"I will temporarily leave the Material Plane and take a trip to the Serene Spirit Wilderness."

Through the Bloodline Connection, the red iron dragon informed Sorog and Samantha of the general situation.

Samantha’s response immediately exploded through the link, an excited mental reaction: "Our name is finally going to reach the Outer Planes?"

"Haha! Garoth, my dear brother, I hope the Serene Spirit Wilderness is only the beginning."

"From the highest Heavenly Mountains down to the bottomless Abyss, one day our roar will make both gods and demons tremble!"

That sounded a bit too arrogant.

But Garoth did not correct her.

Red dragons were born that way, fond of grandiose boasts and painting magnificent blueprints.

Samantha was the worst offender; she never held back her mouth, but she actually knew exactly what she could or could not do, and what ecological niche she occupied. She would not really attempt anything beyond her capabilities.

All talk and bluster aside, when it mattered she was actually cautious.

At the same time, iron dragon Sorog also felt excitement, but his excitement stemmed from a completely different place than Samantha’s.

"Outer Planes..."

He pondered, his low voice coming through the link, "The Romanian Plains in the North are already in our hands."

"If we want to continue expanding, the next step will inevitably involve direct conflict with hegemonic states or powerful city-states in other regions."

"That would be very troublesome, and could prematurely alert the Halden Empire."

The Atlantis Continent was vast and generally divided into five major regions.

The northern Romanian Plains were only one of them; the east, west, and south each had similar regions, together accounting for about one quarter of the continent's area.

The remaining three-quarters lay in the central kingdom lands, the most resource-rich and fertile part of the continent.

That was the domain of the Halden Empire, also called the Central Land Continent, the absolute center.

Both sky and ground of the Central Land Continent belonged to Halden.

Garoth had once obtained the title "Lord of the North" on the Romanian Plains.

At first, that title was somewhat empty-sounding.

But now, even looking across the whole Atlantis Continent, the title carried heavy weight.

However, if the Aola Kingdom wanted to extend its reach into other regions, even the nearest territory would have to avoid crossing Halden's lands, and would have to detour through hazardous, remote places.

This was not a simple matter; it required massive investment with uncertain returns.

"Once we've fully digested the Romanian Plains' resources, our development will sooner or later hit a bottleneck."

Sorog continued his analysis with clear thinking.

"I have pondered how to break the impasse before, but the goal always seemed distant and daily affairs were too busy, so I never went deep."

"Now, Garoth, you have given me a new idea."

He paused briefly, his spirit noticeably elevated: "If the Halden Empire can develop the Abyss, why can't we?"

"As long as we find proper channels and methods to draw power and resources from other planes, that might be more efficient than fighting other forces on the Material Plane, and could entail fewer direct conflicts."

Plane resources, theoretically, were nearly infinite.

Compared to so many planes, planet Bernardo remained just one of the thousands within the main Material Plane, hardly rich in resources.

Samantha heard that and her surprise immediately outweighed her excitement.

"Sorog, are you insane?!"

When she had earlier shouted about making the Abyss tremble, she had been expressing a distant, wonderful longing, not a real desire to go messing with the Abyss now.

Even the most arrogant red dragon felt instinctive dread when the Abyss was mentioned.

As for the Halden Empire that actually dared to develop the Abyss... Samantha secretly admired their courage.

This was not something ordinary beings could do.

Merely thinking of it was difficult, let alone putting it into practice.

"The Abyss is not a place we can extend our claws to right now, at least not at present."

Samantha grew rare and serious, speaking each word slowly.

Sorog was silent for two seconds before he slowly explained: "I mean we can emulate Halden’s thinking."

"Develop other planes, but it does not have to be the Abyss."

"For example, the Serene Spirit Wilderness that Garoth is about to go to is a good starting point."

Among all known Outer Planes, the Abyss was undoubtedly the most infamous and dangerous.

If the Abyss were a savage, murderous thug, then the Serene Spirit Wilderness would at most be a lively, harmless, even somewhat naive little girl in comparison.

"Oh... I see."

Samantha visibly relaxed, her tone becoming lighter, "You scared me— I thought your brain got stuck in a door, or that the Abyss’ whispers had secretly corrupted you."

Then, in her usual viciously humorous tone she added:

"Nope, I have to go stomp around the little rifts on our territory later and burn some demons to ashes, hear their beautiful dying wails! Just to blow off steam!"

Sorog ignored Samantha’s violent proclamation and instead confirmed with Garoth.

