Chapter 1195: 182. Descent

“You......”

The pure-white blade appeared in an instant, without any warning. Morton subconsciously reached out to block it, but Muen’s movements were clearly faster. The instant he raised his hand, the blade had already pressed against his vulnerable neck.

Morton sensed the threat of death, and his body instinctively reacted. But the battle aura had only just surged when it directly collapsed before that absolute sharpness. His entire body immediately froze completely, not daring to make any movement.

“How could this......” Morton looked horrified.

As the highest administrator of this city, his strength was naturally not weak. Even Muen had been somewhat surprised by the powerful aura he had released around himself just now. Under normal circumstances, it would have been absolutely impossible for him to be controlled in a single exchange.

Unfortunately, in this “carefree place,” Morton had clearly never suffered a sudden attack from an enemy. No, it should be said that he had never even encountered an “enemy.” He had absolutely no vigilance in this regard...... Even though he had immediately guessed Muen’s identity as an outsider just now, he had not had the slightest thought of striking first.

“Don’t be nervous. I have no intention of hurting you. If you can relax a little, I won’t need to hold the blade so close.”

Muen quickly sealed the other party’s battle aura while putting the magic-sealing shackles he had taken from Celicia’s prison onto him, giving him absolutely no opportunity to counterattack.

In terms of combat experience, the difference between the two of them was clearly as vast as heaven and earth.

“You attacked directly without even issuing a challenge......”

Having lost most of his power, Morton’s face turned livid, and his entire body trembled with anger:

“As expected of an evil outsider. What despicable methods!”

“A challenge? This isn’t a gentleman’s duel for the sake of stealing a woman. Let’s forget about that kind of troublesome thing.”

Muen put Elizabeth away and returned to his seat, looking at the Proxy with a smile that was not quite a smile:

“Returning to the topic from just now, who did Mr. Morton think had the advantage again?”

“You...... What exactly do you want to do?”

After his anger, Morton quickly calmed down. Even though both his body and power had been restrained, there was not the slightest sign of submission on his resolute face:

“If you merely want to use me to accomplish some evil purpose, then I advise you to immediately give up on that idea. Even if I die, I will never allow evil people like you to destroy New Tars!”

“Destroy? Please don’t casually put such a terrifying label on my head, all right? Where I come from, I am a famous good man throughout the surrounding towns and villages, the kind praised by everyone.”

Muen sighed. He knew that no matter how he explained his purpose, the man before him probably would not believe him. Those survivors...... those great heroes of New Tars, their image had become too deeply rooted in people’s hearts. As an outsider, it was fundamentally impossible for him to casually shake it.

Not to mention that his current behavior really did follow the standard villain template.

“Don’t worry. I’m not as frightening as you imagine. Just as I said earlier, I merely want Mr. Morton to serve as my hostage for a little while.”

“Hostage?” Morton looked completely confused, clearly not understanding.

“Ah...... Would ‘puppet’ be more appropriate? Or perhaps ‘marionette’?” Muen thought for a moment. “Mm, actually, generally speaking, I merely hope to use Mr. Morton’s identity to help me do a few things.”

“Use my identity...... as Proxy?” Morton’s pupils contracted.

“It seems you’re not entirely stupid.”

Muen smiled while his gaze shifted slightly downward, looking at what Morton had just been writing and drawing.

It was a planning document for constructing an enormous new amusement park in the city, for the city’s residents to entertain themselves and play.

“What a beautiful city. No hunger, no poverty, and even less crime. You don’t even need the two words ‘public security.’ Instead, they are replaced by the broader concept of ‘guarding.’”

Muen picked up the planning document and carefully flipped through it.

Judging from those figures, the amusement park was extremely large, probably ten times the size of the one he had once built for Ariel.

Construction on such a massive scale clearly required mobilizing enormous manpower and resources. Yet in the section for the construction period, there were only three short months.

“Fortunately, even such a peaceful place has the most basic administrative organizational structure. It even appears that the power this structure can exert is not small. As long as I have this, things will become much more convenient.”

“What exactly do you want to do?”

Morton struggled forcefully and gritted his teeth:

“No matter what, I will absolutely never obey you. You want me to become your tool? Absolutely impossible!”

“It seems Mr. Morton...... No, the respected Proxy of New Tars still has not understood one thing.” Muen said lightly.

“What?” Morton froze.

“Although I used the word ‘please.’”

Muen raised his eyes, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared:

“The Proxy does not have the option of choosing.”

“......”

That tone was not harsh.

It was like a casual conversation between old friends, and Muen had not deliberately applied intimidation.

Yet Morton’s eyes widened somewhat fearfully at that moment.

Because in that instant, he truly felt a terrifying presence spreading from the outsider before him. It was not the aura released by powerful battle aura or magic, but something else, something he could not understand, yet which made him tremble even more.

And it was precisely this presence that made him not dare to doubt the words spoken by this outsider.

Did he truly have the ability to leave him with no choice? Could he truly make him become his puppet, his marionette?

But...... on what basis?

He was only one person.

Even though Morton had been controlled because of his carelessness, he already did not even care about death. What could Muen possibly use to threaten him?

Could it be...... that he still had some hidden card?

