The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

"Prepare to receive your honor at the ennoblement ceremony in three days,"

"I understand, Father,"

After the luncheon, Liszt did not delay and left Tulip Castle for Fresh Flower Town straight away. He had drunk quite a bit and felt slightly tipsy, yet he could still maintain clarity.

The landwalker bird Loki had recovered well; its soft feathers and broad back provided a comfortable seat for Liszt.

He exhaled a breath of turbid air and summoned the Smoke Mission—strangely enough, while he was rapidly moving on the back of the landwalker bird, the swirling Smoke Serpent Script remained fixed in front of him.

"Complete the mission, and you shall be rewarded with the revival of decaying dragon bones,"

Upon seeing the reward content, he unconsciously furrowed his brow.

It took a while before his eyes widened, staring at the now-changed Smoke Serpent Script for a new mission, "Mission: Sea Sprite Ake Loides has accumulated a large number of unresolved magic-related questions which are crucial to her understanding of magic and the enhancement of her own magic power level. Please solve them. Reward: One Water System Grand Mage."

His eyes were on the Serpent Script.

Yet his mind was on the previous mission reward, "Revival of decaying dragon bones?"

He wondered if it was the alcohol that dulled his mind, because it took considerable effort to get his thoughts spinning, "Dragon bones? Revival? Decaying? Is it talking about those five Fire Dragon bones at the Burial Ground on Black Horse Island?"

The five decaying dragon bones at the Burial Ground had long been exposed to wind and sun.

Liszt knew they were anything but ordinary, but he had always been unclear about their particular significance. Now it seemed that these five dragon bones were finally about to undergo some change.

"What does revival imply?"

He pondered the reward for the Smoke Mission, a bit puzzled. Taking the literal meaning, it should mean a revival as in "spring returns to the earth and all things come back to life": "Do the reviving decaying dragon bones mean that these bones will come back to life, like withered trees springing back to life?" Read latest chapters on NovelBin.Côm

"Does this type of dragon bone revival merely concern the bones coming back to life, or..." he suddenly entertained a bold thought, "could the Fire Dragon that died countless years ago also gradually come back to life along with the revival of the bones? Can dragons resurrect from the dead?"

He had never heard of such a possibility.

Liszt entertained another idea, "Or perhaps it’s not about the Fire Dragon coming back to life; maybe a new Fire Dragon is being nurtured, relying on the residual magic power within the decaying dragon bones?"

He remembered a legend.

Elderly dragons would leave their homes at the end of their lives and fly to the legendary Valley of Dragons to slumber: "Maybe mature dragons return to the Valley of Dragons because they seek a place to prepare for their resurrection from death?"

As dragons do not have genders and do not give birth, their origin has always been a mystery.

This led Liszt to speculate—resurrection and cyclical rebirth.

After much contemplation, he couldn’t come up with a better outcome.

He then restrained himself from fantasizing too much, "It’s just the revival of five bones; don’t rashly link it to dragons... Perhaps the Smoke Mission is simply hinting that the Fire Dragon bones can be used for shipbuilding... I haven’t had a chance to ask Virginia if she knows the Dragonbone Stabilizer Technique."

No more thoughts about dragons.

The five Fire Dragon bones needed his inspection upon his return.

His attention shifted back to the new Smoke Mission.

The mission hinted that Ake had accumulated a plethora of magical questions in need of resolution, followed by a reward of a Water System Grand Mage—this was easy to understand: Ake was about to advance to the rank of a Grand Mage in the Water System.

"Not bad, she has not disappointed me. Ake has become a Grand Magician in less than half a year; her talent is terrifying... In a few more years, she may indeed have a shot at challenging the title of Water Mage,"

The sun baked the earth.

The Landwalker bird kicked up gusts of wind as it ran, keeping Liszt cool and gradually sobering him up with the continuous dissipation of Dou Qi, as his brain became refreshed and alert once again.

As the sun neared setting, Thorn Ridge, densely planted with Rapid Growth Iron Thorns, came into view. And on the gravel-paved main road, there was already a welcoming party waiting for him. The moment Liszt spotted the group, they too noticed Liszt and his entourage.

Suddenly, cheers erupted.

Even though they were still hundreds of meters away, one could clearly hear the shouts of "Viscount, Lord!"

The messaging Retainer Knight had already spread the news of Liszt’s imminent promotion to Viscount. It was easy to imagine how excited and effervescent the town officials, led by Goltai, would be. Everyone knew Liszt’s future was bright, but no one expected him to become a Viscount within a year.

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

The sound of horse hooves thundered past as the troop entered the main road of Thorn Ridge.

The welcoming party was indeed led by officials including Goltai, along with a large number of the town’s residents, crowded at the roadside, craning their necks in anticipation to catch a glimpse of the great Lord Landlord.

"Oh, the knight’s glory has been bestowed upon us, unbelievable!" Goltai exclaimed in his characteristic exaggerated tone, shouting loudly, "Great Lord, Viscount Liszt! Goltai offers you the highest regards!"

The other town officials standing behind him greeted Liszt with various welcomings and flattery upon his return.

The residual glow of the setting sun fell on Liszt’s face, making his already handsome and extraordinary presence even more tall and impressive. In a warm voice, he said, "I accept your regards, let’s head back to the castle first."

"Yes, my Lord!"

Thus, the group surrounded Liszt and walked towards the castle with him as the center of attention. Loki was also the focus—its colorful feathers and large yet slightly odd stature amazed the ordinary folk—in a world where Magical Beasts roamed, people’s aesthetics were not limited to cats and dogs.

The stranger and more powerful the creature, the more it was pursued with human frenzy.

"That’s our Lord Landlord, even such a terrifying big bird is his mount!" the townspeople running behind the group commented, whispering to each other as they ran.

"It might be an Intermediate Magical Beast, you know. The Lord Landlord’s Douson is an Intermediate Magical Beast, and he’s also slain the Intermediate Sea Monster, the Six-Headed King Serpent."

The townsperson running alongside nodded in agreement, finding it plausible, "Exactly, if it wasn’t Intermediate, the Lord Landlord wouldn’t be interested!"

"The Lord Landlord has become a Viscount, do you think North Valley City will be given to the Lord Landlord?"

"Don’t know, maybe the Lord Landlord can get an island like that Viscount from Beer Island."

"Ah, when the Lord Landlord first came to Fresh Flower Town last year, I said he was a born Noble and would eventually achieve countless honors!"

Amidst these whispers—

Liszt did not overhear, as the officials around him, eager to offer their flattery, were completely unaware that he was not in the mood to hear their compliments right now.

All he wanted was to get back to the castle and enjoy a cup of fresh milk tea brewed by Mrs. Morson.

"Mrs. Morson must already be brewing the milk tea. She knows my favorite is the one made with Dragon Breed Milk, and even if she forgets, Mr. Carter will remind her!"

After a year of living together, servants like Carter and Morson felt like family.

Before Liszt even set foot on Douson Avenue, he suddenly raised his head to look forward. Accompanied by a "Wow" cry, the familiar Thorn Minor Elf Jela flew over undulating high and low. It seemed elated to see Liszt and landed directly on his head.

Elves are creatures full of emotion, and the contract made Jela and him all the more intimate.

"Little one, have you torn down the castle yet?" Liszt called Jela to his palm and continued to ride the Landwalker bird towards the castle.

"Wow!"

In an unguarded moment, Jela suddenly raised its hand, and a pale green light emitted, sprinkling over Loki’s head.