"What do you think of the idea?"

"Since you are going to the Serene Spirit Wilderness anyway, why not observe whether that plane deserves our attention? Could we establish an outpost there and put down roots?"

Garoth did not answer immediately.

He was thinking seriously about the question.

Any Outer Plane, due to different underlying rules from the Material Plane, must yield rare resources or unique environments absent from the Material Plane.

If one could successfully develop a stable Outer Plane, the benefits would be incalculable.

Yet opportunity always came with risk.

Every Outer Plane had dangers; the difference was only in their form and degree.

Perhaps because few of their ancestors had ever set foot on that land, the Dragon Legacy recorded only rough descriptions of the Serene Spirit Wilderness.

The legacy noted that it was a beautiful and lively plane, inhabited by many fey creatures.

But one thing was clear:

The Serene Spirit Wilderness hosted deities.

True rulers, sitting high in divine realms.

"To me now, the gods of Outer Planes are no different from immortals of the Material Plane."

"But regardless, stepping into other planes inevitably carries risks and requires careful weighing."

With that thought, he told Sorog through the link: "Practice proves truth."

"Let me fly to the Serene Spirit Wilderness myself, see with my own eyes and feel it firsthand, then judge whether it is worth risking investment."

After a few more minutes of communication to settle details, the link faded.

The red iron dragon lowered his head and looked at the flower fairy who had been quietly waiting beside him, both nervous and full of expectation.

"We can go now."

He said, while crushing a scale of the faerie dragon between his claws.

At first, nothing happened.

About a minute later, ripples appeared in the air and rainbow-hued light surged, rotating and intertwining until it formed a vortex about several meters in diameter.

Through the center of the vortex one could see another scene.

A lush forest landscape.

The sound of a stream and the laughter of fey creatures could be faintly heard.

"Wow... this is completely different from the teleportation that brought me before!"

The flower fairy flapped her wings and danced excitedly around the vortex, "This vortex is huge, and you can see Verdant Home Grove directly! Lady Vira, you are amazing, you're literally omnipotent!"

She lavished praise without restraint.

Garoth stared at the enormous spatial vortex and then glanced down at his own bulk, falling into a brief silence.

Squeeze through?

That thought rose and was immediately dismissed.

With a flicker across his scales, he cast Transformation and rapidly shrank his body until he was small enough to pass through the vortex with ease.

However, as he approached the vortex, its edge shrank inward in sync with his proximity.

It retained a size that Garoth could not pass directly.

"Vira's plane gateway has a carrying limit... and even if I shrink, my life force still exceeds that limit."

Some teleportation knowledge surfaced in Garoth’s mind and he judged quickly.

Interplanar transfer and intra-planar spatial teleportation are different matters; their difficulty is not directly comparable.

For example, Shire, before becoming legendary, could banish his marker to other planes and had even tried on himself without success; he could perform short-range flashes or traverse dimensional creases, but he could not perform long-distance spatial teleportation.

Similarly, someone who can teleport long distances within a plane may not be able to banish a living being to another plane, let alone teleport themselves to another plane.

"Have the kingdom’s alchemists and array masters come here to make a plane channel stabilizer or amplifier?"

Garoth considered technical options, but quickly vetoed them, "No, this is not as simple as temporarily constructing a teleportation array. Stabilizing and enlarging an interplanar channel is a major engineering task and cannot be completed quickly."

He pondered and then had another idea.

Next moment, he raised one foreclaw.

Garoth’s Spell-Extinguishing Claw firmly grabbed the edge of the plane vortex.

A deep dragon roar rolled out of his throat as he strained, muscles beneath his scales swelling, and he began to slowly tear sideways.

Buzz!

The spatial vortex shuddered violently, resisting the violence.

The resistance was enormous; even with Garoth’s great strength he felt the weight.

The vortex tore apart slowly, and as the opening widened, the resisting force grew geometrically, making him feel his strength might not be enough.

"Interesting."

The red iron dragon paused, the corner of his mouth crooked into a delighted smile.

Whoosh!

Dragon Qi condensed into substance rose from his body.

Under the stunned gaze of the little flower fairy, an astonishing transformation occurred.

Energy condensed on the air at the sides of his neck and instantly formed two additional dragon heads, covered in heavy scales indistinguishable from his central main head.

At the same time, additional pairs of massive arms, composed of Dragon Qi with chiseled muscles, manifested on both sides of his torso.

Three heads standing together, six arms encircling the body!

