Chapter 426: Chapter 426: The Little Bone Dragon’s True Identity

"Teacher."

Li Wei broke the silence.

Though his back was to Li Wei, Torresta had known he was there all along.

He didn’t speak.

So, Li Wei had to be the one to speak first.

"This day has finally come," Torresta remarked with a sigh.

Li Wei looked at Torresta’s back and said, "Teacher, you must know what I want to ask."

Torresta didn’t speak.

Li Wei got straight to the point. "What exactly is your relationship with the Legendary Witch Lich from the Ancient Battlefield in the West Desert Wastelands? Are you an Illusory Body he created?"

Torresta finally spoke, his words measured and slow.

"An Illusory Body? Perhaps that’s what it looks like to you."

"I prefer to call it another life."

Li Wei’s expression flickered with surprise.

"Possession? Reincarnation?"

Torresta said, "That’s not important. After I was reborn as a Witch Lich several hundred years ago, I stayed within the Ancient Battlefield. Under the constant corrosion of the undead aura, my consciousness leaned more and more toward the Undead, away from humanity."

"At that time, I realized what might happen in the future, so I thought of a way to maintain my human consciousness."

"I split off a part of my soul and used the Illusion Technique to create a human body for it. With a new identity, I walked the world and experienced human emotions. This was to preserve my human consciousness so that I wouldn’t completely degenerate into a passionless Undead Witch Lich."

"Torresta is one of the identities I have used to walk the world over these past few centuries."

At this, Li Wei finally understood Torresta’s origins.

Li Wei mulled it over for a long moment before asking, "Why do you want to resurrect the Little Bone Dragon? What is your purpose?"

Torresta smiled. "Why? Do I need a reason to resurrect my own daughter?"

Li Wei’s eyes widened as he stared at Torresta’s back.

He couldn’t believe what he had just heard.

He asked in astonishment, "The Little Bone Dragon is your daughter?"

"But you’re human, and she’s a Giant Dragon!"

Torresta said, "Her mother was also a Giant Dragon. We fell in love, and she was born."

Li Wei gasped, his mind going blank for a moment.

"I... uh..."

He couldn’t quite process it.

"Heh heh heh..." Torresta suddenly chuckled. "Doesn’t this sort of thing happen in the legendary stories you write? Why can’t you accept it?"

"I thought you might have heard my story."

Li Wei: "..."

’Stories are one thing,’ he thought, ’but I just made all that stuff up.’

’Reality is stranger than fiction.’

An image of Torresta and a Giant Dragon... conceiving a child... flashed through Li Wei’s mind.

Ugh... It was an indescribable image.

He thought of Erica; perhaps Giant Dragons could take on a human form.

’In any case, he didn’t need to worry about how they managed it. The Little Bone Dragon had been born, after all.’

Unless Torresta was lying about everything.

But he had no reason to lie.

At least, Li Wei could tell that he was speaking from the heart.

When he spoke of the Little Bone Dragon being his daughter, Torresta’s voice trembled slightly.

Li Wei looked at Torresta’s back and asked in confusion, "I have a question. If the Little Bone Dragon is really the offspring of you and a Giant Dragon, why did she end up in this state?"

"Logically speaking, you should both be incredibly powerful. No one should have been able to harm the child of a Legendary Couple."

Torresta nodded. "Indeed. Philis and I were both very powerful. A thousand years ago, we were already Legendary Powerhouses."

"But the enemies we faced were even stronger."

Li Wei’s heart skipped a beat as he keenly picked up on the key information in Torresta’s words.

’Legendary Powerhouses a thousand years ago... and even stronger enemies.’

This meant that Torresta’s true identity was far more profound than Li Wei had imagined.

"Who were your enemies?" Li Wei asked curiously.

Torresta answered, "The Demon Dragon King, the Dragon Slayers, and the Divine Spirits!"

Li Wei was shaken to the core, feeling as if he had just unlocked an ancient secret.

Torresta’s past actually involved Divine Spirits.

’And what’s the deal with the Demon Dragon King and the Dragon Slayers?’

Li Wei suddenly recalled a glorious period in the history of the Human Empire. The emergence of the Dragon Blood Potion had created countless Dragon Blood War Gods and powerful Dragon Slayers, pushing the Human Empire’s strength to its Peak. They had even driven the Dragon Race to the brink of extinction.

’Could it be from that era?’

’A thousand years ago... The timeline more or less matches what Torresta said.’

Li Wei pressed on, "What exactly happened a thousand years ago?"

Torresta said, "A thousand years ago, the Dragon Race was fractured by internal conflict. A war broke out between the Demon Dragon King and the Saint Dragon King, which became the fuse that led to the decline and fall of the Dragon Race."

"It was during that period that the Human Empire obtained the formula for the Dragon Blood Potion. They hunted Giant Dragons everywhere and nearly annihilated the Dragon Race, which was already divided by internal strife."

"My wife, Philis, also became a victim of the Dragon Race’s internal division."

"To deal with the Saint Dragon King, the Demon Dragon King resorted to a sneak attack on Philis. At the time, she was pregnant. Gravely injured, she fled deep into the Ancient Battlefield. By the time I arrived, Philis was already dead. She had transferred all her remaining Life Force into the dragon egg, giving birth to it while it was still unformed."

"Later, the Demon Dragon King found Philis’s body and tore out her Dragon Heart and Dragon Soul. Right under the Demon Dragon King’s nose, I was barely able to save the egg."

"After the Demon Dragon King left, I took the egg, hoping to hatch it. However, the life within had been brought forth prematurely, before it was fully formed. Even with Philis’s last reserve of Life Force, the fledgling life was almost certain to perish."

"Left with no other choice, I had to turn her into a Bone Dragon to preserve that last sliver of life."

"The Polluted Earth Rebirth Ceremony can replenish the Life Force and soul she lacked at birth, allowing her to be truly resurrected and possess a complete life."

This was a father’s thousand-year-long plan, all for the sake of resurrecting his daughter.

Li Wei was profoundly shaken.

Once the shock subsided, Li Wei came back to his senses and reflected on what Torresta had just said.

He asked with some confusion, "Isn’t this a tragedy caused by the Dragon Race’s internal conflict? What does it have to do with the Divine Spirits?"

Torresta said, "The Dragon Blood Potion was a gift to humanity from the Divine Spirits."

Li Wei understood instantly.

The Divine Spirits were the hidden hand behind the extermination of the Dragon Race.

As for why the Divine Spirits wanted to exterminate the Dragon Race, that was another question entirely.

In any case, they must have had their reasons.

Torresta stood up. "I’ve said so much. I imagine most of your questions have been answered."

"Come. Let’s get the last thing needed to resurrect Saint Xi."

Saint Xi was the Little Bone Dragon’s name when she was alive.

Li Wei was a little confused. "Don’t we still need a Dragon Corpse?"

He fell into step behind Torresta.

They headed toward the Seventh Floor.

As they walked, Torresta said, "I’ve already prepared the Ritual Array for the Polluted Earth Rebirth Ceremony. You’ll understand once you bring the item over."