Vorder raised his hand to the sky, creating a rotating magic sigil in midair. The sigil spun like a gateway, releasing streams of dark energy that shot forward like serpents toward Nash. The BloodClaw chieftain agilely dodged them all, letting the streams crash into the ground, leaving deep, round craters. Nash gripped his blade tightly, slashing through one of the energy streams, then leapt into the air, aiming to deliver a fatal blow to Vorder. But how could a “Shadow” allow himself to be approached so easily? A powerful surge of Will, many times stronger than gravity, pressed down on Nash’s body, slamming him hard into the ground. From the dirt and dust, Nash struggled to crawl out, only to witness his companion the Wolf King being bitten savagely in the neck by Mulock.

  The wolf howled in pain, thrashing desperately to break free, but Mulock’s massive body dwarfed it. He lifted it off the ground effortlessly, the wolf’s struggles only making the blood gush more violently from its wound.

  “Damn you! Let it go!” Nash’s eyes turned crimson. The chieftain quickly activated his own Ability. His short, stout body began to swell with frenzied muscle, each fiber hard and sculpted like stone. His body flared with a blazing red aura. Rash launched himself toward Mulock at a blinding speed, his feet crushing the earth beneath, leaving a massive crater behind.

  Boom! Rash swung his blade, slashing Mulock aside. The strike left a deep gash across the black wolf’s body. Caught off guard, Mulock was unable to defend and was hurled away, his jaws releasing the barely breathing Wolf King.

  “Are you all right, my friend?” Nash stroked the blood-soaked white fur gently, his voice trembling with care. The wolf could only let out a few faint whimpers; sorrow clouded its eyes. It knew its time was near. Rash watched helplessly as his companion, his partner in countless battles, slowly faded away. Rage consumed him. From his pouch, he drew a crimson badge.

  “The Leader’s Badge of the BloodClaw Tribe…”

  “You’ll pay for this, Writter!” Nash roared as the emblem emitted a faint red glow. His already enhanced body began to transform once more, muscles expanded grotesquely, bones shifting with a crang, crack! sound. Nash grew even larger, his figure now towering enough to rival the Wolf King himself.

  With monstrous strength, he gripped his blade and unleashed a slash of energy that hurtled toward Vorder, shattering the “Will” barrier and flinging him backward. In an instant, Nash lunged toward Mulock, delivering his strongest attack in his most powerful state.

  “Ultimate Skill: Frenzied Slash!”

  A storm of strikes from Rash tore into Mulock’s body, covering the black wolf with countless wounds. Its limbs were severed one by one. Though Mulock retreated quickly, he couldn’t escape the range of the assault. He could only twist aside to protect his head, avoiding a fatal blow.

  After the onslaught, Rash fell to his knees, panting heavily. White steam rose from his body as his massive form began to shrink, returning to its original shape. He was exhausted. Staring at the mangled black wolf before him, he prayed it would stay down. But to his bitter disappointment, even with its body torn and bleeding, the beast still struggled to rise. It quickly transformed back into human form, eyes filled with ferocity staring toward Nash. Threads of mana extended from its body, pulling the severed limbs together once more, reattaching them. “You’re quite strong, Nash! But this is where it ends. All your hopes have been extinguished.”

  Volder reappeared after the collision, his cloak torn to shreds, a deep wound carved across his chest. Yet he had not vanished; his body flickered ethereally before solidifying again. Nash’s strike had nearly caused him to dissipate completely, but fortunately, his staff had absorbed part of the impact in that critical moment otherwise, he truly would have been cut in two. Nash sighed; the enemy still had strength left, but his side had lost all fighting power. He looked toward Heria, lying breathless in a pool of blood, a spiked mace impaled through her abdomen, the barbs buried deep into her flesh. Hush had been poisoned by Heria’s dagger, his body covered with purplish veins; if not for his extraordinary resilience, the venom would have already rotted his flesh away.

  Mulock spat out a mouthful of black blood. He had one fatal flaw, he always had to put on clothes before saying anything in human form. Draping himself in the armor of an unfortunate soldier, Mulock finally let out a hearty laugh.

