Chapter 82: Primordial Ancient Dragon Blood Awakens Her Sister! The Dead Return to Life, and an SS-Rank Hero Is Recruited!

Chapter 82: Chapter 82: Primordial Ancient Dragon Blood Awakens Her Sister! The Dead Return to Life, and an SS-Rank Hero Is Recruited!

"Get DOWN!"

[Radiant Judgment!]

A fifty-meter-long blade of silver-white light came crashing down, striking Vira’s crystal wings from behind.

Just before the sword landed, Bladeborne’s wrist hesitated almost imperceptibly.

But when the corner of his eye caught sight of the blood still seeping from Ophelia’s back, and he saw Vira’s completely expressionless face, he gritted his teeth and unleashed his full strength.

The strike carried damage equivalent to 500 times his Attack, brutally cleaving halfway through the base of Vira’s right wing.

-36,400! (Critical Hit)

Vira let out a piercing shriek.

A massive cloud of luminous particles burst from her severed wing as her body plummeted toward the ground.

Arno was already waiting below.

His white hood fluttered wildly in the rushing air. Just before Vira hit the ground, he silently emerged from the shadow behind her.

[Lethal Backstab!]

As his curved blade reached that familiar joint between the crystal feathers, Arno’s hand trembled.

For an instant, an image flashed through his mind.

Hundreds of years ago, a little girl had gritted her teeth and practiced drawing her blade over and over again.

Arno took a deep breath, forcibly swallowing the emotions welling up inside him.

His curved blade plunged into the gap at the base of Vira’s left wing.

The attack unleashed 1,000-fold critical damage, along with defense-ignoring True Damage, piercing straight through to the opposite wing.

-33,638! (True Damage)

Vira struggled and shrieked.

With her right wing half-severed and her left wing pinned in place, her body was firmly locked to the ground, unable to move.

Ophelia plunged down from the sky, folded her dragon wings, and landed swiftly in front of Vira.

She didn’t continue attacking.

Instead, Ophelia extended her right hand and drew her dragonbone rapier across the palm of her left hand.

"You!"

"Ophelia, what are you doing?!"

John and Raistlin shouted simultaneously.

Crimson dragon blood poured from the wound, dripping between Ophelia’s fingers.

She ignored them both.

Crouching down, she pressed her palm against the center of Vira’s chest. Her five fingers pierced through the crystal shell, and scorching Primordial Ancient Dragon blood poured directly into Vira’s chest.

"Vira!"

Blood-red patterns spread wildly across Vira’s crystalline shell, radiating outward from Ophelia’s palm.

The patterns climbed from her chest to her neck, cheeks, and the corners of her eyes, eventually converging on the two blue, wing-shaped markings.

Dragon Blood Infusion. Bloodline Awakening.

One of the innate abilities of the Primordial Ancient Dragon race.

By making direct contact with the bloodline of another member of the same race through dragon blood, the user could forcibly awaken sealed ancestral memories or establish bloodline suppression.

However, there was one prerequisite.

The target had to belong to the same race.

Vira’s entire body began trembling violently.

The crimson patterns spreading across her crystal shell clashed fiercely with the water-blue light, intertwining and struggling against each other.

Her mouth opened, but no sound came out.

Her pure white eyes flickered between brightness and darkness.

Under the relentless flow of crimson dragon blood, the blue wing-shaped markings at the corners of her eyes gradually began to fade.

Then, the markings disappeared completely.

The pure white light in her eyes began melting like ice, fading from the center outward.

Beneath it emerged a pair of golden vertical pupils, identical to Ophelia’s.

The crystals covering her wings also began falling away piece by piece, revealing soft, water-blue feathers underneath.

Vira’s expression gradually changed.

From emptiness to confusion, from confusion to bewilderment.

Finally, her eyes focused on Ophelia’s face.

"Sister...?"

Ophelia’s hand was still pressed against her chest. Dragon blood continued flowing from the wound, and her lips trembled.

Vira’s gaze shifted slightly.

She saw Arno standing nearby.

"Master...?"

