The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

“So, why is that?”

“Why don’t the rocks formed by the agglomeration of magic power disappear?” Granney stirred the fragments on the table with his hand, “Your question is too broad, just like questioning how dragons can produce gemstones and metals, and why elves can cultivate plants, it concerns the essence of the world. I can only tell you my understanding.”

“Please do.”

“Spirit, material, magic power, they form a triangle.”

“Of course, you’ve told me many times.”

“It’s not immutable, or rather, spirit and material can have a dual influence on magic power. Spirit can influence magic power into becoming material, and material can also affect magic power to generate spirit… Casters, with their own spirit, create magic, forming material; material combined with magic power, in turn, forms…”

He paused before continuing, “Dragons, elves, that’s how I believe they came to be.”

Liszt glanced at Granney, somewhat surprised by this fresh idea—dragons and elves originating from the combination of magic power with material.

Before Liszt could voice his doubts,

Granney explained on his own: “This is just speculation, Baron Liszt, not based on a foundation of Truth, so it’s best forgotten after hearing it. I will not admit that this set of ideas originated from me. Magicians pursue truth and despise lies.”

He nodded.

Liszt did not dwell on it and changed the subject: “I’ve seen the Elf Bug’s reproductive process many times, yet I know nothing of a dragon’s breeding. Do you know?”

“I don’t know about dragon breeding, I’m just a magician, I’ve never even seen a dragon,” Granney’s tone carried a hint of regret, “However, I can recommend you a book, ‘Dragonlance Chronicles: Dragons of Autumn Twilight’ by the great Archmage, Odom Truth. It has a detailed introduction to dragons.”

“Do you have the book with you?”

“No, in fact, I don’t own the book. I only browsed through it when I was young, serving as a magic apprentice under my teacher. It was part of my teacher’s collection, and in his quest for Truth and greater knowledge, he has travelled to the mainland. I haven’t seen him for many years.”

Without the book, Liszt could only ask Granney to narrate its contents to him.

Speaking a few words for money, Granney naturally wouldn’t refuse and immediately recounted what he remembered.

“Young dragons before the age of one hundred are the easiest to capture. It is said that most Dragon Knights cultivate a bond during the dragon’s youth, enabling dragon riding. From one hundred to eight hundred years old, adult dragons reach their peak period for producing gems and mineral deposits, with dragon blood, dung, saliva, breath, scales, and might, all capable of infecting the surroundings and forming mineral deposits.”

After eight hundred years come the elderly dragons.

Most elderly dragons leave their dwellings during this time to head for the “Valley of Dragons,” a mythical place.

“Some say the Valley of Dragons is in the Devil’s Sea, others say it’s in the Whirlpool Sea, and there are those who say it’s on Mount Mulagao Ding, but no one has seen it; it’s a legendary place. Dragons bury themselves in the Valley of Dragons. They do not die but rather become one with the world, to be reborn as dragons after countless years.”

Dragons are categorized into three types.

Elemental Dragons, Gemstone Dragons, Metal Dragons.

Metal Dragons can infect metal ores like gold, silver, copper, iron, aluminum. ‘Dragonlance History: Dragons of Autumn Twilight’ records twenty-three types of Metal Dragons.

“Brass Dragons, Bronze Dragons, Purple Copper Dragons, White Copper Dragons, White Maw Iron Dragons, Malleable Cast Iron Dragons, Grey Iron Dragons, White Heart Iron Dragons, Black Heart Iron Dragons, Golden Dragons, Platinum Dragons, Silver Dragons, Mercury Dragons… These are roughly the types of Metal Dragons I remember.”

Gemstone Dragons can infect gemstone mines and are broadly categorized into blue, red, yellow, and green.

Like the Sapphire Dragon, Ruby Dragon, and others such as the Azure Sapphire Dragon, Crimson Gem Dragon, Light Green Emerald Dragon, etc. The gemstones produced by the Gemstone Dragons possess extraordinary magical powers and are even more valuable than those of the Metal Dragons. However, their production is not as high as that of the Metal Dragons.

Most of the Elemental Dragons are Evil Dragons, embodiments of the elements themselves. A Fire Dragon can infect a volcano, a Water Dragon can infect a swamp, a Wind Dragon can conjure storms, an Earth Dragon can raise mountains, and so on.

“Archmage Odom Truth once battled a Wind Dragon, his blood drenched the entire plain. Now that place is called Windhowl Valley, located in the Neverfall Empire, where fierce winds blow endlessly throughout the year. Countless magicians who specialize in the Wind System aspire to visit Windhowl Valley, to feel the magic power engraved by the Wind Dragon.”

Liszt was brimming with interest, “How many years ago did this happen?”

“Based on the era in which Archmage Odom Truth lived, it should have been about four thousand years ago, at that time, the Neverfall Empire didn’t even exist.”

The Neverfall Empire has a history of only three thousand years.

“For four thousand years, the magic power of the Wind Dragon in Windhowl Valley has not dissipated?”

“Yes, that’s the power of Dragons. They possess the ability to change the world. Unfortunately, even Archmages find it difficult to peer into such mysteries.” Granney shook his head, his regret apparent.

Liszt was equally astonished.

He had read many Knight novels that described dragons, all of which seemed to be made up—portraying dragons as nearly divine creators, yet with intelligence comparable to that of a small dog.

The records left by Archmages are very credible, and the magic power of the Wind Dragon has indeed not dissipated in four thousand years.

This revelation left him dazzled and eager to rush to Windhowl Valley immediately to observe with his own Eye of Magic, to discern what was different about the Wind Dragon’s magical power.

After a moment.

His eyes flickered slightly as he casually asked, “Mr. Granney, in the Knight novels I have read, some authors have mentioned a category of dragons beyond the Elemental, Metal, and Gemstone ones, known as Sacred Dragons?”

“I have heard of Sacred Dragons too, but ‘Dragonlance History: Dragons of Autumn Twilight’ makes no mention of them; that’s just nonsense spun by novelists. I don’t like reading Knight novels; they’re all made up, they defy Truth and are lies!” Granney said with disdain when it came to Knight novels.

“Can you tell me about Sacred Dragons? I’ve only read about one kind in a book, the Formless Dragon.”

“Those authors invented five kinds of Sacred Dragons,” said Granney, his disdain didn’t prevent him from being well-informed: “The Immortal Dragon, which represents life, grants one eternal life—very fake; The Twilight Dragon, which represents time, can stop time, I don’t see the use of that; The Jade Dragon, representing dreams, can enter into dreams. I’ve seen jade, it’s a kind of gemstone, what does that have to do with dragons?”

He continued his disdainful remarks.

Liszt, however, listened very earnestly.

“The Formless Dragon, representing space, can produce Space Rings, akin to a ring that can hold many things—a concept as ridiculous as my cup holding an elephant; and lastly, the Smoke Dragon, representing destiny. According to the Knight novels I’ve read, it’s described as a wisp of smoke—I find that imaginative.”

After he finished talking about the five Sacred Dragons, Granney concluded with scorn: “No one has ever seen a Sacred Dragon with their own eyes, and no country possesses such dragons. They are just figments of the imagination by those who have never seen a dragon—dreamt up in their dreams at night… There’s nothing more to discuss, let’s continue talking about magic.”

“Of course,” responded Liszt absentmindedly.

However, inside his head, a gigantic wave had already surged.

The Smoke Dragon, representing destiny!

A wisp of smoke!

The Smoke Mission!