Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 855 - 796 Swarm of Insects

Smoke and dust ascend upon the roar of a giant beast, a anthropomorphic fear emerging in the eyes of those predators; trailing blood all over, they drag their maimed limbs toward the dark depths of the dense forest.

Firelight, like fresh blood, comes rushing fiercely like a Gluttonous devouring the forest. Moisture evaporated by the high heat, the rising stench of blood like an appetizer. The animal formed of flames, crawling upon the ashes, spreads its "saliva" everywhere.

This forest is clearly extraordinary; plants that should have been weak against fire fought back—soaked vines, solidified thorns, and pneumatophores spraying streams of moisture. These plants’ firefighting efforts surpassed those of any human, exhibiting the greatness of the survival instinct of life.

The arsonist thugs instantly crushed this greatness into dust. Ancient humans with bare torsos, seeing the rolling flames as nothing, flattened the grass and chopped down vines; retrieving half-burnt logs from the fire, tossing them into the unlit shade deep within. The fire-bathed strongmen issued wild battle roars, as their tribe continued to slaughter the land and other lives on it.

Born of nature’s nurture under Sahazaan, the ancient humans did not shy away from flames but instead became persecutors of fire, tormenting other lives.

Black Dragon Alcalon flapped his wings to dispel the dust, the suspended particles in the air causing some discomfort and thirst in his nostrils.

Such a splendid hellish scene.

"It would be even better if it weren’t in my own home." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

He gracefully landed on the rocky peak, hooking the cliff edge with his forepaws, the impact of his lower body landing causing a slight tremor as he moved his neck around to observe the surroundings; Sahazaan, centered around the ancient humans’ rocky peak settlement, had fallen into a sea of fire, blossoming like a flower.

He was excited, his dragon breed’s desire for destruction forcibly suppressed by the villain’s decency; Alcalon cast a slightly resentful look towards the elderly man beside him, Black Dragon Priest Ohmhead, who had been stationed here longer than him.

"Is this scorching the walls and clearing the fields?"

The black elder did not reply, seeming to think such an obvious question was not necessary to answer.

Alcalon did not inquire further, standing beside the old man, gazing at death and flames, silent as a stone sculpture.

"...White Dragon and Princess, are they doing better?"

A hint of smugness on the dragon’s face, hidden behind his scales.

"That old immortal controlled Bohr’s transformation into Evil God; you should have seen how he manipulated those bone spurs to explode from the flesh..."

"Bordelis became as holey as a tattered bag, Imelt is reforging him with the Flame of Life. That White Dragon Priest has gone crazier, still raging about killing the Evil God while under Morocoy’s control, now guarding that merfolk ice sculpture mountain."

"The old immortal sent us back here. He said the enemy is coming, the Sleeper’s servant army will invade our territory. My most respected teacher, you seem to know a lot about our enemy."

Ohmhead, the Black Dragon Priest, a master of expression management. Black Dragon knew this dragon priest, who looked like a small old man, could transform into a mighty dragon like himself with a clickety-click, but his disguised form, a face twisted into a bunch of wrinkled, creaky old expressions, was something Alcalon could never discern from dough-like folds.

Just like now, having heard the sound, the Black Dragon could only see a slight tremor on his face.

"Last divine war, our tribe suffered greatly because of them. The enemy was Worm Tribe, devourer Yemotar climbed onto land, before evolving into the father of dragons, the ruler of the land in the era preceding the dragon era, the era of worm tribes."

Black Dragon flashed his teeth, curious about past foes.

"They were simply annihilated by the Sleeper?"

"You might find it hard to understand. The Worm Tribe, due to their unique social structure and stratified level of thinking, is a species with a relatively fixed pattern of thought. The father of dragons is a fragment of the god representing betrayal, the dragons he bred all possess some measure of ’freedom’ of thought. Whereas the Worm Tribe’s Ant Queen civilization made them spontaneously worship and love a higher superiority."

"Before they could think independently, they were assimilated by the Creator, the Sleeper. The worship of deities is ultimately a product of the structure of the Ant Queen."

