Chapter 51: The Siege
Joshua opened the box.
*Chi—*
A sound like rotting flesh being pierced by a sharp blade.
A stench of blood, as if from prehistoric times, swept through the air out of nowhere. An obscure, ancient odor, like rust and dried blood, spread all around. Waves of power representing order, sealing, purification, and annihilation—heavy and terrifying—pulsed in every direction, completely expelling the surrounding chaotic aura and piercing through everything.
The countless frenzied beasts nearby were terrified by this aura. Already eroded by chaos, even death could not stop them, but now, due to the fluctuations emanating from the box, they recoiled. The beast horde’s formation even retreated a dozen meters, as if utterly afraid to approach.
It was precisely because they had lost their wisdom that they possessed instinctual fear.
Ignoring the monsters around him, the warrior breathed the cold, turbid air of the Great Aias Mountains. Silently, he took a black stone from the box.
Dragon-Slaying Stone.
Dragons—whether the Astral Dragons crossing over from the far reaches of the starry sky or the Primordial Realm Dragons naturally born on this land—had many differences, but they shared one thing in common.
That was strength—unfounded strength, innate and natural strength!
Before human civilization had kindled its flame, these monsters, at the top of the food chain, roamed freely across the vast continent, hunting other races at will, slaughtering like tyrants. Their incredibly robust bodies, terrifying magical talents, and astonishingly tough skin and magic resistance—there was no other word for such talent but shameless.
But that was all it was.
Whether Astral Dragons or Primordial Realm Dragons, they all had one greatest flaw: they acted alone.
And that was fatal.
Even the Astral Dragons, who possessed wisdom and civilization, spent most of their time alone in their lairs, quietly studying their own interests according to their whims. Their long lives and proud hearts made them disdainful of communicating with other races or even their own kind—this was their greatest downfall.
Facing a weapon forged with the painstaking efforts of many civilized races—humans, elves, dwarves, gnomes—designed specifically to target a single race, the ultimate alchemical creation against dragon bloodlines, the Dragon-Slaying Stone, even ignorant frenzied beasts would tremble.
Not to mention the golden-rank magical beast before the warrior, whose veins flowed with dragon blood—the creature scientifically named the Aias Golden-Armored Dragon-Hunting Spider.
As one of the ultimate evolutionary forms of arthropod magical beasts, the Dragon-Hunting Spider, true to its name, preyed on weaker dragons and wyverns. It too had boiling dragon blood within it. And precisely because of this, when it sensed the cold power specifically targeting its own bloodline, this dragon spider with its earth-yellow carapace couldn’t help but retreat.
Fear. Trembling. Its eight crystalline legs moved backward involuntarily. This immensely powerful golden-rank magical beast, like an ordinary frenzied beast, retreated over a dozen meters, even farther.
“Hmph.”
So it retreats just like that?
Shaking his head, the warrior snorted coldly, a flicker of disappointment in his eyes. He gripped the black Dragon-Slaying Stone and wiped it against the edge of his divine mechanism, the silver-white greatsword.
*Sha—*
A scraping sound rang out. Faint black-red powder adhered to the blade, then vanished without a trace. Waves of magical power mixed with some strange force flickered, forming lines brimming with killing power along the edge of the silver greatsword.
“Master, is this the Dragon-Slaying Stone?”
In his mind, Ying’s mental fluctuation came through somewhat vaguely. The girl’s spiritual sense seemed to tremble slightly: “This pressure… it’s… terrifying…”
“Do not fear, Ying. This is the power you and I possess.”
Overcoming fear is the origin of human civilization’s development. Just as primitive humans overcame their fear of fire and established orderly civilization, as my weapon, you must overcome this fear.
Putting away the Dragon-Slaying Stone, Joshua raised the silver-white greatsword. Crimson battle qi surged like a torch. The lines shimmered with fluorescence, emitting a dreadful pressure.
The power of civilization is the power of humanity. As a warrior, you must make good use of it and take pride in it.
Step by step, the dragon spider retreated, then stopped. The ferocity buried deep within its body made this monster unable to tolerate its own cowardly behavior. Like a spring—the more pressure, the greater the resistance—facing Joshua’s steadily rising momentum, this powerful magical beast’s fighting instinct finally overcame its instinctual fear.
Chaotic magical power surged. Hatred for orderly power and battle intent shattered all cowardly fear. The golden-rank magical beast knew that its opponent’s momentum was like a surging tide. This retreat would only allow him to accumulate terrifying power and kill it in one blow!
