Chapter 814: New Maze

"What's going on?"

Watching the invisible dragon fly toward Acheronides, Liszt's mood plummeted to rock bottom.

He had prepared extensively to ride the invisible dragon—serving an exquisite Smokegrass feast and even embedding the Milon Mind Fruit in the roasted meat, believing it to be a foolproof method.

Yet the invisible dragon spat out the Milon Mind Fruit.

Just as he thought the plan had failed, the situation took a wild turn—the invisible dragon actively sought to be ridden. But the battlefield of the mind turned out to be a maze even more convoluted than *Cube*'s, impossible to break through by force or wit. The invisible dragon even lazed around in the maze.

This severely diminished his riding experience, making him feel as if the invisible dragon had deliberately humiliated him in this manner!

As if to deter him from future attempts.

The dense, intricate crystal structures and the ever-changing forks were simply not designed for humans to overcome. Perhaps the maze wasn’t meant to be navigated through conventional means, but navigating space was beyond Liszt’s skill.

Left with no other choice, he was left powerless.

He accepted the failure to ride the dragon! The force of fate might only guide, not control—after all, the invisible dragon was also a sacred dragon, or perhaps it had already been reborn, seizing control of its own destiny. Unlike the Fire Dragon or the Jade Dragon, which had perished long ago.

Only then did fate find a weak point.

Even the Lightgreen Gem Dragon had only succumbed to fate’s whims after suffering severe injuries.

That said, the invisible dragon’s immediate hostility after the failed ride, not even leaving behind a few space gems, was downright petty. However, seeing it head toward Acheronides, Liszt wanted to warn her to "be careful," yet he sensed no malice from the invisible dragon.

"Could it really be so overstimulated from the meal it got reckless? Seeing me fail, is it now trying to let Acheronides ride it?"

The idea crossed his mind briefly before Liszt dismissed it outright.

No mage had ever ridden a dragon successfully.

Whether in records from the Moon Empire era or in modern accounts, only knights could ride dragons. Because mana and draconic magic power were highly compatible.

In fact, if one traced the origins of the knightly cultivation system, it was likely based on how a dragon channels magic power. Hence, when high-level mana merged with a dragon, it could swiftly transform into Dragon Aura. This was an advantage no other cultivation system possessed and why knights dominated the world.

There was no way this principle would be broken for Acheronides.

So the invisible dragon couldn’t possibly want her to ride it—it was more likely intending to harm her.

Just as he was about to summon the Fire Drake Rio to join forces with Acheronides and suppress the invisible dragon—since he couldn’t ride it, he might as well kill it—let its carcass tumble into Vortex Mountain and seed a new space gem deposit right there.

But atop the mountain, the invisible dragon had already halted mid-air, facing Acheronides, who stood at the summit with her Water Wave Shield raised.

The invisible dragon didn’t attack, and Acheronides didn’t retreat.

Liszt’s impulse to summon Rio died instantly: "Could the invisible dragon really want Acheronides to ride it?" This thought surged uncontrollably.

Along with it came a slightly sour feeling—whether he or Acheronides rode the dragon, it was still keeping it in-house, but the emotional impact was entirely different. He had prepared so diligently for this moment—three whole Smokegrass banquets, no small effort.

Though he had snuck in the Milon Mind Fruit, that was just a minor detail.

Now, the invisible dragon was bowing its head to a sea witch it had never met, making him instantly feel like "the earnest guy who exhausts himself pursuing a girl, only for her to leave with a rich, handsome stranger after one meeting." He was overthinking things—probably a side effect of the riding failure.

Liszt, who had always prided himself on being extraordinary and in control, finally recognized his own mediocrity in the battle of minds.

The feeling of crashing back to earth stung.

But it successfully reined in his swelling pride. Taking a deep breath… he suddenly teared up—the lingering Smokegrass fumes here were seriously burning his eyes like hell.

"Ahem..."

After coughing a few times, he looked up toward the mountaintop and saw that Acheronides had already dropped her Water Wave Shield.

The hovering invisible dragon called out to her: "Woo-yaa!"

Acheronides shook her head.

The invisible dragon cried again: "Woo-yaa!"

Acheronides shook her head once more.

Then, the invisible dragon angrily snorted steam from its nostrils, turned around, and dove back down the mountain, heading straight for Liszt's location. Its speed was so fast it almost seemed like teleportation—in the blink of an eye, it landed right in front of Liszt, its dragon eyes locking onto him.

"Hmm?" Liszt, having stopped his tears, gazed at the beautiful, crystalline form of the invisible dragon, its shimmering, translucent form. Confusion rose in his heart again—he truly couldn’t understand what this dragon was up to.

"Woo-yaa!"

The invisible dragon opened its mouth and let out another cry, its meaning unclear.

Yet, in the next moment, Liszt had already leaped up, aiming for the dragon’s dental ridge. Whatever its intentions were, he'd mount it first and ask questions later!

This back-and-forth, this coyness—it must want him to ride it after all!

As if confirming Liszt’s thoughts, the invisible dragon seemed to twist its body, resisting Liszt’s second attempt to mount it after already rejecting him once. But for some unknown reason, it suddenly gave up the struggle, its long, narrow face showing a human-like expression of disdain and resignation.

In the end, it didn’t dodge.

Allowing Liszt to land squarely on its dental ridge.

With a resounding thud, Liszt mounted the invisible dragon for the second time. His spirit instantly connected with the dragon’s, and he commanded it to beat its wings and soar into the sky.

The world crystallized around them.

Soon, the mountains began to sink, the ground heaved, and a new maze started to rise.

Liszt drew the Frostbite Dragon Slayer Sword with a steely shing and shouted to the invisible dragon beneath him, "My old friend, mazes don't faze me. Let’s try another way for this clash of wills!"

"Woo-yaa!"

The invisible dragon flapped its wings, and the maze continued to rise slowly.

"If you insist on creating a maze, then this sword in my hand will have no choice but to take your head and make you reconsider your actions." There was no way he was going through another maze—not in this lifetime or the next. Liszt’s stance was firm; he absolutely refused to navigate another labyrinth.

"Woo-yaa!" The invisible dragon’s cry was full of fury.

But Liszt had already raised his sword, wreathed in smoke that burst into crimson flames, aiming at the dragon’s neck. Rather than fail in another maze, he would break the dragon's spirit and see if brute force could win this battle of minds.

The maze stopped rising.

A tense standoff followed.

After a moment, the invisible dragon gave a grudging cry: "Woo-yaa!"

At the same time, Liszt sensed the dragon’s adamant position—it insisted on the maze, but it could lower the difficulty.

The rising maze no longer extended into complexity. Instead, it formed the simplest flat maze, composed of countless parallel walls—a traditional labyrinth, not the disorienting, shape-shifting cube maze reminiscent of *Cube*.

"Hah..."

Liszt sheathed his blade and allowed himself a small smile. "If it’s a traditional maze, I’ll reluctantly accept it." Solving a traditional maze was simple—just hug the right wall to the exit.

"Onward, invisible dragon!"

"Our destinies intertwine today!"