Chapter 723: The Path of Radiance

The Isle of Souls, the Lightgreen Gem Dragon, and the Soulfruit Tree were all fascinating subjects to study.

Especially this newly resprouted Soulfruit Tree—Liszt remembered clearly that he had dug up and taken away every single root of the previous dead Soulfruit Tree.

So, in theory, the Soulfruit Tree should have been unable to regrow.

Yet it did.

"It seems this island has an extraordinary origin. Even the growth of the Soulfruit Tree must have special conditions, not just the simple process of taking root, sprouting, blooming, and bearing fruit." He stared at the Lightgreen Gem Dragon, whose magic power had been absorbed to the point where it could no longer gather strength, deep in thought.

Acheronides was running tests.

She tried using magic potions to sustain the Lightgreen Gem Dragon's vitality, but the mana converted from the potions was too weak to counteract the dragon’s magic depletion.

She even considered using the mana she drew from the Magic Web to replace the Lightgreen Gem Dragon and withstand the Soulfruit Tree’s drain.

However, the mana from the Magic Web seemed incompatible with the Soulfruit Tree.

"Brother, the roots of the Soulfruit Tree are strange. They don’t grow directly from the ground—in fact, they barely have any physical roots at all. These roots act like conduits in the Magic Web, existing in an immaterial form. This suggests the Soulfruit Tree has properties of the Magic Web."

"So, it’s like a miniature Magic Web?"

"Somewhat similar, but its Magic Web aspect is quite unique—specialized and voracious, only absorbing mana without dispersing any." Acheronides struggled to describe it.

She didn’t possess the Magic Eye, but her perception was keen enough to detect how the Soulfruit Tree was draining the Lightgreen Gem Dragon.

"Hold on, if the Soulfruit Tree can’t absorb mana from the Magic Web but can absorb mana from magic potions, then perhaps my Dragon Aura is also compatible?" Liszt suddenly had an idea. "If I use my Dragon Aura as a substitute, backed by potions, could I keep the dragon clinging to life?"

Logically, he should’ve chosen the Milon Mind Fruit, but he couldn’t bear to watch a dragon die without trying to save it.

If there was a chance to rescue the Lightgreen Gem Dragon, he was willing to try.

Acheronides pondered seriously. "That’s possible."

"Then let’s try. Leo and I are two halves of one whole—if necessary, it can transfer mana to me. My Dragon Aura should be able to sustain this for a while."

"Then, brother, pump your Dragon Aura into the Lightgreen Gem Dragon’s body. I’ll establish a conduit between you and the Soulfruit Tree."

"Alright!"

Though many questions remained unanswered, the immediate priority was figuring out how to save the dragon.

He immediately activated the surging Dragon Aura within him and dumped every potion from his spatial ring, consuming them himself and feeding them to the Lightgreen Gem Dragon to sustain the Soulfruit Tree’s drain.

"Rrgh!"

Leo sensed Liszt burning through mana and quickly opposed his actions, but it was forcibly suppressed and had no choice but to submit to Liszt’s dominance—ever since their souls merged, it had realized that despite being a voracious evil dragon, it was still less forceful than Liszt in many ways.

This human was a madman who wouldn’t hesitate to drug it!

"Rrgh…"

All it could do was seethe in silence.

Meanwhile, Liszt channeled Dragon Aura into the Lightgreen Gem Dragon’s body with one hand. Using the insight of the Magic Eye, he swiftly directed the mana into the conduit Acheronides had established, linking it to the Soulfruit Tree’s iridescent roots. Soon, the Dragon Aura was naturally absorbed by the tree.

With the dragon knight’s intervention, the Lightgreen Gem Dragon’s vitals finally steadied.

Acheronides continued providing potions to the dragon, injecting them into its body to help restore its magic power and buy it more time.

They quickly reached a dynamic equilibrium.

"We're stable now. You can continue your experiments—study the Lightgreen Gem Dragon, study the Soulfruit Tree, study everything on this island that's worth researching! This is a golden opportunity. Perhaps you can uncover the deeper mysteries of the Arcane Web through this."

Liszt felt he was in good condition, so there was no need for Acheronides to waste time saving the dragon. He preferred that she focus on unraveling the secrets.

For one, Acheronides needed knowledge to grow stronger, and secondly, he was deeply curious about everything on the Isle of Souls.

Dragons nourished the Soulfruit Tree.

The Soulfruit Tree bore fruit, aiding in mind battles.

After the mind battle, one could ride many dragons, then capture more to feed the Soulfruit Tree—it was a perfect cycle, as if he could already envision countless dragons surrounding him. By then, he wouldn't just be a simple Dragon Knight, but a Dragon Swarm Rider, a Dragon Wrangler.

If they kept cultivating the Milon Mind Fruit and traveled with a large group of dragons to hunt more, there might even be a chance to unify the Legendary Continent, ushering in an era of "ten thousand dragons bowing before him."

Establishing the Empire of a Thousand Dragons, proclaiming himself the Dragon King—how glorious would that be!

"Sweet!"

"Sweet!"

"Except the blooming rate of this Soulfruit Tree seems a bit slow." Liszt had already indulged in fantasies of his majestic future as the Dragon King, but the four buds still hadn't fully bloomed.

Then, he realized his Dragon Aura was nearly depleted, and the remaining stock of magical potions was also running low.

Acheronides, who had been busy with research, also noticed the severity of the situation: "Brother, it seems the difficulty of nurturing the Milon Mind Fruit is far greater than imagined. Relying solely on your Dragon Aura and the Lightgreen Gem Dragon's magic power may not be enough to sustain the formation of all four fruits."

"How do we solve this? Would adding Leo's magic power be enough?"

"Oh damn!"

"It likely still wouldn't suffice. We don't yet know the exact formation rate of the Milon Mind Fruit, but judging by the rate of magic buildup during flowering, the Lightgreen Gem Dragon's magic consumption, your magic output, and the remaining potion reserves, we might only be able to grow one fruit before exhausting everything."

"One?" Liszt was dumbfounded.

Acheronides nodded. "That's if we keep the Lightgreen Gem Dragon alive. If we sacrifice it, we might grow two fruits, or with luck, maybe even three."

"So, no matter what, we have to abandon one?"

"Yes."

"How do we abandon one? Just pick the flower?"

"Acheronides can cut off its magic supply."

"Then cut off one first and recalculate carefully whether to deal with the others." Liszt decided immediately—there was no room for hesitation now.

He wasn't about to gamble it all due to greed.

Acheronides quickly worked her magic, blocking the magic channel of one flower. Immediately, that flower could no longer absorb magic, and its blooming halted.

Seeing this, Liszt suddenly had an idea: "Acheronides, if we re-establish the magic channel, can it start blooming again?"

Acheronides' eyes lit up. "Possibly."

"Then let's try!"

Once the channel was reconnected, just as Liszt had guessed, the flower started blooming again. His disappointment disappeared instantly: "Acheronides, sever the magic channels of three flowers. We'll cultivate them one by one! First, grow one fruit, then deal with the others!"

He even thought of another way to cultivate the Soulfruit Tree—feeding it magic in bursts. This way, without killing the dragon, they could grow more fruits over a longer period.

And so,

a golden road to riches

spread out before Liszt!