The red iron dragon now looked like a creature from ancient myth, breath as vast as the abyss, posture as imposing as mountain ranges.

Then all six claws, glinting with Spell-Extinguishing Claws, reached out and gripped several focal points unveiled by the True Eye.

Tear!

The three dragon heads roared together, the soundwave making the air buzz, and the six giant claws erupted with terrifying force, pulling outward and upward simultaneously!

On the other side, in the Serene Spirit Wilderness at Verdant Home Grove, a large group of fey creatures of various shapes had gathered in a forest clearing, led by the faerie dragon Vira.

They all craned their little heads and looked up at the rainbow vortex in the sky with curious, expectant eyes.

"What will Garoth look like now?"

Vira stood at the front, equally excited.

"When I left the Material Plane, he was already legendary. After that, even if he changed, it shouldn't be too much... right?"

Thinking this, she felt an odd uncertainty.

After all, it was Garoth—he always caused unexpected commotions.

Moment by moment passed.

Suddenly the center of the vortex began to convulse violently, its expansions and contractions becoming extreme; then the center bulged outward as if a gigantic entity from the other side were forcibly pressing through.

Then a huge claw covered in dark red scales slowly reached out from the vortex.

The sight was terrifying.

The fey all inhaled sharply, but none of them were afraid; instead each craned their necks further, eyes wide and sparkling with excitement.

That claw... is massive!

In Vira’s recently updated "Red Emperor stories," she claimed that to balance life between the Serene Spirit Wilderness and the Material Plane, she used some kind of splitting technique.

The lively, clever, and adorable faerie dragon Vira was the true body.

Another, more battle-hardened and awe-inspiring split persona, took the name Garoth Ignas and achieved great deeds on the Material Plane.

The fey believed this wholeheartedly and let their imaginations romanticize it.

They held their breath.

After the first giant claw, the second and third... all six equally formidable claws that seemed able to crush steel and stone emerged in sequence from the vortex and gripped its rim steadily.

The next second, all six claws simultaneously unleashed unparalleled power and tore in different directions.

A roar!

A sound that shook the souls of every fey echoed across Verdant Home Grove.

A plane gateway that required special talent to establish had been brute-forced open by the most primitive form of violence.

At the center of the breach a towering, imposing figure slowly pushed its upper body into the Serene Spirit Wilderness.

The first thing every fey saw were three adjacent dragon heads, covered in thick scales and radiating dread majesty.

Each head was larger than fey imagination allowed; their dragon eyes like suns, looking down upon the tiny beings below.

Following them came necks and broad shoulders like rolling mountains, and three pairs of robust forearms supporting the upper body that had pushed through the rift—muscle lines as sharp as chisel marks, bulging and shining with metallic vigor.

Even just the upper half of his body cast the forest clearing fully into shadow.

The air seemed to congeal.

The babble of the stream seemed to vanish, the wind held its breath, and even the usual faint insect sounds in the woods became utterly still.

All the fey—tiny flower fairies fluttering in the air, groundbound tree spirits, and flower sprites—tilted their heads back, opened their mouths—petals or hollows—and stared dumbly at the dragon occupying most of the sky, their minds blank.

This... is the Red Emperor from Vira’s stories?

The story never said he had three heads and six arms!

Garoth lowered his gaze and looked at the petrified fey below, a thought passing through his mind.

Had his appearance frightened them?

But at that moment—

"Long live!!!"

Some small sprite gave a piercing, almost shattering cry that acted like a fuse on an explosive, and more cheers erupted.

"Red... Red Emperor! The great Red Emperor!"

"So... so big! So... so powerful!"

"Amazing! Ten thousand times more awesome than the story! No, a million times!"

"The fiend is doomed! Absolutely absolutely doomed! It can’t compare with even one of His claws!"

The little fey began to fly around chaotically, squealing and cheering; the tree spirits shook their branches hard, making a rustling ovation; the flower fairies scattered colorful pollen like celebratory confetti.

Even mushroom folk and shy grass spirits on the ground hopped around, making cheerful chirps.

"The Red Emperor has come, peace will return! Verdant Home Grove is saved!"

"Tear that nasty fiend apart! Protect our home!"

They showed no fear; instead they welcomed and worshiped him more fervently than before.

Garoth was slightly stunned, then enlightenment dawned.

Vira’s tales had already planted enough awe and trust in them.

Thus, in these simple hearts, no matter how ferocious Garoth looked, he was not a dragon of doom but the guardian deity from the stories.

