Ryan looked back. In the distance, Snowmere City was completely sealed, the city walls glowing with brilliant magical barriers.

  Countless people in uniform were patrolling the skies, moving back and forth. Both inside and outside the city, a tight network of searches had been set up. Clearly, the estate had issued the highest-level manhunt order.

  Ryan felt a wave of relief. If he hadn't used the high-level teleportation scroll Evelyn had given him, even if he had escaped Emily, he would likely have been trapped by the estate's reinforcements. Whether he could have gotten away was uncertain.

  He dared not pause for a moment, pushing his magic to the limit as he sprinted. From Snowmere City came the sound of furious roars, sharp and penetrating, carrying immense magical power:

  "You dare trespass on my estate and injure my daughter! Even if you flee to the ends of the earth, I will tear you to pieces!!"

  The roar spread across tens of kilometers, making Ryan's scalp tingle. He pushed himself even faster, running as far as he could.

  He knew in his heart that his slap had struck not only the face of the estate's daughter but also the pride of the estate's master.

  In Skylorn Province, the estate master's authority was overwhelming. To suffer such humiliation, he would spare no effort in hunting Ryan down.

  "I didn't want it to get this big either," Ryan muttered to himself while running.

  "But this thing belongs to me. It absorbed my blood long ago and is bound to me. I'm just taking back what is mine."

  Moreover, the life inside the egg was about to hatch. If he delayed any longer, all his previous efforts would be wasted. That would be a huge loss.

  This egg had followed him through two lifetimes. In this life, he would never let it fall into someone else's hands.

  Ryan didn't dare stop for even a moment. He ran until he could no longer sense any magical fluctuations behind him, and only then did he halt.

  He didn't stay on the surface. Cradling the oval black crystal, he began digging a tunnel again. The underground was the safest place to hide.

  He dug on for an unknown amount of time. Only when he felt he was at least a thousand meters below ground, having created a spacious underground chamber, did he pause.

  "You've really caused me trouble!" Ryan complained to the black crystal beside him, then sighed.

  "Looks like I need to get back to Glacial Arcana Academy quickly. Only the Academy's protection can keep the estate master's pursuit at bay."

  After venting, Ryan took a large hammer from his storage bag. He drew a deep breath, infused all his magical energy into it, and with all his strength, brought it down onto the black crystal.

  As he swung, the repetitive pounding somehow began to feel satisfying.

  The black crystal surrounding the core was no ordinary object, but he had no concern that its contents could be damaged.

  He was certain that unless a being beyond Grand Magus level attacked with full force, almost nothing in the world could harm what lay inside.

  With each strike, cracks began to appear on the surface of the black crystal, small shards falling away. Even after so many blows, only a few chips had broken off, a testament to the crystal's incredible toughness.

  Ryan was not surprised. This layer of black crystal had been deliberately set by him in a previous life to protect the object inside.

  As he smashed, he collected the fallen shards into his storage bag. These magic-infused crystals were far from useless; if he didn't need them later, they could be exchanged for Origin Value. Nothing could be wasted.

  He had been at it for days, though by now he had lost track of time. But that no longer mattered.

  With a final blow, Ryan poured all his strength into the hammer, fusing his magical energy perfectly with his physical power. At last, the final piece of black crystal broke away from the shell, falling to the ground with a dull thud.

  Indeed, at the core of the black crystal lay a Celestial Drake egg, a ten-thousand-year-old egg that had never shown any sign of hatching.

  As for whether this egg belonged to a pure-blood Celestial Drake, Ryan was not certain.

  All he knew was that he had been guarding and incubating this egg for a full ten thousand years, yet it had never shown any sign of hatching.

  "Finally, I see you again. I've missed you so much!" Ryan let go of all his previous caution and impatience.

  He carefully lifted the dazzling egg before him, its shell rippling with intertwined waves of pale blue, and pressed it to his face, showering it with frantic kisses.

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  This egg was the obsession and bond that had carried him across two lifetimes.

  "Grimoire, start the incubation program immediately!" Ryan urged anxiously in his mind.

  He clearly remembered that ten thousand years ago, incubating a Celestial Drake egg required an astronomical amount of Origin Value, a number so long he could no longer recall all the zeros.

  Now, the required amount had drastically decreased, filling him with both surprise and urgency.

  【Host, confirm initiation of Celestial Drake egg incubation program? This incubation will consume 100000 Origin Value.】

  "You've changed? Didn't you always deduct the value directly before? Now you even ask for confirmation? Stop dithering and start already!"

  Ryan urged again. It was rare for Grimoire to act so considerate. If only it didn't consume any Origin Value, that would be perfect.

  【100000 Origin Value consumed. Celestial Drake egg incubation program activated. Host, please immediately drip your own blood onto the egg to complete the bloodline nourishment and bonding ritual.】

  Hearing Grimoire's prompt, Ryan did not hesitate. His right hand instantly transformed into a sharp metallic blade, and he lightly cut his left wrist.

  Crimson blood immediately flowed out, and he raised his hand to evenly pour it over the Celestial Drake egg's shell.

