The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

Chapter 720: Chapter 0717: Mind Branding (First Update)
 

The banquet ended in a harmonious atmosphere.

Accompanied by Nesta, Li Weiliam proceeded to the living room to accept compliments from the nobles both great and small. Today was the moment Liszt’s name thundered across the ocean, and it was also Li Weiliam’s moment to stand proud before all the nobles of the Duchy of Sapphire. Having been recently advanced to Marquis of Bull Tail, he had already basked in countless compliments once before.

Yet, the flattery from others could never be too much, and Li Weiliam wished he could hear such compliments every day.

Moreover, the intensity of the flattery this time would be spectacularly unprecedented—being the father of a Dragon Knight and, to the keen observer, probably the “father” of an Archmage as well, his status was immeasurably elevated, no different than if he had become a Dragon Knight himself.

“Lord Marquis.”

“Lord Li Weiliam…”

As soon as they reached the living room, the collective nobility rose, enthusiastically greeting them.

Li Weiliam hung a faint smile on his face and gently waved his hand, “Please, take your seats, there’s no need for such courtesy. I am still me, the Marquis of Bull Tail, one of the Sapphire followers. Liszt’s achievements are his own, whether as a Dragon Knight or Archmage, he will found a new family, and I will still represent the Tulip Family.”

“Lord Marquis, you are too modest. The crowns of Dragon Knight and Archmage are also your glory.”

“Lord Liszt has yet to marry or establish his own family; he still needs your support.”

“Indeed, you are a solid pillar of Sapphire and will also be a steadfast pillar for Lord Liszt.”

A barrage of blatant flattery left Li Weiliam floating, but he did not lose his composure, responding modestly, “My son is independent and has his own ideas. All I can do is smooth the path for his future as much as possible, so together, father and son, we can revitalize the glory and heritage of the Tulip Family.”

Nesta twitched his mouth at the side.

As the Sapphire “in-law” and the Grand Duke’s brother-in-law, he had seemingly become an accessory to Li Weiliam. Although he was accustomed to the “spirit” of nobility’s interest above all else, the sight of all those ingratiating smiles still left him feeling stuffy. He did not dare to show his displeasure openly.

Even he himself had to occasionally chime in with flattery for Li Weiliam—today’s Duchy of Sapphire had to rely on the strength of Liszt and Ach to secure the right to continue existing.

The overlord of the sea was no longer the Sapphire Duke who had narrowly escaped being slain by a dragon.

Even the Duke himself had to accept this reality.

In the study of Bull Hoof Fortress, the once undisputed lord of the ocean, the Sapphire Duke, watched the exceptionally young Liszt and Ach, feeling a mix of emotions—loss, envy, jealousy, gratitude, concern, and more swirled together in his heart.

His face still wore a gentle smile, “In this small study, there sit two Dragon Knights and one Archmage, a veritable case of ‘the humble room becomes brilliant.’

‘The humble room becomes brilliant’ is a Chinese idiom; the Duke spoke in Serpent Script.

However, the meaning the Duke wanted to convey was, in Liszt’s eyes, indeed the idea of ‘the humble room becomes brilliant.’

“Had the dragon slaying battle not come so quickly, I did not intend to reveal my identity as a Dragon Knight so soon, and Ach’s identity as an Archmage would not have been disclosed either,” Liszt said with a touch of regret. Although the battle against the dragon was thrilling, he preferred a more steady development, fitting his style, over the troubles that came after.

“You needn’t concern yourself with these matters. Although you and your dragon are very young, and you have little experience as a Dragon Knight, there’s no need to hurry with nation-building or carving out a domain from within the Kingdom’s sphere of influence. The mobility and flexibility of a Dragon Knight are your greatest strengths.”

“It was fine to not hurry before, but now that my identity has been revealed, I think it is better to establish a nation soon. Moreover, Sapphire probably can’t support two Dragon Knights and an Archmage, and there will be a clash in the order of rule,” Liszt stated plainly, candidly expressing his ambition.