Arno’s expression remained unchanged, although that was only if one ignored how tightly his entire body was tensed.

Ophelia finally couldn’t hold back anymore.

She withdrew her hand, dropped to her knees, and gently lifted Vira from the ground, pulling her into her embrace.

"Vira, it’s me. It’s me. Your sister is here."

Vira coughed several times, spitting out mouthfuls of blood.

Water-blue blood mixed with luminous particles spilled from the corners of her mouth, staining Ophelia’s silver-white hair.

"Sister..."

Vira leaned against her shoulder, her voice breaking into fragments.

"I’m sorry... Your hand... You’re not angry with me, are you?"

Ophelia looked down at her.

Her dark golden vertical pupils were filled with tears as she desperately shook her head.

"No. No, I’m not."

Vira slowly raised her hand and gently touched Ophelia’s cheek, wiping it with her fingers.

"That’s good... I’m... so tired..."

Her voice grew softer and softer.

Her arm slowly slipped from Ophelia’s face and fell limply to the ground.

Her fingers no longer moved.

[Ding!]

[Congratulations! You have cleared the hidden independent dungeon "Brotherhood Headquarters (Hell Mode)!"]

[Achievement Unlocked: First Player on the Entire Server to Clear a Hidden Dungeon on Hell Mode!]

[First-Clear Rewards Being Distributed...]

One system notification after another rang out.

But nobody paid attention to them.

Instead, a heartbreaking sob filled the air.

"No! Vira... Vira..."

"Please... Don’t..."

"Back then, I was wrong... I shouldn’t have... Please wake up..."

"Whatever you wanted to learn, I would have taught you..."

"After finally... finally finding you..."

...

THUD!

Arno suddenly dropped to his knees, as though all the strength had left his body.

His white hood hung low, concealing his face, but his shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

Bladeborne stood silently to one side, his longsword hanging at his side. For a moment, he didn’t know what to do.

John clenched his palm so tightly that his fingernails dug into his skin.

His mind raced desperately.

"No... Think. There has to be a way."

"A Hero Recruitment Scroll? No, she’s a Boss."

"Wait!"

John suddenly thought of something.

He immediately rushed over to Ophelia and knelt beside her.

When Ophelia raised her head again, her face was streaked with tears, and her lips were marked with bloody bite wounds.

She looked at John with tear-filled eyes.

The once aloof Dragon Queen now looked just like a little girl who had lost her way, completely helpless.

"My Lord..."

John took a deep breath.

He had never seen Ophelia like this before.

Looking into her reddened eyes, he couldn’t help feeling a pang of sympathy.

He deliberately softened his voice and spoke gently.

"Don’t panic. Give her to me. I might have a way."

Hope immediately appeared in Ophelia’s eyes.

She quickly freed one hand and grabbed John’s arm tightly.

"My Lord... Please, my Lord... I’m begging you... Save her... Please save her..."

John nodded.

He reached out and carefully took Vira from her arms.

Then he raised his hand, and a purple-blue light began glowing in his palm.

[Styx Ferry]

He had only just learned this skill and had never used it before.

It could resurrect any unit below the Divine Rank.

Although Vira had been modified through sanctification, John believed that her fundamental nature was still rooted in the bloodline of the Primordial Ancient Dragons.

She should therefore fall within the skill’s range.

Regardless, he had to try.

John took Vira’s limp hand.

Then he activated the skill.

Purple-blue necromantic light spilled from his palm, intertwining with the water-blue energy surrounding Vira.

The two colors alternately brightened and dimmed.

Several seconds passed.

Then ten.

Finally, the purple-blue light swallowed the last traces of water-blue radiance and merged into Vira’s chest.

Vira’s body suddenly trembled.

The instant she opened her eyes, her golden vertical pupils transformed into water-blue ones.

At the center of each pupil, a flickering wisp of ghostly purple soul flame appeared.

[Ding!]

[Styx Ferry successfully activated!]

[Congratulations, Lord "Tyrant"! You have obtained an SS-Rank Hero: Vira!]