Daniel stared at the description of the symbol that had just appeared on his hand without showing the slightest reaction. To be more precise, he did not know what reaction he was supposed to show.
Confusion? Surprise? Happiness? Shock?
He did not know. He truly did not know what kind of reaction he should have after realizing that he had just become the Lord of all dragons in the world.
Did this mean that the strongest race in the world was now forced to obey his orders? Was that even something logical?
He had heard that whoever won this trial would gain the right of inheritance to lead the dragons. But this was not just a right of inheritance. This had directly turned him into the leader of the dragons.
He let out a sigh. It was not like it was a bad thing. With the dragons backing him, he could advance much faster than he had expected. He could find his father sooner than he had planned.
However, he knew this power was not free. Almost every god who had met him so far had wanted only one thing: for him to grow stronger as quickly as possible so he could help them in the war.
But what war? A war between the gods and the corruption? Before, he did not know what the source of that corruption was or why the gods feared it.
But now he knew. Based on what the Goddess had said, it seemed that the existence behind the corruption was the same one that had destroyed the Primals.
And it seemed that this time, she had decided to destroy the worlds and the gods as well... but the question was why? Why exactly did she want to destroy everything? He could not accept that it was simply out of boredom.
Still, no matter how much he thought about it, it did not change the current situation. Even though he was far stronger than he had been a few hours ago, he still had not reached the peak of power in this world.
Without using his trump cards, he still could not defeat Demi Gods.
"Now that it has come to this, I have to challenge the Tower," he thought to himself. His only current goal should be to become a Demi God as soon as possible.
This would not be easy. To become a Demi God, he had to conquer the ninth floor of the Tower. It would take time. But it was something that had to be done.
As for his father, that was something he would seek the dragons’ help with.
Only one question remained. Would the dragons truly follow him? Or was there a chance they would rebel?
He took a step forward and walked toward the portal that had opened in front of him. The portal had appeared after the Goddess disappeared, and it seemed to be his exit.
The moment he entered the portal, the world around him turned completely black.
At the same time, outside the trial, the moment Daniel transformed into an Innate Primal, the entire Dragon Valley trembled, shocking all the dragons.
Since the moment of its creation, Dragon Valley had never trembled. This was the first time in all of history. It was a phenomenon that made every dragon search for the cause.
Outside the entrance of the trial, all the Elders and the Dragon Empress were in shock. Their shock was even greater, because they knew something like this should not even be possible.
Unless something extremely important had happened inside. Something had been born that disrupted the order of all creation. In fact, this trembling was not limited to Dragon Valley. All the worlds had trembled at the same time.
"What happened inside?" the First Elder asked with a frown as he looked at Vermyros. The others also turned their gazes toward the young dragon.
Vermyros was still in shock from his defeat and seemed unable to accept reality. But the cold aura of the Elders snapped him out of it.
"I- I lost to that hornless dragon, and the trial threw me out," he said, then explained everything in detail, including everything about the final phase of the trial.
He explained that the reward of the third phase was the Primal Flame. Whoever won could obtain it. The disappointment in his voice was clear. He still regretted not being able to claim it.
But after hearing his explanation, the Elders and the Empress fell into even greater shock. They exchanged looks. Disbelief was obvious in their eyes, as if they could not accept his words.
"Is something wrong?" Evangelin noticed their reaction and asked in a cold tone.
She had already realized that something must have happened inside the trial. But because of the words of that False God that had echoed in all of their minds, she had forced herself to calm down.
However, seeing the expressions of the dragons again brought her worry back. She could not help but be concerned. After all, Daniel might be in danger.
Daniel was extremely important to her. No matter what, he was Eternity. If something happened to him, rebuilding the Religion of Eternity would become impossible.
And also... Daniel was the only person she could speak to casually and sincerely. The only one who had allowed her to taste what normal felt like again. The feeling of those days when she was still just a little girl who always followed the Prophet...
"What he described should not exist," the Dragon Empress sighed and replied. She knew it was better not to hide anything. Otherwise, this crazy woman would become even more unstable.
"What do you mean?" Evangelin’s tone became even colder. It seemed like she was ready to attack at any moment.
"Calm down."
Evangelin let out a low growl and tried to control herself. She failed internally, but at least on the surface she appeared calmer.
"The third phase of the trial that this boy described has never existed in any previous time we opened the trial. The Primal Flame has never been part of the rewards. We did not even know it existed," the Dragon Empress explained.
"So there was a change in the trial."
"Yes. There was a change. And the only one who can alter the trial is the Goddess."
Evangelin’s face turned cold again as she stepped toward the entrance of the trial. No one tried to stop her. She cast a destructive gaze at the doors.
It was clear she was barely holding herself back from forcing her way inside. But she was not foolish. She knew that forcing entry would not work.
The Dragon Empress approached her, intending to speak, but at that moment, the doors of the trial opened.
"Huh?"
The moment the doors opened, all the dragons present felt their blood begin to boil.
They felt that the existence approaching was one they should kneel before and worship... as if their own Goddess was coming.
The feeling became so strong that it could no longer be called just a feeling. It was like an instinct.
"What is this?" Vermyros, Rhaenyran, the other young dragons, and even the Elders felt the same thing.
"Is it the Goddess? Has the Goddess come?" This was the same instinct they only felt in the presence of the Dragon Goddess.
However, the one who stepped out was not the Goddess.
It was Daniel.