  “I am truly impressed by your final attack! Remarkable indeed. With only the power boost from the badge and your personal Ability, you managed to wound both me and Volder.”

  He slowly advanced toward Nash. The chieftain had long since fallen into despair; even the three of them combined could not defeat the Writter before them. The BloodClaw territory was finished. Once BloodClaw fell, Hesmor’s army would soon overrun the RhinoHorn territory as well.

  Mulock’s arm morphed into that of a giant bear; he grasped Nash’s head as if holding an orange in his palm. With a small exertion of strength, he could crush it in an instant.

  “Let him go.” A calm voice echoed by Mulock’s ear. “Hm?” Mulock turned toward the sound and saw a strange young man standing with folded arms on the back of a flying wyvern. The youth’s expression was serene, his face adorned with shimmering scales that lent him a demonic allure. The newcomer was none other than Drake, chieftain of the DragonScale tribe.

  Seeing Mulock remain motionless, Drake frowned; he despised sluggishness. “Did you not hear me? I said, let him go,” Drake’s voice grew sharp, heavy with menace.

  “Another chieftain come to die?” Mulock grinned with delight. The more the merrier, he didn’t mind at all.

  Mulock clenched his hand "crack!", Nash’s head was crushed, blood spraying across his palm. Mulock tossed the corpse aside, glaring mockingly at Drake. “What was that you said? I didn’t quite hear.”

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  Drake’s eyes grew cold, his killing intent radiating outward, chilling the air around them. He leapt from his wyvern high above and landed with a resounding boom!

  “Today, no one can save you. I’ll send you straight to hell.”

  Mulock clicked his tongue. These chieftains of Golden all thought themselves so powerful. He had just slain three of them even injured, one more wouldn’t make a difference. Mulock transformed into his black wolf form, baring his bloody jaws, ready to tear Drake apart. But Mulock was arrogant; he didn’t realize that the one before him stood on an entirely different level, a being far above all other chieftains of Golden. Drake casually drew his arm back, mana surging through it, veins bulging violently. Boom! His punch struck the black wolf’s jaws with tremendous force, shattering its face and twisting its muzzle out of shape. The beast was hurled away, crashing into the distance, trembling.

  “W-What… what is this…” Mulock struggled to stand, realizing he had reverted to human form without noticing. Through pain, he tried to reset the broken bones in his face. His expression darkened as he studied Drake, no Ability used, no skill, no badge, yet the man before him possessed terrifying strength. In some aspects, he might even rival an Emperor.

  “Too weak,” Drake said with disdain, his hands clasped arrogantly behind his back. Even Volder himself had been easily destroyed and dissolved by Drake’s pet though to be fair, he had already been severely injured.

  “Is that all you can do?” Drake asked mockingly.

  “That’s all?” Mulock sneered. Of course, that wasn’t all he had.

  “You think the Ability I sacrificed so much to obtain can only turn me into some petty beast, a chicken or a duck? I’ll show you the true reason I chose this power.”

  Mulock roared in fury. His body rapidly expanded, his forelimbs growing enormous, his frame covered with countless small spikes. His skeleton distorted like that of a primate; his skin turned black as obsidian, his body covered in gray fur. Two massive horns curved from his head like a bull’s, and his mouth widened, filled with rows of sharp fangs. His size blotted out the sky, nearly a hundred meters tall. Mulock bellowed in rage, the sound like a raging storm engulfing the battlefield. Countless soldiers turned their eyes toward him, filled with fear and despair.

  “An Epic-class monster…Behemoth - The Wrath of the Earth.”

  Drake was genuinely astonished. He hadn’t expected to see a Druid capable of transforming into an Epic-class beast. That alone made him a prodigy among prodigies, a once-in-a-millennium Druid.

  Excitement filled Drake’s eyes. In this era, there were few who could stand as his equals; rarely did he have the chance to truly enjoy the thrill of battle. Before him now was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. His eyes slowly transformed into those of a reptile. Scales spread across his body, two sharp horns emerged from his head, and a pair of wings tore through his back.

  “Ability: Dragonification.”