Understanding its situation, it abandoned all thoughts of escape and retreat. The dragon spider silently raised its forelegs, brandishing them as if in intimidation. Then, ignoring the pressure of the Dragon-Slaying Stone, it lunged swiftly at Joshua.
Seemingly driven by their leader, the frenzied beasts that had retreated due to instinctual fear began to roar and charge as well. The vast black encirclement, which had pulled back, suddenly contracted, surging toward the black-armored warrior like a tide about to engulf everything.
“That’s more like it.”
From his waist, he took out another spear model. A flash of magical light, and another two-meter-long steel cavalry lance appeared in Joshua’s hand. Faced with such a perilous, even desperate situation, the warrior showed no fear. He even let out a bold laugh and charged straight ahead, counterattacking!
One man, one sword, one lance—his charge felt like a thousand troops galloping together. The earth cracked under his feet. Shockwaves carried the wind, attaching to the greatsword. The black-armored warrior plunged into the beast horde, slaughtering wildly. A massive wave of blood rose. As Joshua charged, magical beasts fell in droves. The monsters, blindly rushing in their foolishness, were like dry straw harvested by a farmer, easily cut in two by him. Limbs and entrails mixed with splashing beast blood and minced flesh flew everywhere, freezing in the cold air and adhering to the ground.
The divine mechanism, coated with Dragon-Slaying Stone, now contained a powerful killing force. Even against non-dragon targets, it could easily slaughter ordinary magical beasts. These beasts, strengthened by chaos erosion, had immense vitality—even decapitation wouldn’t kill them quickly. But now, as long as the silver-white greatsword cut a wound, they fell as if drained of all strength, turning into withered corpses.
“Trash.”
Did you really think I brought out the Dragon-Slaying Stone to deal with trash like you?
Through the cracks in his helmet, two red lights blazed. Bathed in the stinking beast blood, Joshua’s lance stabbed repeatedly, picking off the weaker beasts one by one. Amid the air’s explosive roar, the dragon spider lunged simultaneously. Its crystallized limbs broke through the atmosphere, bringing white mist-like shockwaves. It smashed other magical beasts before it into clouds of blood mist. Its dozen-meter-tall body surged forward like a collapsing mountain. At the same time, the binding power of spider silk magic reappeared on the warrior, trapping him as if in glue, unable to move.
And there was no need to move anyway.
Calmly observing, a spear flash like a shooting star shot out. The steel cavalry lance thrust out, blocking a limb striking from the side at supersonic speed. The sharp tip pierced the gray-yellow carapace on the dragon spider’s leg. The shell, harder than steel, shattered inch by inch, scattering into countless fragments. Losing the support of this limb, the dragon spider’s charging direction tilted slightly.
Perfect. The second limb struck almost simultaneously. Unable to move, Joshua, his body strengthened by the Steel Armor Breathing Art, endured the heavy impact. Using the force, he flipped and leaped away, dodging the dragon spider’s massive body as it crashed down like a tidal wave.
Landing on the ground, steadying himself, he swallowed a mouthful of blood surging from his lungs. A grin spread across Joshua’s lips. Seizing the brief moment when the dragon spider was off-balance from missing its target and losing a leg, he exploded forward with both feet, shattering the soil, rock, and ice beneath him. The explosive force kicked up dust clouds, propelling the warrior’s body past the speed of sound, turning him into a streak of light charging straight at the powerful enemy before him.
Swinging the greatsword in his hand, the deep lines sensed the presence of dragon blood and instantly released powerful energy waves. Joshua guided this immense fluctuation, slashing at the giant dragon spider.
*Crack!*
A crisp sound rang out. The carapace, capable of withstanding alchemical cannons, was easily shattered. After having one limb pierced, the dragon spider had another severed.
How precious is the Dragon-Slaying Stone? To use it solely against one magical beast? Impossible!
Even this golden-rank dragon spider wasn’t worthy!
Though magical beasts are foolish, they don’t adhere to one-on-one combat. Ordinary frenzied beasts are like this, and golden-rank magical beasts are the same—even more so.
Just as Joshua gained the upper hand in his battle with the dragon spider, a cold wind howled. The blizzard that had been swirling in the sky suddenly intensified, even breaking through the barrier of the Black Forest’s trees, falling onto the black soil and rocks of the forest floor. Fine ice dust surged. The purple-black mist also grew thicker. Previously, one could see twenty or thirty meters ahead, but now only a few meters were visible.
Having severed the dragon spider’s third foreleg, the warrior was locked in close combat with the dragon-blooded beast when two immense, terrifying pressures—like extreme cold and chaos itself—suddenly appeared to his left and behind him.
The real deal had arrived!