Chapter 676: 8 Cores and Dedicated Graphics

Kaboom!

The Fire Drake Leo twisted and spun in midair, instantly unleashing a move called "Scorching Sun Thrust," a charged technique derived from the *Advanced Combat Aura Manual* within *Crimson Sunflare Surge*.

When Liszt and Leo entered Dragon-Rider Mode, he quickly discovered that *Magic Eye*, *Mana Suppression*, and *Crimson Sunflare Surge* could all be executed through Leo—or more precisely, by channeling mana within his own body. However, due to the unique resonance of the Dragon-Rider state, Leo was able to manifest these techniques.

A rough analogy would be comparing it to a CPU and a graphics card.

Liszt was like a quad-core or even octa-core CPU, boasting formidable processing power. But the accompanying graphics card was integrated, so no matter how intricate the mana channeling, it could only produce lackluster performance—akin to a weak GPU struggling to keep up, prone to overheating.

Leo, on the other hand, was an independent 2080Ti graphics card. His CPU might be crude, but his graphical performance was top-tier.

When Liszt’s octa-core CPU paired with Leo’s 2080Ti GPU, they could achieve top-tier combat performance—this was the perfect synergy of a Dragon Rider.

BOOM!

The ground was blasted into a crater over a dozen meters wide.

Liszt guided Leo to land at the crater’s edge, where tendrils of smoke rose from the scorched earth, shrouding them both in a menacing boss-like presence.

"Only now do I truly understand the might of a Dragon Rider. Before entering this mode, I’d have been utterly crushed. It’s a good thing I never faced a real Dragon Rider before—otherwise, I’d have been slaughtered in three moves, turning the so-called ‘dragon-slaying war’ into a joke."

After a moment of lingering fear, he quickly composed himself.

Thanks to the guidance of the Smoke Task, he had unlocked Dragon-Rider Mode before the dragon-slaying war. With more practice, he’d grow even stronger, solidifying his advantage for the coming battle. Most importantly, the mission was now complete, and Acheronides was about to achieve Archmage status.

With the combined power of a Dragon Rider and an Archmage, there was nowhere in the world they couldn’t conquer!

"I just wonder if there are any exclusive *Dragon Aura* manuals for Dragon Riders. The Sapphire Clan has the *Dragon Rider Aura Manual* left by their founding Archduke—perhaps it’s specifically tailored for riding dragons… It’s a shame. I always prided myself as a genius with vision far beyond the locals, yet I still haven’t created a single aura manual."

Looking back, he had once boasted to Lee William and Levis, dismissing the idea that predecessors’ aura manuals were necessarily suitable for him. He claimed he could compose a new one anytime.

Yet, after several distractions, he had succeeded in bonding with a dragon but still hadn’t written an aura manual. "Well, it’s not entirely my fault for bragging. I just never had the time to research aura manuals. Who’d have thought I’d go from Sky Knight to Dragon Rider in less than a year, with no transitional period at all?"

After some self-consolation, he silently vowed to create a true *Dragon Aura* manual based on his and Leo’s unique circumstances. If time allowed, he’d also compile manuals for the Earth Knight and Sky Knight stages—both as a personal memento and to enrich his descendants’ legacy.

"Besides, I must obtain aura domain manuals and amass additional mana techniques. *Magic Eye* and *Mana Suppression* are great, but they’re auxiliary techniques. I need combat-oriented mana techniques."

Even before bonding with a dragon, when he was known as the "Ghostblade," mana techniques had already lost much of their impact, serving more as tools for Sky Knights to compete against each other.

Still, more techniques were always better, further bolstering the family’s foundation. After all, if he truly established a kingdom overseas, Liszt didn’t want it to decline within a few generations. It should endure for millennia, spreading his bloodline across the world.

After all that exertion, night had fallen.

Both man and dragon were starving, so they settled in the wilderness—one happily devouring a massive steak, the other sipping some Half-Slope milk to quench its thirst.

Once Leo was satiated, Liszt rewarded it with a few magic tonics as after-meal treats.

With a wave, Liszt summoned Leo, who transformed into a streak of flame and merged into his body. "Time to head back! I’ve got a ton of new insights to discuss with Acheronides. Maybe some of these concepts—especially the movement of magical particles—could help her advancement to Archmage."

He whistled sharply.

From a distance, his contentedly grazing landstrider, Loki, came trotting over. Mounting it, they raced toward FlowerTown like the wind.

Sadly, no matter how hard Loki tried, Liszt found it rather dull. The riding experience couldn't compare after having ridden a dragon—it was vastly different.

Still, upon arriving at the seaside villa, he rewarded Loki with a handful of specially prepared grain.

So,

after a lavish dinner at the castle, Liszt headed straight for the seaside villa. The villa’s rooms were brightly lit—to protect Acheron's eyes during her nighttime reading, studying, and experiments, he had installed several crystal lamps in the room. Now that he was rich, cost didn't matter.

"Acheron, I'm back!"

Liszt reached to push open the door, eager to talk with her.

But the next moment, the door opened on its own—or rather, Acheron opened it. The small mermaid stood there, smiling sweetly. "Brother."

"Acheron, you..." Liszt was momentarily stunned. In the past, due to her limited mobility in the room, he had always been the one to open the door. Never had he expected her to open it for him this time.

Most importantly,

Acheron was now standing on the floor.

Liszt’s gaze instinctively drifted downward from her eyes, past the hidden areas under her water sash, past her smooth thighs and calves, until it settled on a pair of flawless, delicate little feet—so tender and pink that he wanted to touch them.

Acheron seemed slightly uneasy under Liszt’s intense stare, her toes curling inward as she pressed them together. "Brother, I’ve become an Archmage."

"Archmage? You’ve become an Archmage?!" Liszt was utterly shocked, instantly forgetting about her newly grown feet as he swept her up by the waist and spun her around twice. "That's amazing, little mermaid! You’re the only Archmage in this sea—no, in both the Kingdom of the Eagle and the Kingdom of Steel Ridge, as far as I know!"

Neither the Kingdom of the Eagle nor the Kingdom of Steel Ridge had any recorded Archmages—whether any existed in secret was unknown. But as far as Liszt was aware, Acheron was truly the only one.

In this era where the Magic Web had been dwindling since the days of the Moon Empire, the birth of a new Archmage was truly remarkable.

He gently set her back down, trying to calm down and appear more composed. "Acheron, tell me—what was it like to become an Archmage? And when did your feet grow? Does this mean you're grown up now?"