Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 848 - 789: Atavism

The Black Dragon’s body cracked open along his spine, which made his already formidable body grow even larger, nearing the size of a Sea Dragon. It also meant that at this moment, he was larger than the combination of three Giant Dragons. Although the strength of a Giant Dragon is not solely dependent on size, the oppressive force was palpably real. Alcalon’s claws pressed against Bordelis’s neck as if the hunter was proclaiming sovereignty over their prey.

Tentacles sprouted from the wounds that covered his body, and pus oozed out of them, while the intact membranes of his wings tore into strips, making the spread wings resemble dangerous magic claws. Alcalon’s completely transformed visage, with his muscles exposed through his peeled skin and his bloody smile, had probably become a nightmare for his brothers.

"Hmm... Hahahahahaha..." Alcalon suddenly burst out laughing as if he had gone mad, collapsing on top of the body of the Sea Dragon and laughing uproariously without any concern for image, his tentacles sticking to the scales of the White Dragon. The dangerous atmosphere that Kristo felt was being ruined by Alcalon himself.

The continuity of events left the Blue Dragon clueless. As the remaining pillar of strength, Kristo secretly laid down a binding enchantment around the Black and White Dragons while planning to distract Alcalon’s attention with conversation.

"What’s happening to your body, Al?"

Noticing the Red Dragon and Green Dragon stealthily moving to his flanks, Alcalon responded. His head lifted, and the vertebrae in his neck stretched out like a spring, making the Black Dragon’s neck assume giraffe-like proportions. He circled it in the air with his abnormally flexible neck as if showing off.

"Of course, I’ve undergone Demonization, my foolish brother. Why ask when you already know."

"How did you become like this, my elder brother?" Kristo asked with a hint of sorrow in his voice, all an act as he quietly activated the explosive runes in the enchantment, looking for the right moment to blow the Black Dragon to death.

Seemingly unaware, Alcalon lay atop the White Dragon’s body, his tentacles grabbing the bone spurs that grew out of the White Dragon’s flesh, looking like an octopus clinging to a sea cucumber, turning the two dragons into something more like giant seafood.

"Shouldn’t you be asking yourselves instead? Why, as the offspring of the Devourer, the children of the Evil God, don’t you undergo Demonization? You know our origin is the rebellious Evil God, and the father of dragons’ revival relies entirely on another Evil God. Why have I undergone Demonization? Why haven’t you?" Alcalon implied that Demonization is the normal state for Giant Dragons, merely a sort of atavism. He seemed proud, treating these twisted flesh and tentacles as a sign of his pure bloodline, setting himself apart from his siblings and becoming the father of dragons’ most excellent heir.

Kristo’s face nearly wrinkled into a ball, seeming to truly ponder the differences between the Black Dragon and the other Giant Dragons.

"Following that line of thought, the reason Al has undergone Demonization is because..." The Blue Dragon remembered how the Black Dragon, when they were younger, had defied the father of dragons and was beaten all over, but he was still stubborn and faced challenges head-on.

"Father gave you this ability, put you in the advanced class." Kristo understood the nature of the Giant Dragons from his conversations with scholars. He knew that his father had exhibited favoritism even during his time studying White Bone Spirit Summoning Studies, preferring some diligent students. As a professor of White Bone Spirit Summoning Studies, the Blue Dragon also knew that the father of dragons preferred physical prowess over Magic Power and thus needed to break free from the physical constraints, choosing... not to be a Giant Dragon anymore. This approach was very characteristic of the Liches, like Andrey.

With prejudices against his own parents, Kristo’s hostility gradually faded. He coughed twice and said to the Black Dragon: "Alright, it’s entirely possible that Father would do such a thing. I believe you, Al. You’re probably on the path of ancestral return, just like our father."

The two dragons, previously at a knife-edge, suddenly came to an understanding, leaving the Giant Dragon sisters confused. The Red Dragon looked at the Blue Dragon, then at the greatly enlarged Black Dragon, not knowing what to do. The gaze of the Green Dragon was quite direct, staring at the Blue Dragon as if she was looking at another traitor, her look seemed to say: This is not what we agreed upon.

Alcalon was quite satisfied with his control over the situation, feeling cheerful, he elaborated further.

"Hmph, this is also why the Dragon Priests allowed our meeting to happen. If I were truly your enemy, believe me, their senses, sharper than those of a dog’s nose, would not put their beloved Giant Dragon in the same cage with me. It’s clear that the Dragon Priests have embraced the corruption of the Giant Dragon; they’ve thrown Bordelis at us, trusting us and the father of dragons behind us to solve Bordelis’s corruption issue. That clever Blue Dragon Priest noticed me and let me deal with Bohr. In fact, it’s true that the demonized Bohr cannot resist the demonized me. I’ll take him back and let our father who has nothing better to do bestow his blessings upon Bohr. He will, just like me, return to his ancestral demonized form, but don’t worry, our kinship is thicker than water, it won’t decay."

The Black Dragon’s explanation also resolved the Blue Dragon’s doubts. The Blue Dragon Priest he knew wouldn’t choose such a reckless test. It was because the scholar knew they would be safe that he let Kristo confront the demonized Alcalon alone.

"Is this to cultivate my sense of crisis? I’ve been played."

"Alright, I’ve made it clear now, and the misunderstanding has been resolved. Kristo, open a teleportation portal so I can take Bohr back to the Dragon’s Nest to see our father. Don’t worry, he will be fine." The demonized Alcalon, similar in size to Bordelis, grabbed the White Dragon like a sack, humming a tune happily as his body entered the teleportation portal. He could have explained his demonization at the first instance, but he chose to scare his siblings to satisfy his own wicked sense of humor. Recalling the erect tails of his frightened brothers and sisters, Alcalon smiled.

The teleportation portal closed, and Kristo’s face fell as he muttered, "Three, two, one."

The trembling of space affected reality, a spatial rift was rudely torn open, and the White Dragon’s body was thrown out. From within the rift, the sounds of interdimensional collisions and magic power explosions could be heard. Alcalon, with a dark expression, was riddled with Crystal Fragments from the magic power explosion, a dimensional rift severing his spine; he barely kept his body intact with his tentacles. The injured Black Dragon truly showed his intent to kill.

All the traps laid by the Blue Dragon filled that teleportation portal, not lethal, but highly insulting.

"I believe you are Al now." Kristo raised a paw in surrender, promptly admitting defeat in front of the Black Dragon.

Alcalon smiled happily.

"You just wait."

Once again dragging Bordelis into the teleportation portal, the Black Dragon’s good mood was completely gone.

This time, he didn’t tear the rift again.

Kristo’s lips curled into a smile.

"An eye for an eye."