Morton’s mind became chaotic. Although he lacked experience in this regard, he was not stupid. Therefore, a terrifying conjecture gradually took shape in his mind.

“Could it be......”

Morton slowly turned around.

Boom!

Almost in that exact instant, thunder suddenly resounded. Blood-colored lightning flashed like a spiderweb across the sky, violently awakening the city submerged in absolute beauty.

Shadows gradually enveloped all of New Tars. The light of the magic stones seemed to be swallowed by something. Morton raised his head and looked through the window, seeing an enormous figure tear apart some kind of invisible thing in an instant and, in a posture that he could not describe even if he exhausted his imagination......

Descend!

The sky seemed to be directly and violently twisted apart, revealing the churning fog behind it. But that scene lasted only for an instant, because winding shadows rapidly erased the cracks, leaving only an afterimage above the city.

The entire city began to tremble. Morton felt himself becoming somewhat unsteady. The thought of an earthquake subconsciously appeared in his mind, but he immediately realized that the source of the trembling did not come from the ground.

It came from above.

From the thing that had descended.

—Only when the ear-splitting sound of breaking through the air transformed into a thunderous roar, and the enormous and ferocious figure approached at an extremely rapid speed, did Morton’s mind, thrown into chaos by this terrifying sight, finally realize exactly what kind of existence the thing that had descended was.

“A dragon?”

Morton heard a strained sound emerge from his own throat, like two rusted pieces of iron rubbing against each other.

Wings that covered the sky, sharp claws that tore apart the earth, and that posture in which ferocity and strange beauty were intertwined.

He could not be mistaken...... He absolutely could not be mistaken!

He knew too clearly what that was, and understood that terrifying creature far too well...... Ever since New Tars was established, everything about that evil dragon had entered deeply into the hearts of every person of New Tars through the telling of those stories.

And now, the evil dragon had truly come. It circled above the city, like a funeral bell ringing again and again.

“So that’s how it is......”

Morton took a deep breath, forcing his gaze away from the evil dragon. He lowered his head and looked at Muen nearby, gritting his teeth as he said:

“Is this your confidence? Running dog of the evil dragon!”

“......”

However, Muen was covering his face.

“Sorry...... This is rather embarrassing. That person descended faster than I imagined, and her posture was also more...... fierce than I imagined. Even I was slightly frightened. I originally did not want to do this.”

“Mm?”

“But forget it. It is actually the same.”

Muen sighed softly, then once again recovered that intensely oppressive appearance from just now:

“Mr. Morton, as you can see, you currently do not have any room to choose. Helping me complete a few things will be good for you, for me, and for all of New Tars.”

“What if I am still unwilling?”

“Then...... we can only communicate through some methods that none of us particularly like.” Muen pointed upward. “Let me remind you of one thing. Unlike me, a gentle and good man, that person has a very bad temper and very little patience.”

“......”

Morton fell silent, as though thinking.

Muen did not urge him, because he knew that Miss Dragon’s sudden descent would inevitably bring an enormous shock to the Proxy.

Although it had not been part of the plan, it could still be considered......

“Ha.”

“??” Muen blinked, thinking that he had misheard.

Unfortunately, he had not.

“Hahahahaha!!”

Morton, who had still appeared extremely frightened and furious because of Muen’s coercion and the giant dragon’s descent just now, suddenly threw his head back and laughed loudly.

His laughter was incomparably unrestrained.

“Ridiculous! Truly ridiculous!”

“???”

“Outsider, this posture of yours, as though everything is under your control, is truly ridiculous beyond measure!”

“What do you mean?” Muen frowned, secretly wondering whether this guy had gone mad from fright. Should he go over and slap him to make him sober up? It was rather frightening. ℴ

“Do you truly think you can control me so easily? Do you truly think that once the evil dragon descends, we of New Tars will obediently stretch out our necks and wait to be slaughtered?”

Morton’s entire aura suddenly changed. Even though he was still in this restrained state, his entire person seemed like a general about to step onto the battlefield. He became radiant, directly appearing ten years younger.

“You have underestimated me, and you have also underestimated New Tars!! The great heroes predicted the evil dragon’s return long ago. How could we possibly not have made preparations in advance?”

“What preparations?” Muen seemed to realize something. His bear-like body shook, and he looked incredulous.

“Hmph, watch!”

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

The moment Morton finished speaking, numerous figures suddenly rose from the city, fearlessly charging toward the giant dragon in the sky!

For a moment, all kinds of auras suddenly erupted from the originally quiet city. Mixed together, they forcibly pushed back the pressure produced by the giant dragon’s descent.

“This is......” Muen’s eyes widened.

“Hahaha...... Do you understand now?”

Looking at Muen’s gradually horrified expression, Morton laughed even more heartily:

“Ever since this city was established, we have always been preparing for the evil dragon’s descent. ‘The Yellow-Haired Villain in Soaring Phoenix’s Novels Also Desires Happiness’ is causing a reading craze on Tianyu Literature. Haven’t you read it yet?

Over all these years, we have long since cultivated a group of top-tier experts! Individually, they are completely insufficient before that evil dragon, but if they join forces......”

Morton raised both hands and pointed toward the dragon shadow circling in the sky, saying with complete confidence:

“They are enough to slay a dragon!”