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As Zhu Liya spoke, the "Dominion Sword" flickered with light once more, and in the dark space, a massive and grotesque shadow slowly rose from the ground.

"..." The phantom dragon soul of the "Abyssal Dragon King."

Chapter 74: Life and Death; That Shattered Heart

With eight wings, a single horn, golden eyes, and black scales, the "Abyssal Dragon King," which once terrified the entire world, revealed its form once again among mortals.

"-Li Jia, keep an eye on Jin Luosha and prevent her from acting. Lansino, inform the High Priest and the Holy Maiden. Zhu Liya, tell me exactly what this is, in as much detail as possible." An overwhelming pressure emanated from the grotesque black beast. I knew that this unexpected situation would not be easy, but I remained calm. While gathering my energy to leap away from the creature, I sent a telepathic message to my companions outside.

"Human, listen carefully. The one inside is not the real 'Abyssal Dragon King.' It's merely an energy projection summoned using his dragon crystal core. Its power is only mid-level Tier 10, and its defense is weaker than the real body. However, its speed matches the true form, and since it's an energy entity, it won't disappear unless its energy is depleted." The blue dragon Elder Thunder clearly understood the situation better than Zhu Liya and interjected, "The current 'Dragon Soul Space' is not in its normal state. Try to delay time and avoid direct confrontation. This projection doesn't understand magic. Wait for the owner of this sword to arrive before deciding what to do."

Easier said than done. Although the black dragon projection was ten zhang long and four zhang tall, it was as light as a feather and moved like lightning. In terms of speed, it was perhaps only surpassed by our Orc Alliance's eagle and leopard clans who practice the "Heavenly Peng Transcendental Art" and the "Inches Apart, Worlds Apart Art." Fortunately, although its current form was smaller than the legendary "Abyssal Dragon King," it was still a hundred times larger than me, giving me a chance to exploit its attack blind spots for a sliver of hope. Meanwhile, the Temple and Sacred Dragon Mountain each had their own secret communication methods, which were highly efficient. Moments later, a white light rose, and High Priest Silver Rune, Holy Maiden Helen, and Knight Apu arrived via the divine art "Return Summoning" beside Lansino. Then, another red light flashed, and two "Dragon Emperor Knights" and three Dragon Language Mages accompanied an elder in a deep blue robe appeared on the "Dragon Sealing Platform."

"Lord 'Supreme Dragon Saint,' could you please explain what has happened with this divine weapon, the 'Dominion Sword'? At least release our Temple members first," High Priest Silver Rune asked. Since everyone had received urgent messages and rushed over, there was some initial confusion. After hearing explanations from their own people, they understood the situation.

The elder in the deep blue robe was the current "Supreme Dragon Saint." He smiled bitterly and said, "High Priest, I apologize, but I don't know what has happened either. This is not an action by Sacred Dragon Mountain. As for releasing them, I'm afraid I can't do that. Since the Dragon War four hundred years ago, the Dragon God sealed the 'Dominion Sword.' Besides signing a Dragon Knight contract or helping a 'Dragon Emperor Knight' ascend to 'Dragon Saint,' using the divine weapon requires praying to the Dragon God for permission, which takes at least six hours. By then..."

"Are you letting our Temple knights die in that mysterious space?" Even the usually serene Holy Maiden Helen became angry and demanded loudly.

"This... is truly..." The Dragon Saint was helpless. Although Sacred Dragon Mountain claimed to be favored by the Dragon God, it was heavily constrained by the dragons. The "Dragon Sealing Platform" and the "Dominion Sword" were even more taboo. Even he found it difficult to act freely.

While the Dragon Saint was still pondering, Knight Apu stepped forward, activated the "Holy Ice Thorns Halo," and a bronze-colored aura shot up into the sky. His robust body, resembling a giant dwarf, radiated a bluish sun-like glow. Leaping high, he swung his massive mace, which emitted a hundred-zhang-long beam of light, aiming to break through and rescue the trapped individuals.

*Clang* The epic divine weapon, imbued with the vast energy of the "Sea of Starlight," missed its target. A large blue dragon head suddenly appeared in front of the "Dominion Sword." The sharp dragon horn collided with the mace, sending Apu flying. The Tier 10 upper-stage dragon Elder Thunder, facing the power of a top-tier Sword Emperor enhanced by the "Holy Ice Thorns Halo," also felt dizzy and disoriented. The other three dragons howled and, unconcerned about Sacred Dragon Mountain's stance, directly sprayed terrifying dragon breath at Apu in the air.

Knight Lansino, of course, wouldn't ignore his comrade's sacrifice. Using wind magic, he leaped up and pushed Apu aside, narrowly avoiding the dragon breath. The two instantly split apart, attempting to break through the dragons' defenses. Jin Luosha raised her hand to summon "Holy Scarabs," but Li Jia forcibly stopped her according to my orders. High Priest Silver Rune and Holy Maiden Helen, though reluctant to fight, retreated and cast various divine arts on the two Holy Grail Knights.

The dragons, naturally, didn't back down. Two charged forward, while the other two opened their mouths and let out loud, complex roars, causing the magic in the air to surge—legendary "Dragon Language Magic." Moreover, eight more magic arrays lit up on the "Dragon Sealing Platform," revealing the remaining eight dragons. In terms of strength, twelve dragons, all Tier 10 upper-stage thousand-year-old dragons, rivaled the seven human Sword Saints. The Temple side was clearly at a disadvantage, yet the two Holy Grail Knights showed no fear, wielding their epic divine weapons, ready to charge forward. Even I, the orc spy in the dark space, was moved.

"Wait!" Seeing both sides about to clash, the Dragon Saint knew that once they engaged, it would be a battle to the death. While the dragons could disregard Sacred Dragon Mountain's stance, he couldn't. With a gesture, a deep blue aura rose, separating the humans and dragons. He then shouted, "Stop and listen to me!"