The Black Dragon Priest abruptly stopped introducing the civilization of the Worm Tribe, and it was clear that his previous explanation was all rote learning, and no one knew how much effort he had put into memorizing these. Regarding this knowledge on social construction and thought education, there is a strong consensus of disgust within the Black Dragon forces.

"So, who is our enemy, what abilities do they possess, and how do we defeat them?"

"Heart-snatcher Worm, a specialized branch of the Worm Tribe."

"Is that its name? Oh, its parents must not love it very much." Alcalon exaggerated his breathing intentionally, revealing the aggressiveness of a war firstborn son in every aspect towards his enemy.

"...The Worm Tribe are soldiers, more accustomed to accepting missions than names. Heart-snatcher Worms specialize in parasitic abilities; they can parasitize living beings through secret mediums, controlling the host to launch attacks. In the last war, nearly all our tribal warriors died at the hands of their comrades’ axes, and what chilled ancient humans to the bone was not the bloodshed and sacrifice, but the hostility from familiar faces. Our war is not a conflict of flesh and blood, but a spy war of distinguishing friend from foe..."

Alcalon narrowed his eyes, a murderous intent sparked by threats glimmering in them; he appreciated a challenging opponent. The specificity of the Heart-snatcher Worms towards the physically robust ancient humans was evident, being targeted felt like a splinter under the fingernail. In just this moment, the rage of the Black Dragon solidified into a volcanic eruption.

"This reminds me of Lyle, that damn caretaker once scared me with an ominous dream intrusion..."

"The advantage of the Worm Tribe lies in their reproductive capabilities and massive numbers, enhanced by the powerful mutations bestowed by the Evil God. They can evolve selectively to specifically counter any force’s strengths and weaknesses. You’re right, the Worm Tribe’s servant army is explicitly catered to exploit each Dragon Kin’s advantages and vulnerabilities. To defeat the Worm Tribe, we must first overcome our own weaknesses."

"Dancing on the enemy’s weaknesses, hahaha, I almost couldn’t tell which side is the primitive clan marked for historical elimination." As Alcalon laughed loudly, the inhaled dust did not bother the Black Dragon; the mist leaking from the corners of his mouth, combined with his sinister gaze, made him appear like a deceitful poison dragon.

Even though the content of their conversation was largely disadvantageous to their tribe, both the Black Dragon and the Dragon Priest remained calm, staring into the sky-fire silently lost in thought. Representatives of body and strength stood out among the ashes, exuding arrogance.

Alcalon was still somewhat young; he was the first to lower his head, lying on the ground like a viper, hissing its venom.

"So that’s why you agreed to let him get involved..."

The voice carried a smug realization of the truth and the irritation of being desecrated.

"Using an Evil God to counteract another Evil God... You understand that the Kin Clan’s vulnerabilities cannot be changed quickly, so you employed Lyle to disrupt everyone. His characteristic as an Evil God allows him to induce a certain level of cognitive dissonance in all who come into contact. Only he can, in a short time, cause us to transform, to enter an alternative ’madness’ that allows us to overcome obvious weaknesses."

"So you really are bold, the audacious Giant Dragon Priest... you have turned the giant dragons and the clan into toys for the Evil God."

Alcalon truly harbored murderous intentions towards his comrades; his crafty machinations, which he thought were concealed behind the scenes, seemed somewhat subtly manipulated.

"Letting the Evil God contact my father, corrupt the giant dragons, and then take over corrupting their own clan. In a manner that we can accept and perceive as normal, turning everyone... into another kind of servant army for another Evil God..."

Ohmhead coldly said, "Divine erosion is inevitable and irresistible. It’s not determined by anyone’s will or any concept. If you feel everything is out of control, you can invent an unseen force named Destiny to comfort yourself."

As if to console the Black Dragon, who was falling into some sort of hysteria, the Dragon Priest added another sentence.

"Come on, you too have accepted this result, what’s the fuss about, war firstborn."

Alcalon bared his teeth in a grin, the nameless rage of a Berserker bursting forth.

"Expressing displeasure is a right given by Destiny, and I will crush those worms."