His light landed upon the most familiar figure among them.

The faerie dragon, Vira.

She looked splendid; the gray patches from her near-death had long vanished, her scales bright and lively, full of vigor.

More importantly, her life essence had stabilized at the Legendary tier.

Returning to the Serene Spirit Wilderness had indeed benefited her recovery and growth.

Vira too looked up at the three-headed, six-armed grandeur, stunned and awestruck.

"This big guy... it hasn’t been long since I last saw him, how did he become so... so exaggerated?"

Vira muttered to herself, and she thought his form was overwhelmingly mighty; then she giggled, her tail tip wagging happily, "The stronger he is, the stronger I am! Hehe, I, Lady Vira, will become more powerful too!"

She beamed a proud, slightly smug smile.

A moment later, Garoth had fully passed through the plane breach and stepped onto Verdant Home Grove’s ground.

"Red Emperor! Red Emperor! Red Emperor!"

Waves of cheers rolled higher and higher as the fey swarmed around the giant dragon, bounding and scattering more celebratory pollen and petals; the entire clearing thrummed with joyous celebration.

Garoth did not pay much attention to their fervor at that moment.

Arriving at a completely new Outer Plane, sensations distinct from the Material Plane surged over him like tides, impacting his perception.

First, the visual.

Everything appeared with razor clarity, beyond even the True Eye effect.

Colors were highly saturated.

Greens shimmered like molten emerald; the stream was so clear he could see every tiny groove on the pebbles; the flowers’ hues were as vivid as oil paintings; even dust motes in the air shimmered with tiny halos in a soft light.

Everything was too clear, too alive.

It was as if the entire world had been given a top-tier beautify and sharpen filter, unlike the Material Plane’s more restrained, natural tones—this place had a dreamlike texture.

Next came changes in perception. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Garoth could distinctly feel the surrounding environment’s emotions.

Ancient trees radiated a sense of peace, contentment, and guardianship; the stream flowed with a light, songlike joy; the soil beneath his feet conveyed nourishing breadth and steadiness... this plane itself seemed awash in an emotional field.

Finally, and most concerning to Garoth, was his own emotional state.

As a dragon who controlled power through reason, Garoth had tempered his feelings and will into hardened steel.

Anger, joy, curiosity, vigilance—he possessed them, but his strong rationality and will usually kept them tightly restrained.

They rarely showed and never easily ran wild.

Yet here things changed.

After only a few dozen breaths within the Serene Spirit Wilderness, Garoth felt his emotions livelier than when on the Material Plane.

Hearing the fey’s enthusiastic cheers, seeing the tiny beings dance for joy and scatter bright pollen and shake branches in celebration...

A satisfaction and joy sprung from his heart, and his tail couldn’t help but wag.

He even wanted to hop in expression of delight.

He could sense the air thick with worship and joy as if invisible floral scent burrowing into his consciousness.

This was unimaginable on the Material Plane.

Furthermore, as the fey’s emotions stayed high, Garoth noticed environmental shifts.

Some plants flashed unusually bright, several fruit trees bloomed on the spot and rapidly bore plump fruit as if time-lapsed.

"Serene Spirit Wilderness..."

Garoth quickly analyzed, "One of this plane’s rules amplifies living beings’ emotional reactions, making emotions more vivid and tangible, even directly causing effects on the physical layer."

His emotions were affected indeed.

But for now the effect did not impair his judgment or actions.

It was a novel experience.

At the same time he detected a hidden danger.

"Not only pleasant emotions are amplified—anger and destructive impulses are magnified too."

Garoth tried to awaken Frenzied Flame; veins crawled into his eyes ten times faster than usual, a tempest of rage rising, but he controlled it swiftly and suppressed the flame.

Here every emotional reaction was stronger.

"In this place, thresholds for stirring and erupting are lower."

Garoth concluded.

The kind-hearted might become more benevolent, but the wicked would have their malice and destructive desires amplified and more easily lose control.

"An... interesting place."

He made a preliminary evaluation of the Serene Spirit Wilderness.

Beautiful, lively, full of life, but hiding risks stemming from emotion amplification.

Whether this plane was suitable as an Aola Kingdom expansion target required more observation.

Crunch!

The red iron dragon’s light shimmered as he reduced his size to roughly Young Dragon scale, stepping carefully to avoid trampling flowers or fey.

Normally he disliked adapting to surroundings.

