Orson awkwardly retracted his hand, realizing he had been too eager to join in. Seeing the players fighting so intensely, he didn't want to snatch the spoils from them directly.
Slaughter Spree: "Commander, change the loot rules! The backline players can't even get a sip of soup, what kind of joke is this?"
Orson paused, suddenly remembering about the loot system.
"Commander changes the loot rules."
"When killing Lord-Class or lower bosses, loot will be determined by a dice roll."
The prompt echoed in the ears of the players. Those in the backline, who had been on the brink of revolt, now felt a bit relieved.
The loot being decided by dice made things fairer for everyone.
With Orson's title overwhelming the situation, the dragons were unable to rise into the air, and the advantage of high-level attacks was nullified.
However, dragons remained dragon-blooded bosses, and their abilities were much stronger than those of ordinary bosses.
Not only were their attacks incredibly powerful, but the range was also absurdly vast. Meteorites and rocky peaks continually rained down from the sky.
In the chaos, countless players, freshly revived, barely managed to stand before being struck down again.
Fortunately, the water source was nearby, and the players had tasted the sweet benefit of infinite respawns—fear was foreign to them.
"Kill me once, fine, but leave my gold and equipment!"
"I just dealt 200,000 damage in that last wave, who's next? I've already crippled the dragon's claws!"
Soon enough, players rushed out from the city gates, their primary goal being to turn experience into wealth, and they wouldn't rest until they'd made their profit!
Demon Emperor, Magical Fiancée, and Blank all had their eyes fixed on the sky.
The Dragon Knights hovering high above watched closely, their absolute stat advantages evident. One dive with a breath of dragon fire, and countless players would be sent to their graves.
Fire Dragon Knight Bai Naubert: "All Dragon Knights, it's time to purge the intruders. Clear the troublesome adventurers, then lock down their healing points!"
This Dragon Knight was level 75, among the top tier in these dragon riders, and also the oldest and most experienced NPC.
Bai Naubert: "Kill the priests first, then eliminate them one by one!"
As the dragons began to be whittled down by the adventurers, the Dragon Knight army quickly responded.
Over fifty lower-level giants and mutated dragon-blooded beasts swiftly reoriented, forming a sharp arrowhead formation aimed directly at the players' backline.
"Dear God! The Dragon Knight army is charging—this is terrifying!"
"Is this what the true kings of the sky look like?"
In an instant, dozens of dragon breaths, each of a different element, came crashing down, creating an apocalyptic scene.
The area filled with breath attacks, and priests screamed in agony.
The terrifying transformation of their bodies caused them to either burn to ashes, freeze to death, or melt into magma.
The players' faces drained of color, as one dive from the dragon riders released a barrage of dragon breaths that obliterated nearly half of the priest players—more than 30,000 lives lost!
Under Bai Naubert's command, the Dragon Knight army twisted in the air and, without the barrier protection, charged once again like a sharp sword toward Pondenorlin City.
"Dragon Curse · Scorching Flame Sky!"
"Dragon Curse · Absolute Zero!"
"Dragon Curse · Shattering Starry Sky!"
"Dragon Curse · Tsunami!"
The sounds of dragon speech echoed as the sky above Pondenorlin City grew chaotic, with four different A-level Dragon Curse spells gathering.
The entire sky was illuminated with a strange, ominous glow from the overwhelming elemental forces.
Orson's eyes narrowed, and he raised Supreme Arcane Blade, preparing to act. This massive scale of Dragon Curse magic far exceeded the strength of ordinary players.
"Dragon Curse · Space Reversal!"
A thunderous dragon roar split the air, as holy light erupted like scattering stars.
In the area locked by the Dragon Curse, a space rift opened, like a divine eye.
The four Dragon Curse spells, one for each attribute, were uncontrollably sucked into the rift.
"The Silver Dragon Knight is making a move! Space magic!"
The crowd gasped, watching in awe as the dragon-induced magical tide rushed into the space rift.
Just seconds later, a thunderous explosion shook the earth.
More than ten kilometers away from Pondenorlin City, massive waves of dirt and rock surged, shockwaves flattening dozens of mountains in their path.
All of the Dragon Curse spells were redirected, sparing the players from being wiped out by the exaggerated AoE.
This was the difference between High-level Dragons and lower-level giants. Each High-level Dragon possessed skills that could easily crush ordinary Domain Lord Dragons.
The three main high-level dragon factions, with the Silver Dragon at the top, had a major influence. The Holy Light Empire had been founded on the power of the Silver Dragons.
Drunken Dream's Denoka, who still hadn't fully matured, possessed the direct bloodline of the Holy Light Dragon King, allowing him to suppress even the lower dragons.
"The Silver Dragon Knight is too strong! The title of the strongest Dragon Knight belongs to him!"
"This is the true might of a high-level Holy Dragon, with both Holy Light healing and space magic!"
"Everyone knows the Triple Crown winner is invincible, but how many know the Silver Dragon Knight once soloed him?"
The players' faces were filled with fervor, their eyes drawn to the silver ribbon in the sky, cheering and waving their arms.
"I didn't..."
Drunken Dream, hearing the players praise him below, was about to clarify that the "solo kill of Orgod" was a misunderstanding.
"Just accept it, what's the big deal?" Orson sent a private message.
Drunken Dream smiled wryly, only able to accept what his mentor and friend had said.
Drunken Dream: "Dragon Riders, follow my lead! Go straight for the dragon rider's commander. Without their leader, the Dragon Knight's strength will greatly diminish!"
Most of these NPC Dragon Knights were only Lord-Class, with the real strength coming from the Domain Lord Dragons.
Slaughter Spree: "You can't have all the glory from taking down dragons; I'm jumping in too!" he shouted, riding Storm Dragon, keeping pace with the Silver Dragon.
Empress of the Moon: "I won't let you two have all the fun. I'm joining in!"
ShatteredCrown: "What? Who said Dragon Knights are just knights? Magic knights are just as good at riding dragons! Don't believe me? Ask my master!"
With the Silver Dragon Knight leading the charge, Dragon Knights from other guilds, who hadn't planned to get involved, hesitated for a moment but then mounted their dragons and took to the sky.
Watching Drunken Dream's majestic display, Orson smiled. Who said humanoid mounts aren't real mounts?
The stronger and more flashy Drunken Dream became, the more face it gave Orson as his master.
Thirty or more dragons hovered in the sky, facing off against the NPC Dragon Rider army.
With the strongest Dragon Knight leading the charge, and Orson providing backup, there was some comfort in knowing that they had the advantage.
But the Dragon Rider players were significantly weaker, both in terms of their levels and their dragon mounts compared to the NPCs.
In this level of mass combat, even the slightest mistake could cost them their precious dragons.
"Do you think we can really win? My physical strength is no match for the Earth Dragon down there."
A Dragon Knight from a certain guild thought to himself, filled with doubt.