Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

Thunder rumbled in the sky as Orion reappeared on Thunderhawk Rayden's back, a hint of worry flashing through his gaze.

"Rayden, full speed ahead!"

Sensing Orion's serious tone, Thunderhawk Rayden wisely held back any remarks about the scenery they passed. Instead, it let out a sharp screech and pushed its speed to the maximum.

Lumi looked back, her expression cool and silent, her eyes brimming with curiosity as she watched Orion. He grinned, realizing that his sober, heavy mood had startled both Thunderhawk Rayden and Lumi. Though Lumi said nothing, Orion knew she was concerned about him.@@novelbin@@

Wrapping an arm around Lumi, Orion spoke in a calm yet confident voice:

"In this north-south war, many Legendary-level powerhouses fell on all three battlefronts. Countless lords were defeated and lost their territories. Of course, plenty of Alpha-level warriors rose to power and vaulted straight into the Legendary level."

"But no matter which case, they all need somewhere to call home—a place for their race to settle. Now, on our western flank, we've already spotted an intruder from the central region who's reached Legendary status."

Orion did not hold back, telling Lumi everything he knew. He had brought Lumi north with the intention of letting her remain in the Abyssal Chasm and the frozen regions beyond—areas of cold and endless snow that were well-suited to Lumi's affinity with magical elements.

According to Orion's plans, he would grant these two places to Lumi. With her current strength and the resources Orion intended to allocate, she would soon reach the peak of Alpha level. At that point, having her own dominion and successfully communing with the transcendent power within a Lord's Stone would allow her to break through to Legendary level.

For now, Orion's territory was vast enough to bestow upon three or four lords. Precisely because it was so large, Orion urgently needed one or two Legendary-level subordinates to stabilize it.

Whether it was the dark beast tides, invasions from other lords, or a future intrusion by Deputy Commander Edward of the Champions Alliance into the Godforsaken Land, Legendary-level subordinates would be indispensable.

"You mean to say some lord might invade your territory?" Lumi, being quick on the uptake, had already grasped the seriousness of the situation.

"Not just my territory—our territory."

Orion looked off into the distance, as though trying to see through the layers of clouds and mountain ranges to gaze upon his domains: the Thunderwood Forest, the black forest.

"Apart from the black forest, there's a strong chance the Thunderwood Forest and the northern icefields will be targeted by other lords."

Though Orion spoke quietly, Lumi trembled slightly upon hearing his prediction. At least the black forest was guarded by Orion's will projection, and so far, no invaders had appeared there.

"It's possible a stronger lord will set sights on the Thunderwood Forest. Gareth is dead, and I haven't shown up there in time, so someone else could be staking a claim. And as for the Abyssal Chasm and the far northern icefields, I'm sure there'll be lords weaker in raw might but clever enough to head there, thinking it's relatively safe in the far north."

In truth, Orion's suspicions were spot on. Right now, the Thunderwood Forest had already welcomed a half-dragon lord who had claimed the Eagle Nest atop Thunderpeak Mountain—Gareth's former lair.

Thunderpeak Mountain, the Eagle Nest.

"My great lord, I didn't expect that in this barren northern region, we'd find a special place like this eagle's nest. Holding it is a stroke of good fortune for our tribe."

Inside the palace, seated upon the throne was a half-dragon lord. He differed from Gareth in that while Gareth had inherited a dragon lineage without fully transforming, this half-dragon had undergone complete draconic transformation—claws, tail, wings, horns, every recognizable aspect of dragonkind was present on his body.

His name was Seraphon. He was not part of the half-dragon lineage sired by arch lord White Dragon Frostsire, but rather a puppet propped up by humans—a half-dragon of mixed ancestry.

Ten thousand years ago, arch lord White Dragon Frostsire had been sealed away, leaving behind a special construct in his domain known as the Dragon Nest. The humans used it to turn some of their own people into half-dragons. This was how Seraphon had come about.

Now that arch lord White Dragon Frostsire had returned, and Jorik had marched south, Seraphon was lucky to be alive, given he was among the defeated.

Pushed northward along with the remnants of his tribe, Seraphon heard of another half-dragon lord supposedly dwelling in the Thunderwood Forest. Thus, he led his people here. Certain of his own abilities, he couldn't imagine losing to another half-dragon.

Moreover, some time had passed since the north-south war ended, and there had been no sign of that "Half-dragon Lord " in the Thunderwood Forest.

In Seraphon's view, this half-dragon lord had either fallen in battle or found new territory and abandoned these woods. Either scenario was good news for Seraphon.

"My lord, should we continue farther north, stake out the region there as well?" one of the tribal elders proposed, only to have Seraphon refuse. Your next chapter is on My Virtual Library Empire

"Now is not the time to invade other lands. First, we secure our footing here in the forest—this is our new home. Once we firmly control this place, we can head north, march south, or even turn toward the central region as we please."

In truth, Thunderwood Forest was a decent piece of land, but compared to the southernmost regions and their unique resources, it was fairly unremarkable.

"What a pity. If only we could bring that Dragon Nest from the south here!"

Many half-dragons in the palace sighed at this thought. Without that Dragon Nest, their lineage would fade and become muddled over time.

"It doesn't matter," Seraphon declared in an impassioned voice, simultaneously raising the spirits of everyone present. "When I become an arch lord, our tribe will have a Dragon Nest of our own."

He paused, allowing his hopeful words to sink in.

"For now, what you need to do is gather our remaining kin to conquer this forest. Subjugate the other races that live here and make it our own. Arch Elder, you will lead the troops in this campaign."

The half-dragon Arch Elder stepped forward proudly. For any race, going off to stake a claim, to carve out a place of one's own, was a glorious and thrilling duty.

"Remember: be ruthless, be overbearing, and show all the inhabitants of this forest our power!"