  As the blood slowly seeped into the shell, pure primordial energy from Grimoire flowed into the Celestial Drake egg, accelerating the development of the life within.

  The once temperature-stable egg began to heat rapidly, the scorching warmth spreading throughout the underground chamber, turning it into a blazing furnace.

  Ryan felt his skin almost being scorched. He quickly seized the egg before it reached its peak heat and sprinted toward the surface with all his strength.

  As soon as he burst from the tunnel, he placed the Celestial Drake egg on the ground.

  A spectral roar of a Celestial Drake erupted from the egg, shaking the heavens.

  In the next instant, a brilliant golden pillar of light shot down from the clouds, precisely targeting the egg on the ground.

  "What is this?" Ryan's eyes widened, shock written across his face.

  He could clearly sense that the pillar contained dense power of the world's laws, an irresistible force of suppression. This was clearly the trial imposed by the world's will upon the birth of a high-level magical beast.

  The life inside the Celestial Drake egg seemed to sense a provocation. Unwilling to yield, it erupted with energy.

  Seething heat burst from the egg, followed by a pure golden pillar of dragon might, colliding violently with the law pillar descending from the sky.

  The two spectral waves of terrifying energy clashed in midair, producing light so intense that it could blind ordinary people.

  Ryan quickly turned his back, tightly shut his eyes, and channeled all his magic to his body surface to form a protective barrier. He was too close; even a slight misstep could have caused severe injury.

  After a few minutes, Ryan sensed the energy fluctuations behind him gradually subside. Only then did he slowly turn and open his eyes to look at the Celestial Drake egg.

  "Is it about to hatch?" Ryan took a bold step toward the egg.

  The once flawless shell was now covered with fine cracks, faint waves of dragon might leaking through.

  At that moment, he suddenly felt a terrifying aura far surpassing the previous law suppression rapidly approaching.

  Ryan's face turned pale, his only thought: Run!

  Ryan scooped up the Celestial Drake egg that was still crackling and turned to flee at full speed, a new round of desperate escape beginning once more.

  He knew all too well that the phenomena triggered by the hatching had been massive. Without a doubt, powerful figures from the surrounding regions were already rushing this way, leaving him no time for hesitation.

  Whether they were backup scrolls or emergency ones, Ryan activated every magic scroll he had without the slightest restraint.

  Brilliant magical light patterns flared around his body one after another, his figure flickering like a phantom as he shot across an unknown distance in moments. Even so, he did not dare slow down for even an instant.

  The disturbance caused by the suppression of world laws would absolutely draw the attention of Elder Mage level existences.

  After all, anything capable of triggering the will of the world would stir even a mere magic apprentice, let alone true powerhouses, who would come at any cost to investigate.

  The Celestial Drake egg clutched tightly in Ryan's arms suddenly split open with a tiny crack.

  A round, heavy looking golden eye peeked out from the opening, brimming with curiosity as it surveyed the outside world. After a few seconds, it withdrew again.

  Next, a pair of small golden drake claws emerged, pawing at the crack in the shell. The more it scratched, the wider the opening became.

  A small drake head patterned with intertwined pink and blue markings poked out first, two tiny faintly glowing horns perched atop its head, looking endearingly clumsy.

  Hearing the movement, Ryan glanced down while still running at full speed, meeting the little drake's gaze. Man and drake locked eyes.

  "Dad… Dad."

  The little drake blinked its watery, sparkling eyes, its small mouth moving as it spoke.

  The voice sounded like that of a five year old child, soft and sweet, instantly easing some of the exhaustion of the escape.

  Ryan froze on the spot in disbelief. The little drake had not even fully emerged from the shell yet, and it was already calling him Dad. This was completely beyond his expectations.

  After a brief moment of shock, Ryan snapped back to his senses and pushed off the ground harder, forcing his speed to its absolute limit.

  Long before the Celestial Drake egg had hatched, he had already regarded it as a future companion. To foster closeness, he had always referred to himself as Dad whenever he spoke to the egg.

  He never imagined that the little drake inside could actually hear him, let alone remember that title.

  But the situation left him no room to dwell on it. The most urgent task was to reach a place of absolute safety as quickly as possible.

  A crisp cracking sound echoed out, making Ryan's heart jolt as he hurriedly looked down again.

  The little drake was no longer scratching at the shell with its claws. Instead, it lowered its head and began gnawing directly on the broken shell.

  The small drake chewed on the shell bite by bite, looking adorably clueless as it ate.

  Ryan sprinted nonstop while the little drake munched away, the rapid footfalls and crisp chewing sounds intertwining and echoing clearly across the empty wilderness.

  Two days later, Ryan bent over with his hands braced on his knees, gasping for breath as his stomach churned violently, on the verge of throwing up.

  For the past two days, he had been fleeing at full capacity without pause, and the magic power in his body had long since been completely drained.

  Even his magically tempered, resilient physique was reaching its limit. Standing still, his legs trembled uncontrollably.

  He had run without stopping for two full days, all while holding the Celestial Drake egg the entire time.

  Now it could no longer be called an egg. The shell had been completely eaten halfway through the journey by the little fellow.

  After finishing, it clung to his chest, calling him Dad again and again.