Chapter 145: Dragon Usurpation

  "Huff..."

  "What a terrifying enemy."

  After firming that the Shadon had left, the Red Dragon slowly desded to the ground, lig the wounds on its body.

  【Dragon's Breath】

  Golden particles of life energy desded from the sky, rapidly healing the injuries. The slightly weakened dragon body visibly began to recover.

  "One day, I will kill him."

  "Mortifer."

  Cassius spoke this hat represehe night.

  The Red Dragon stared at the pce where the Shadon had disappeared, its expression slightly ferocious, and golden pupils seemed to burn with bzing fmes. Someone had is territory, and it vowed revenge. In the near future, it would crush the dragon hidden in the shadows.

  But now was not the time; its power was still far from enough.

  The surroundings were already a mess, with traces of the Shadow Curse lingering. Broken branches and spttered soil still emitted faint bck mist.

  However, the moon in the sky finally revealed itself, castile and tranquil moonlight that purified the shadow energy spreading around.

  Cassius could feel that, due to Duke Brad's sacrificial , the space here had bee incredibly fragile, almost on the verge of being a boundary betweeerial Pne and the Shadow Abyss.

  Mortifer hadn’t lied; this transformation was still ongoing. Uhe source of the curse—the Shadon—was eliminated, it would tinue.

  "But..."

  "At least it’s temporarily over."

  The Shadon was indeed powerful, exerting absolute domihe bck mist that veiled the sky made Cassius realize his own insignifibsp;

  Fortunately, he uood the principle of "borrowing power for intimidation." By invoking Tiamat’s name and the authority of the atic Dragons, he had mao scare off the Shadon.

  But all power beyond one’s trol es with a price, and Tiamat’s terrifying illusion was no exception.

  "Perhaps, it isn’t truly over yet."

  Cassius gazed at the sky, holding his breath.

  The illusio only for Mortifer noeared before him.

  This was the power of the gods. Eveing an illusion, uttering a name, or thinking of a cept could allow them to se and use it as a medium to desd into the world.

  Uhe oppressive strength of the Shadon trolling the night, the Dragon Mother brought a despair that transded all levels.

  Five heads loomed high, gazing down upon him.

  "We meet again, my child."

  Her gaze, rather than loving, was more akin to greed.

  This gaze made Cassius feel as if his soul was id bare. He dared not meet it, l his head and f himself to speak calmly: "Greetings, great Mother of Evil Dragons, Queen of the atic Dragons, Her Majesty Tiamat."

  "I sincerely apologize. To drive away the Shadon, I presumptuously invoked yreat name and used your majestic image. This was indeed aep."

  Tiamat chuckled softly, and the white dragon head spoke: "Heh, this is of no sequence."

  The green dragon head said: "You did well. You have established a kingdom fons in Aa. You have not buried the glory dragons once held."

  The bck dragon head said: "But greater trials await you iure, my child."

  Finally, the red dragon head spoke: "Ten years. I want you to unify Aa within ten years, march south to Fadn, and bee a pilr of my rule over the world. This will be part of the grand pn for all dragons."

  "When I asd the throhe tyranny of the gods will end. Dragon rule will return to the nd. The dragon’s wings will once again cover the Material Pne. As one of my aides, you, my child, will serve as my duke, gaining immense power and endless wealth."

  Tiamat's eyes were filled with boundless greed. Perhaps her time in Avernus had been too long, for her words seemed to lure Cassius into hell.

  Hearing the term "grand pn," Cassius's heart skipped a beat. Somethi off; the words sounded eerily familiar as if he had heard them somewhere before.

  Yet, he kept his head lowered, pretending to be overwhelmed with excitement. He respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Majesty."

  "I shall follow your will."

  The illusion of Tiamat in the sky abruptly disappeared. Cassius finally breathed a sigh of relief, quickly strug a mental barrier to seal off the 【Terrifying Illusion of Tiamat】 in his mind.

  His interface refreshed with new information.

  [You have obtaihe status 【Tiamat’s Greedy Gaze】: Your ferocity receives an additional bonus. Proficy: Intimidation +6]

  "Looks like I’m practically a chosen one now."

  "Tch, trying to rebel but ’t..."

  After all, Cassius was merely a pitiful young red dragon with a challenge level of 17. What else could he do?

  Uhe oppressive power of the Dragon Mother, he had no choice but to be a filial child. Borrowing someone else's authority still required showing some deferenbsp;

  The interface refreshed again with several warning messages.

  Although Tiamat’s words seemed like praise and endation, Cassius knew full well that the Mother of Evil Dragons was anything but benevolent. She must have some vested i in him.

  If he rusted Tiamat’s words, he would likely be utterly exploited, leaving nothing behind.

  Her rhetoric was all too familiar to Cassius—it was the same "painting cakes" teique he often used on his subordinates. Now, it was being used on him, which felt quite strange.

  "Csh of Kings, Dragon Usurpation."

  "I must quickly strengthen myself; otherwise, I won’t be able to handle such a world-css event."

  Cassius thought to himself.

  This was one of the side quests in the 2.0 version of 【Csh of Kings】. The Holy Fadn Empire, also known as the Sun Empire, was the rgest and most powerful nation on the tral ti.

  Its emperor, blessed by the Sun God Amantana, wielded the artifact "Wheel of Eternal Radiance," creating the Sun Legion, a forparable to godspawn. This army was invincible, carving out vast territories for the empire and prog, "Where sunlight shihere is our domain."

  However, after the ued death of the old emperor, Aragorn I, known as the "Sun King," his vast empire crumbled. His three sons divided the empire’s remnants, f the three legitimate kingdoms of Kassahrace, and Seleucia. The Sun Legion's godspawn nobles also established various smaller nations.

  For a time, the empire fractured, leaving a steltion of nations. This period became known as the "Great Holy Fadn Fragmentation," marking the beginning of 【Csh of Kings】.

  Tiamat leveraged her cult to trol the Seleucia Kingdom in the southwestern Fadn region, attempting to summorue form aore dragon rule to the nd. Her resurgence was known as 【Dragon Usurpation】.

  FAL