  The Ability “Dragonification” was the common trait of all DragonScale members, though the extent of transformation depended on their bloodline. At this moment, Drake had only partially transformed into a state known as “Half-Dragon Form.” In terms of size, Drake was no more than a mosquito compared to Mulock. Yet his strength was far from ordinary. Mulock raised his colossal fist and slammed it down toward Drake. Boom! The impact sent Drake crashing deep into the ground. Drake spat a mouthful of blood, yet his eyes gleamed with excitement, his body trembling in exhilaration. He shot back up and drove his fist into the massive beast. Though small, the punch unleashed a tremendous shockwave that sent the creature staggering backward.

  Boom! Boom! Boom! The battle raged fiercely, pure muscle and raw physical strength, no trace of magic involved. Mulock’s blows shattered the earth, each strike quaking the land like an earthquake. Every soldier nearby was annihilated, the death toll rivaling that caused by Nash himself. In contrast, no matter how many times Drake was smashed into the ground, he always rose again to retaliate. His body was riddled with wounds, bruises darkening his face, yet Drake charged in like a madman, indifferent to pain, relentless in his assault.

  “Impossible…” Mulock cursed under his breath. Drake’s stamina seemed endless; his regeneration was monstrous, minor wounds healed before one’s eyes. Mulock still hadn’t fully mastered this form. If the battle continued, it would be him who fell first. He wasn’t ready to die yet. He hadn’t drawn out the full potential of his Ability. He could still grow stronger; there was no need to throw his life away against this lunatic.

  A mysterious dark figure appeared on the battlefield. She took out a small vial of water and dropped a single droplet into Heria’s mouth, then did the same for both Hush and Nash. When she finished with all three, she vanished once again, taking the bodies of the three chieftains with her.

  Back at the ongoing battle nearby, Drake was furiously attacking Mulock. He could fight for three days and nights before exhausting his strength. His endurance and regeneration ability were so overwhelming that he stood in an invincible position. It was only a matter of time before he tore off the bastard’s head in front of him.

  “Leave now! Everything has been made clear! I will explain it all.” A voice suddenly echoed in Drake’s mind. The chieftain was suspicious. “Mys? She arrived here.” Drake turned around to look and realized that the bodies of the other chieftains had disappeared.

  Drake felt intrigued; whatever Mys had discovered was certainly extraordinary. Unlike the other tribes of Golden, DragonScale and NightWing were born for a noble mission, a sacred duty beyond meaningless wars. He didn’t care much about the battlefield at BloodClaw's territory.; whether they won or lost didn’t matter as long as it didn’t affect his tribe’s territory.

  “You’d better have a proper explanation,” Drake murmured.

  He glanced at Mulock with regret, then quickly spread his wings and flew away, leaving countless questions swirling in the pirate’s mind.

  “What happened! He really retreated?” Mulock frowned in confusion. He didn’t know what they were scheming, but if the fight was over, that was for the best. His body was exhausted after too many battles. The gigantic form disappeared, leaving behind a naked Mulock. The body of “Mullack” was filled with toxins, so he couldn’t use it again. Mulock couldn’t appear in this form anymore after all, he was one of the key culprits behind King Rumi’s murder.

  Thinking it over, Mulock decided it was best to return and report to Ceasar. The strength of the Dragon Scale chieftain was overwhelmingly superior. They needed to thoroughly reassess their strategy before taking further action.

  Far away from the battlefield, Drake landed and returned to his human form. Standing before him was Mys, cloaked entirely in black, along with the three corpses. Strangely, the bodies gradually became rosy again. Life was returning to them.

  “The ones who returned from death,” Drake nodded silently. Power like this was something even he coveted. That was also the reason he deeply feared the NightWing tribe. Mys silently looked at Drake. Her voice twisted and distorted strangely.

  “Our common enemy is Richer! Let Hesmor assist us. We will need them to hold off the forces at the capital and The Writter. Many lives have been lost; Richer has already obtained what he wanted.”

  Drake frowned in confusion. The army of Hesmor, though large, was not very strong. The only one who could be of help was that genius Druid from before, but even he wouldn’t make much difference. Mys seemed to understand Drake’s thoughts and shook her head gently.

  “Not that army. The one who can help us is in Allblack , a young boy named Exitus.”