ShatteredCrown might be a bit of a joker, but his spot among the global top 100 players of the Doomsday rankings wasn't just because of his wealth. He had more going for him—like mastering several SS-tier forbidden magic spells and leveling them up to max. He was rich, talented, and had a natural "ladykiller" aura. Plus, he had the support of a whole group of brothers from The King Family, willing to go all out for him. These weren't things just anyone could achieve.
When ShatteredCrown turned on his hardcore mode, as long as he stayed alive, Orson would always have a reliable ally at his side.
Empress of the Moon didn't start out with such a powerful background. Her initial class was just a double-A tier holy knight, and her family wasn't nearly as impressive as The King Family in New York. However, she had many wealthy admirers, and her strong knightly spirit made her a growing force in the later stages of Infinite Dimensions. What's more, her Moonlight Guild had been suppressed by the Dragon's Kiss Guild in her previous life, which had limited her potential. But now, with Usher gone and the Dragon's Kiss Guild no longer around, the Moonlight Guild was free to grow unimpeded.
Both of them were valuable allies worth drawing in.
But what if they were to betray him? Orson remained calm. He had no problem becoming an example for all US players who opposed him.
"The Flame Dragon Greedy Hoarder has been slain!"
"Your contribution to the damage reached 86%!"
"Ding-dong—"
"You've triggered a hidden quest clue."
Orson narrowed his eyes. There hadn't been any hidden quest when they killed the Frost Dragon last time, so he quickly checked the clue.
Hidden Quest: [Blood Spilled in the Dragon's Lair]
Quest Difficulty: Hell Level
Objective: Kill all the Flame Dragons!
Quest Progress: 1/5
Punishment: Within 30 days, The Flame Dragon will hunt down all players associated with you.
"Interesting, hell-level difficulty, and they'll even target my friends and guild members." Orson sneered.
The quest details showed that besides the Greedy Hoarder, there were four other lower-tier dragons in the Flame Dragon's lair. In addition to the lair's master, The Flame Dragon, one of them had joined the Lord Cain NPC's raid force.
If they wanted to attack the Celestial Fortress, didn't they have to topple the entire lair first?
Suddenly, the ground trembled violently, and everyone was startled. They turned to see the nearby Flame Demon Volcano, where thick smoke billowed from the crater. The volcano seemed on the verge of erupting.
ShatteredCrown: "I feel like there's about to be a massive earthquake. I noticed the ground shaking a little earlier."
Empress: "Yeah, and the shaking's getting stronger."
Hearing their conversation, Orson fell into thought. He spoke up: "You guys think the Dragon's Lair master is greedy? It's just a giant spicy snack. Why would it need to steal the barrier stone from the sorceress?"
Everyone looked at him, puzzled. Orson continued, "Besides, with the strength of a giant dragon, who would dare to mess with them? They're practically a barrier themselves."
ShatteredCrown raised an eyebrow, speculating, "Could it be... they're trying to steal the barrier stone to prevent the volcano from erupting?"
"Smart!" Orson grinned. "But there's a catch."
Empress furrowed her brows and analyzed, "If the volcano erupts, The Flame Dragon could just fly away. Why would it go through all the trouble of setting up a barrier? Is it just to protect a pile of fossilized bones?"
Orson smiled but remained silent, eyes fixed on the towering active volcano.
BlackStockings suddenly gasped, her voice uncertain. "Wait... is the barrier stone not there to protect them, but to guard a very precious treasure?"
"Much more precious than any ordinary treasure. Otherwise, the lair master wouldn't have risked being hunted by the Light Dragon Empire to kill Lord Ziyun and steal the barrier stone," Orson said with a sly smile.
"Are you saying...?"
"Dragon eggs!!"
"The only thing that could make The Flame Dragon lair master go through all that trouble is a dragon egg that needs to be embedded in the magma, constantly absorbing flame magic," Orson nodded knowingly.
The three of them stared wide-eyed in disbelief. They were only in their twenties, barely level 20, yet they might get the chance to handle such legendary artifacts?
The battle at Pondenorlin City was a perfect example. It wasn't just for the Dragon Egg in the hands of the three-time champion.
"Let's not dwell on this for now. Since Greedy Hoarder has gotten the barrier stone, the barrier will naturally be unbreakable," Orson said with a grin.
