their assigned tasks and couldn’t afford to slack off, as Hesse would punish them by making them hang upside down from cliffs if they did.
When the covert infiltration plan was reasonably denied by Yorkshire, there were even several dragons who hadn’t been counted. They were self-proclaimed experts in covert operations and expressed their regret.
Now they couldn’t have some fun by infiltrating the outsiders…
The dragons expressed their disappointment.
When Jing Nian curiously looked towards the Shadow Clan leader, Hesse immediately took the initiative to introduce the Shadow Clan and their current situation to Jing Nian and the young dragonling.
While there was a hint of sympathy between the lines, it was evident that there was no real compassion. They were willing to offer some help casually.
Jing Nian remained silent in his heart.
To the right of the main seat, the five generals were pounding their chests and stomping their feet because they had lost the opportunity to explain things to the young lord due to Hesse’s preemptive action.
Of course, as the fearsome Dragon Generals, their expressions remained as unyielding as ever.
However, they started quarreling through their dragon soul connections, and even the young dragons watching from outside the meeting room inexplicably joined the strange battlefield.
Outside the meeting room, two loud thuds could be heard from afar.
Jing Nian: “…” No need to doubt it; it must be those few who were quarreling the most in the consciousness link. They’ve started a fight.
Inside the meeting room, the Shadow Clan leader, who had noticed a peculiar gaze, found out that the young dragon lord was looking at him. Out of respect for the dragons and friendliness towards the young dragonling, he tried to muster a smile, but then despondently lowered his head and silently hid behind the Demon Lord Shura.
Seeing this smile, which carried both despair and friendliness, Jing Nian and the young dragonling couldn’t help but look directly at the spot where the Shadow Clan leader had been, even though he had disappeared from sight. They both kept their gazes fixed in that direction.
Having internalized the 24-character socialist core values, Jing Nian couldn’t simply adopt the “survival of the fittest” principles that were prevalent among the indigenous people of the continent. Furthermore, he needed to protect the stability of this game world.
After all, he was trapped inside the young dragon’s body, and the specific circumstances were still unknown. Any disruptions in the game world were not acceptable. The stability of the game world was closely related to his own safety, and this was an objective factor.
Moreover, the more he delved into this world, the more he realized that the people in this world felt increasingly real. They had flesh and blood, they could feel pain, shed tears, and they could exhibit the kind of determination demonstrated by the Shadow Clan, willing to sacrifice everything for the survival of their kin.
Subjectively, Jing Nian’s thoughts became clearer and clearer. He believed that this world was not a simple construct of data.
Although the entire interstellar community was striving to break through technologies like hyper-realistic AI and ecological, growth-oriented AI, both Jing Nian and biological AI researchers knew: “Science could create life, but it could not create a soul!”
Jing Nian had a deep understanding of this. All the life in this game world was not composed of mere data AI; they possessed souls!
He wanted to help the Shadow Clan!
“Agreed, agreed~” Jing Nian’s thoughts were immediately met with enthusiastic agreement from the young dragonling.
Unlike the indigenous people of the continent who grew up under the law of the jungle, the young dragonling was different. Not only did he benefit from Jing Nian’s company and emotional guidance, but he was also naturally emotionally expressive.
Therefore, after understanding Jing Nian’s intentions, the young dragonling stood firmly by his side.
“Let’s help together!”
“We’re helping the Shadow Clan!”
The resolute and adorable voice of the young dragonling echoed in the collective consciousness of the dragons.
And so, two major events happened recently in the dragon clan…
The first event shook the entire dragon clan: Young Lord Number One can now say eight words in one breath!
At the time, the dragons were so excited that their roaring voices almost scared the council members who had come to attend the meeting. They thought the dragons, who didn’t want to participate in any mainland defense battle, were angry. The influential figures in the continent were like quails, frozen in place, not daring to move.
Soon after, the second event occurred, sending shockwaves throughout the dragon clan, and subsequently, the entire continent.
This chain reaction of astonishment started with the entire Dragon Slayers Studio being shocked, followed by surprising all interstellar players.