But Garoth was in a good mood and could not bear to damage the beauty around him.

He knew his considerate impulse was somewhat influenced by this plane’s rules.

He did not reject this safe novel emotional experience; rather, he took on the attitude of a participant, happy to try and feel it.

"Move, move, make way, don’t crowd so tight!"

"Give me and my... hmm, give us some space to talk!"

Vira flew over, waving her little paws to disperse overly enthusiastic fey.

Though reluctant, they obediently drifted back, giggling as they landed on branches and petals and kept watching with bright eyes.

She perched on Garoth’s shoulder, grinning: "Garoth, my great Red Emperor, long time no see!"

She paused and exaggerated her tone while gesturing with tiny paws.

"Wow, you’ve become... more massive, more... imposing! Like a moving mountain! I am so happy you came!"

Her joy was genuine, her tail flicking with delight.

Garoth tilted his head slightly and focused his gaze on the tiny figure.

"Honored Lady Vira, my true body."

"It is my duty to serve you. After all, by your story’s logic, I am merely your split—splits must aid the original, and that is perfectly correct."

The great dragon’s expression was half-smile, half-tease.

Vira’s smile stiffened.

"Sh-shh, keep your voice down."

She looked around guiltily and lowered her tone, "What bad intentions would I have? I only spread your glory, extend your fame to more places! Wait..."

"Why are you talking so weird? Sarcastic... are you really the Garoth I know?"

Vira squinted, scrutinizing the dragon head close at hand.

"Can't even recognize your own split?"

Garoth tilted his head in an exaggerated puzzled expression.

"It seems the true body is not very perceptive of my changes."

"That's not right. As the great Red Emperor you should be well acquainted with your split's status."

His tone had noticeable inflection and a livelier cadence than usual.

While speaking he lightly swayed his neck and gently slapped his thick tail on the ground, his body language richer than in the Material Plane.

Vira’s eyes widened.

She flew a couple of small circles around Garoth’s heads, inspecting him carefully.

"Oh!"

She slapped her forehead in sudden realization, "I get it! It’s the influence of the Serene Spirit Wilderness! I didn't expect that even someone like you would have your emotions amplified by this plane’s rules!"

She had spent a significant time on the Material Plane and knew the differences between the planes, especially their effects on emotions.

"Perhaps."

Garoth’s head bobbed and his tone carried amusement, "The rules here are interesting; they make emotions brighter and more pronounced."

"For example, I now find your surprised, guilty expression particularly... hmm, pleasing."

He enunciated "pleasing" distinctly, the tip of his tail tapping the ground happily as he carefully avoided a patch of blue flowers.

Vira was momentarily speechless, her dragon-face puffing up.

Then she straightened and tried to look righteously firm.

"Hey! I’m not guilty! I’m diligently spreading your heroic deeds, promoting your fame and gathering... listen, gathering reputation! In Verdant Home Grove and other places I heard about, the fey now worship you! They’re so happy to see you, didn’t you see?"

She pointed to the still excited fey watching.

"Yes, they’re happy."

Garoth’s gaze swept the fey, his eyes softening. The amplified satisfaction heightened his favor toward these little beings.

"Thanks to you, I’ve inexplicably become the guardian deity here, and that attracted a fiend."

At the mention of the fiend, Garoth’s pleasure rapidly faded and was replaced by a coldness.

The Serene Spirit Wilderness’s rules had purified his displeasure and annoyance into a honed blade; though not fully unleashed, it already gave off a chill.

"...Well..."

Vira’s bravado shrank and her eyes drifted, "That fiend, it’s so dishonorable! It ambushed!"

"And it was drawn here mainly by the Red Emperor stories—your name is too loud, so you’re partly to blame!"

She tried to share the blame, but her voice got smaller and smaller.

Finally she gave up, drooped her wings and mumbled an admission: "Okay okay... it's my fault. I shouldn't have told stories everywhere, and I shouldn't have made them so exciting."

Seeing her repentant look, Garoth revealed a smile.

"My true body," he said, "since I answered your summons, my duty is to shoulder the responsibilities you brought."

"A little fiend, easily smashed."

His voice deepened, becoming bold and brimming with impatience.

"I will wait for it to come here, to my presence, and then... grind it to dust."

For this kind of creature born from stories and lies and feeding on them, Garoth felt a strong curiosity.

It was unlike any being he had met.

He was somewhat impatient to interact with these Outer Plane-specific entities; perhaps they would bring new thrills and a new level of evolution.