Barrier Stone
It was a gigantic magic crystal, infused with power by mages from the Imperial Mage Guild. It was essential for forming barriers. Once the barrier was complete, the stone would be removed and replaced by a rune stone (barrier stone).
Orson actually had one of these Pondenorlin City barrier stones.
"Let's get back to work, brave adventurers!" Orson said, finishing his meditation and calling out as he mounted his increasingly mighty Cerberus.
"Unbreakable? You seem awfully confident. You mentioned giving me a dragon. I've got this recorded, and I'm claiming a dragon egg!" Empress said, a proud smirk on her face.
"Let's discuss that later," Orson raised an eyebrow.
Empress, clearly enjoying being teased, stubbornly refused to let go of the opportunity. She cleared her throat, her cheeks slightly flushed, and said, "So, you're single, right? I could introduce you to a girlfriend."
ShatteredCrown jumped in, eager: "You want one? I'll get you a dozen gaming sisters!"
Damn it...
Orson had never seen them so eager. The mention of a dragon egg made them pull out all the stops.
"Enough, I'm used to being single..." Orson said with a wry smile.
ShatteredCrown snickered, "So, left hand or right hand?"
Both Empress and BlackStockings blushed, pretending they didn't hear.
"Heh... haha... Get off my plane!" Orson's face flushed as he shot ShatteredCrown a death glare, kicking him out of the air.
BlackStockings gasped. "You... you're crazy! It's just a joke, even if it's a little... strange!"
"WTF, it's not just a little strange," Orson muttered under his breath.
Empress sighed in relief. "Phew—finally, some peace."
ShatteredCrown, plummeting through the air, yelled: "Master... don't you love your disciple? Left or right?!"
Orson gritted his teeth. If ShatteredCrown weren't so harmless, he'd have flattened him by now.
As ShatteredCrown neared the ground, Orson's earrings glowed with a strange light. He activated his magic, casting Mirror of Folding from a distance.
ShatteredCrown fell into a spatial web, landing safely. He sighed in relief, "Master must love me, or I'd be dead by now."
But as soon as he looked up, his eyes widened in horror. A giant blood-red maw was descending on him!
ShatteredCrown: "Holy sh*t! What's the difference between being eaten and being smashed to the ground?!"
The Flame Dragon Gluttonous Devourer, delighted, thought of adventurers as a delicious treat.
"Greedy Hoarder's greed trigger activated."
"Hatred value decreased."
"The craving for food is causing it to lose its mind."
"Gluttonous Devourer... oh no! I'm the bait!"
The quest notification kept ringing in ShatteredCrown's ears. He realized what his master was up to.
He had already resigned himself to death, but then Mirror of Folding flashed in front of him, and he quickly dove into it.
The next moment, he was two kilometers away.
The Flame Dragon Gluttonous Devourer, ignoring the hate lock, sped after the "food."
Orson chuckled. "I was wondering who would volunteer as bait. Guess you've got this covered."
Riding on Crimson Lizard King, they chased after the dragon, launching an all-out assault.
"Don't rush in, just use ranged attacks, or I'll beat you senseless," Orson scolded, giving Crimson Lizard King a couple of whacks on the head.
Crimson Lizard King whimpered, nodding obediently.
The Gluttonous Devourer couldn't ignore the summoned beast's attacks. Once its hate value exceeded the threshold, it would target Crimson Lizard King.
Orson had to keep Crimson Lizard King under control with a master-servant pact. Otherwise, the dragon's massive attack power would be too much for them to handle.
"Come on, hit me, you idiot!" ShatteredCrown taunted as he danced in place, trying to provoke the dragon.
BlackStockings: "This is so embarrassing. Please don't let me see this."
"Sorry, disciple," Orson muttered sarcastically.
ShatteredCrown: "Embarrassing? What's embarrassing about it? I'm showing off!"
As Gluttonous Devourer dived toward ShatteredCrown, he stumbled
, about to get hit. He tried to teleport using Mirror of Folding again.
"Ow… What the hell!" He tripped, face-planting into the ground.
"Where's the mirror?" he wondered.
"Well, of course, it's on cooldown," Orson chuckled. "Now what?"
"Wait to die."
ShatteredCrown froze, completely stunned. He finally stopped showing off.
As the Gluttonous Devourer's mouth closed in on him, he sighed. "Well, I guess I've showed off in front of a giant dragon..."
Crunch.
Newbie dancer, dead.