Laid-Back Life in Tokyo: I Really Didn't Want to Work Hard - Chapter 234 - 198: The Scent of Oranges in the Sea Breeze

Saying 5000 year-old-dragon has an impressive ring to it, yet that dragon was an extremely harmless, herbivorous being. However, because of his uselessly giant figure and scary appearance, he was mistaken for the Demon King’s executive and provided by the nearby village with a sacrificial maiden.

Fundamentally cowardly and timid dragon tried to send her away, but the extremely enthusiastic sacrifice didn’t want to give up. Inevitably, he lied: “Okay, I just ate a small portion of your soul, so you can go back already”, but the maiden with outrageous assumptions has misunderstood that she became the dragon’s kin.

Then, out of all things, she began to manifest strange power on the basis of her wrong assumptions – in turn, the helpless dragon, by some mistake started a rebellion against the Demon King.

Rebellion or whatnot, he wasn’t even his subordinate in the first place.

In the midst of the blue and purple neon lights, under the gray, metallic sky, it is the frontier of all data, the aftermath of a scientific revolution, also the border of fiction and reality.

Steel versus body; the past and the future.

Here, the Outer World and the Inner World exist alongside each other. It seems like the wall of time is right in front of your eyes.

Darkness gradually swallows the world.

But listen, my friend, we cannot use kindness to survive the darkness. We need fire.

For as long as he could remember, life had always been cruel.A young man in his early twenties—his name now lost to the past—was dealt a life filled with misfortunes.A cold, empty apartment, a soul-crushing job, and, finally, a terminal diagnosis.With nothing left to live for, his only comfort had been escaping into the fictional world of Path of the Elemental Sage, a story of heroes, magic, and survival.But fate had other plans.When death finally came for him, he didn’t fade into nothingness.Instead, he awoke in the world he had only read about—a world of chaos and danger where death lurked around every corner.The air smelled of magic, the sky was filled with possibilities.{«[Status Window]»}[Name: Lyrium Blackwood][Age: 16][Rank: D-][Skills: None][Elements: None}At first, confusion filled his mind.Who was Lyrium Blackwood?Why was he here?And why did this body feel so different?But as his memories returned, so did the realization: this wasn’t some blessing or second chance.He wasn’t reincarnated as the protagonist.No destined savior.No cheat abilities.No grand fate.He was just another mob, a face in the crowd meant to exist and die without leaving a mark.But this young man—the one who had left his old name and life behind—wasn’t the kind of person to roll over and accept his fate.“This world is dangerous. The protagonist isn’t the only one fighting for survival here,”he muttered, his red eyes deep and sharp.Unlike the naïve characters in the story, he knew the stakes.He’d read the web novel.He’d seen the carnage, the betrayals, the disasters that wiped out entire cities.And if there was one thing he refused to be, it was a pawn in someone else’s game.“I don’t care about glory. I don’t care about saving the world. All I care about is surviving—no matter what it takes.”Lyrium Blackwood wasn’t planning to live quietly or avoid danger.The only way to survive in this brutal world was to rise to the top.To be strong enough to stand above both heroes and villains.Using his knowledge of the story’s events and his iron will, Lyrium sets out on a relentless path to surpass the protagonist.Whether through clever manipulation, brutal training, or sheer desperation, he’ll climb higher and higher, leaving nothing to chance.But the deeper he gets, the more he realizes that this isn’t just the story he once read.As fate pushes him closer to the heart of the narrative, Lyrium begins to suspect that his reincarnation wasn’t an accident—and the world itself might be watching him.“I don’t care who or what stands in my way. If the story wants to kill me, I’ll rewrite the ending myself.”----------------------------------I apologize for any mistakes in this story, as it’s my first attempt at writing a novel.

This was the great era of vast warships and the Star River, a time when the multi-universe was shattered and countless Cosmic Fragments were scattered across the void, forming the boundless Shattered Starry Sea.Immortal Domain Dao soldiers, mechanical gods, golden giants, wizard Dominators…An endless array of strange civilizations.Starry Sea Oddity, Genetic Potions, exoskeletal armors, Floating Land Origin…Treasures that could be found everywhere.Spectral Shuttle, Spectral Airship, Spectral Warship, Escort Ships, Battleships, Star-Annihilating Starships, hyperdimensional mother ships…The clearly stratified Xinhuo warships.Song Chi held a Zhu Tian Ruins Market in his hand and engaged in interstellar trade with the countless peoples of the Starry Sea.What? Titanium Crystals are worthless in your Star Domain? I’ll take them all, damn it, this is a strategic resource!You call this a chunk of iron? This is Mixed Elemental Copper, the ultimate Enhancement resource!Ordinary ship cannon? Isn’t this a golden Star-Annihilating Cannon? Quick… I’ll buy it!…Stretching across the stars, starting from the flame of human civilization.