Chapter 27: Nephilis Caldera

Chapter 27: Chapter 27: Nephilis Caldera

​The Fire Clan was a major, undisputed power within Dragonia. Its sprawling estate was a marvelous gathering of towering red domes crafted from volcanic stone.

​Each dome was at least as massive as a five-story building, and hundreds of them dotted the landscape of the Fire Clan’s territory.

​The supreme leader of this fiery utopia was Lord Ignis.

​Every single dragon in the territory obeyed Lord Ignis as if he were a living god.

​Currently, Lord Ignis was resting in his human form. Shifting into a humanoid body was an innate trait belonging strictly to the most elite dragon bloodlines. The human form did not provide them with any special combat power or stat boosts, but it was incredibly useful solely for convenience and spatial movement.

​In this form, Lord Ignis possessed the striking, flawless features of a tall, impeccably handsome model. Wearing a rich, flaming orange coat over his broad shoulders, his strong, muscular build still looked incredibly intimidating.

He was dragon who could destroy mountain and seas with ease.

​Yet, he now sat comfortably on his Emerald Fire throne, his sharp eyes passing over each and every subordinate present in the grand hall.

​Soon, his gaze locked onto the small, chubby figure of the red baby dragon, who was still sitting on the floor and shivering in terror.

​The fierce intensity in Lord Ignis’s eyes instantly softened, and a rare look of fondness crossed his face.

​"Little Xylin... You really should not have meddled with the ancient Teleportation Artifacts. Look at where this foolish mess led you. You were nearly hunted down by those filthy humans. If the worst had happened, your late father would have cursed me from the Soul Land."

Hearing the gentle berating, the little baby dragon sniffed as if she was wronged. In the next moment, she flawlessly transformed into a six or seven-year-old human girl.

​"I... I am completely innocent, Uncle. Brother Drakos pushed me into it. And that human boy, he is the worst. He was coming to eat me even though I haven’t done anything to him yet. He was very scary."

​​At the mention of Drakos, Lord Ignis pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed helplessly. Drakos was his own son, right around the exact same age as little Xylin. It was their usual, exhausting daily routine to bicker and quarrel with each other over the most trivial things.

​"Drakos, get over here right now!" he commanded with a very strict face.

​Immediately, a trembling figure stepped into the middle of the hall, just beside Xylin.

​"Is what Xylin said true?" Ignis asked, his whole figure radiating a draconic aura as an intimidation tactic.

Drakos trembled violently under the crushing pressure of his father’s aura. He was also in his human form, appearing as a young boy with messy, flame-red hair and tiny, budding horns on his forehead.

​"She is lying, Father! I did not push her at all! She is the one who wanted to sneak out and see if the human world had tastier snacks! I only opened the door to the artifact room!"

​"Liar! You totally tripped me!" Xylin shouted, stomping her little foot against the polished floor. "

​"I did not!"

​"You did!"

Lord Ignis closed his eyes and let out a long, exhausted sigh. He instantly retracted his suffocating aura. Leading the most powerful faction in Dragonia was incredibly easy, but dealing with these two toddlers was a completely different kind of nightmare.

​"Silence," Ignis wheezed.

​The single word reverberated with undeniable authority. Both children snapped their mouths shut and stood perfectly at attention, not daring to breathe too loudly.

​Ignis rubbed his temples before looking up at his royal guards.

"This human boy that Xylin mentioned. Where is he?"

​One of the guards wearing a crimson armor replied, "My Lord, the carrier Gorden intercepted the human at the portal exit. He is currently transporting the prisoner to the Nephilis Caldera. Since the human dared to attack the Princess, he has been sentenced to the special trials."

​Ignis narrowed his eyes, thinking. An ordinary human child shouldn’t have the courage to go after a dragon Princess. He should take a look, just in case.

​"Prepare my carriage, I will oversee this human’s trial personally."

"As your wish, my lord."

---

Krono found himself standing inside a massive, pitch-black prison. This was not a cramped cage, but an expansive desolate realm where light barely dared to exist.

​The moment he took his first step, a bone-chilling cold clawed at his skin. The temperature was so unnaturally low that his flesh felt as though it were freezing solid on his bones.

​But the freezing cold was not the worst part. Echoing through the void was a haunting melody that forced Krono to remember true fear for the very first time in this new life.

​It was a distant, harrowing sound of absolute emptiness and profound loss. It felt as if darkness itself were playing a mournful song, while light acted as nothing more than an occasional fragile intruder.

Exhausted and starving, Krono slumped down to the ground, leaning his back against a solid, unseen object in the dark.

​He closed his eyes, replaying the chaotic events that had led him to this pitch-black prison.

​Only one bitter conclusion came to his mind.

​His own blinding greed and sheer foolishness had brought him here.

​He had been so desperate to devour the baby dragon that he completely ignored his surroundings, sprinting blindly into enemy territory.

​Then, the moment he stepped through the portal, he was confronted by a fifty-meter-tall behemoth.

​A massive green dragon.

​He had unloaded every single skill and ability in his arsenal at the colossal creature, but his attacks barely scratched its scales. Despite being nothing more than a lowly carrier beast, its raw stats were astronomically higher than his own.

Bang!

​One casual swipe of its massive paw had slammed Krono straight into the dirt, forcing a violent spray of blood from his lungs.

​Instantly recognizing the insurmountable gap in their power, Krono had swallowed his pride and wisely surrendered.

​And now, here he was. Trapped inside a frozen abyss known as the Nephilis Caldera. A cursed land filled with nothing but shattered skulls and suffocating darkness.

​How was he going to survive this?