If he did not build a nation, then he would inevitably have to overthrow Sapphire’s rule and declare himself king.

The Grand Duke laughed.

Not knowing what he was thinking, he could only nod and say, “Do you have any ideas for the location of the new kingdom?”

“It will still be at sea. I plan to send people to find new island groups, without contending with the Duchy of Sapphire for the current sea area. However, founding a kingdom involves many intricate matters, and I will need your help, Your Grace.”

“Don’t worry, I will do my utmost to help,” the Grand Duke promised cheerfully.

“Then I won’t hold back,” said Liszt as he nodded his head, then pulled out a stack of lists from his bosom, which contained the resources he had imagined he would need when founding the kingdom.

Seeing the thick stack of white paper, the Grand Duke was half curious what kind of paper it was and half unconsciously twitched the corner of his mouth.

Liszt simply flipped through the list and said, “I will entrust my father to discuss with you, Your Grace, to determine which resources we will need help with. Right now, what I’m more concerned about is the issue of Dragon Knights. As a senior Dragon Knight, Your Grace, I hope you will not hesitate to impart your wisdom.”

“Please speak.”

“What kind of agreement did the kingdom sign with the dragons?” Liszt asked his first question—he was about to have a second dragon and needed a means to control it.

In his plan, he would own multiple dragons, and he must have a way to control these creatures, so as not to have them stolen midway by others or turn against their owner—he himself was not afraid, but the key was how his descendants, if not sufficiently talented, could control the dragons.

“That agreement is actually a Branding from the First Dragon Knight,” the Grand Duke replied.

“Branding?”

“A dragon’s life is very long and can have multiple Dragon Knights fight alongside it. Being a Dragon Knight yourself, you should understand the mystery of the Mind Battle.”

“I understand, but what does this have to do with Branding?”

“After a Dragon Knight and dragon’s minds have united for a long time, the Dragon Knight can leave his own mental Brand on the dragon’s mind, continuously influencing it until it becomes a part of the dragon’s own psyche. In this way, even after the death of a Dragon Knight, the dragon will still protect the knight’s descendants.”

“Is this method foolproof? Especially when handing the dragon over to the Dragon Knight you’re raising to ride, wouldn’t it be a loss of both person and dragon if they eloped?”

“I don’t know how you went through your Mind Battle. Dragons are proud and their minds are powerful, especially those dragons that have been with the First Dragon Knight, their minds can be said to be complete. Subsequent Dragon Knights simply cannot breakthrough the dragon’s mind and replace the influence of the First Dragon Knight.”@@novelbin@@

“So even if I captured the Light Green Gem Dragon in this dragon-slaying battle, I wouldn’t be able to ride it?”

“Correct, and this is the reason why the dragon-slaying battle is known as ‘dragon-slaying.’ Wars often end with the slaughter of the opposing side’s dragons as the final outcome. Capturing them is pointless; no amount of ransom can match the value of a dragon. And a dragon that cannot be tamed is better off dead than kept resisting, extracting all its value.”

Listening to the Grand Duke’s explanation, a myriad of thoughts flickered through Liszt’s mind.

If what the Grand Duke said was true, it meant that even if he captured the battered Light Green Gem Dragon, he probably wouldn’t be able to ride it—unless he was willing to use a Bewildering Dragon Mind Fruit to cut away the Light Green Gem Dragon’s First Dragon Knight mental Branding. But setting aside the uncertain chances of success, whether it was worth using a Bewildering Dragon Mind Fruit was also hard to say.

He only had three Bewildering Dragon Mind Fruits, with one already used on Leo.

Of the two remaining, one was definitely for the Formless Dragon, and the last was to be used in the future for binding the Immortal Dragon, to become a Dragon Domain Land Lord and extend his own life.

Even if he couldn’t find an Immortal Dragon, it wasn’t worth using on a few hundred years old Light Green Gem Dragon.

Pondering this issue, he continued to inquire, “Your Grace, could you tell me how you came to ride the Sapphire Dragon? I’m very curious about all information regarding Dragon Knights.”