Chapter 100: Move Forward!

“It’s time to go! Damn you, kid, hurry up! Do you want to die?” A furious roar came from ahead. Rod had grown tired of such roars by now and paid no attention to them at all.
After returning to Lilith’s cave that day, the group rested there for three full days. Ten thousand times gravity was still a heavy burden for Rod. Overcoming it was difficult, but fortunately, his strength had risen to the upper stage of the Saint level, and more than a year of adaptation meant it didn’t have a huge impact—far enough to allow him to move forward. According to Rod’s estimation, his current limit could be around fifteen thousand times gravity, of course, assuming he used all his strength to resist it!
As for Sognar, although he had resigned himself to following Lilith and Rod since that day, he hadn’t had a moment’s peace these past few days. He kept causing trouble for Rod whenever he had nothing to do, often trying to fight him. If not for Lilith’s interference, Rod wouldn’t know how many times he had fought this guy already.
This morning, under Lilith’s orders, the group finally set off. Due to the gravity, Rod naturally couldn’t compare to those two abnormal beings. His speed was the slowest, so he fell to the back. Seizing this opportunity, Sognar started provoking and roaring again, with his shouts echoing throughout the forest from time to time. Along the way, they encountered some powerful magical beasts. By now, the beasts they faced had reached the peak of the Saint level. Fighting against them was extremely difficult for Rod, while Lilith and Sognar, those heartless ones, just stood by and paid no attention at all!
The previous battle took nearly two hours. It wasn’t until Rod was completely exhausted that he, with the help of Fen Tian, managed to kill that damned six-tailed fox! Lilith called Rod’s plight “training,” while Sognar secretly rejoiced at seeing Rod suffer.

Regarding these matters, Rod had now seen things clearly. He knew that in the time to come, these two wouldn’t only fail to use their dragon power to drive away the monsters but would even attract them. What was worse, they wouldn’t take action and would just watch him suffer. No one else could be relied on. From now on, Rod could only rely on himself to persevere. Under ten thousand times gravity, his strength could only be utilized at less than 80% of its potential. The road ahead would be extremely difficult.

“Damn it!” With a fierce curse, Rod, gripping the Dark Dragon in his hand, struggled forward. The consumption of his combat energy made it increasingly difficult for him to move; his feet felt as heavy as lead, with every step being extremely burdensome.

Looking at the Dark Dragon in his hands, he showed a slight smile. Perhaps the transformations of the Dark Dragon were the most exciting thing for him! But on the other hand, he couldn’t help but worry. Rod fully believed what Lilith and Sognar had said—the Dark Dragon was definitely unusual, possibly hiding some hidden purpose. He had encountered the sword spirit within the Dark Dragon before; it was bloody and evil. That time, it said it needed three thousand drops of blood plus his own essence to break the seal, and then it would be fully restored. Now, most of it had been restored, and it was clear that the three thousand drops of blood were not far away. It might be completed in the next moment. Should he release it? Rod was also torn on this matter!

“You bastard kid, what are you thinking? Hurry up, do you hear me? Damn you! Are you going to help us or help them? If this continues, I won’t care about you anymore!” Sognar’s angry roar came again, tinged with impatience. Rod’s snail-like speed infuriated him!

“Go ahead if you want to leave. I’m not asking you to help me!” Even the most patient person eventually loses their temper. Exhaustion set in, and the hesitation and worries in his heart erupted under Sognar’s relentless urging. Rod began to fight back.

“Damn you, do you want to die? Do you know who you’re talking to? You’re talking to the noble Black Dragon Sognar! What kind of attitude is that?”

“I don’t care who you are. Don’t forget—now I’m your master. Your dragon soul is still in my hands. I control your life and death. If you want to live, stop making noise over there!” Rod said coldly, rolling his eyes.

“You… damn it…” Sognar, speechless from Rod’s words, widened his eyes and roared loudly, looking ready to attack at the slightest provocation.

“Alright, enough talking! Let’s end this matter here! Everyone, hurry up and leave. If you have the energy to argue, use it to fight that old guy instead! Sognar, don’t forget who he is!” Finally, Lilith, unable to stand by any longer, spoke up.

At the mention of that old guy, Sognar’s expression darkened instantly, and he fell silent, clearly troubled.

He was all too aware of how powerful that old guy was. Back in this void space, the dragon clan had sent six people to guard it, all of them strong members of their race. He was in charge of the first checkpoint, yet his strength was the weakest. Lilith was in charge of the second checkpoint, and her strength was on par with that of the old guy—perhaps even slightly inferior! This made Sognar extremely anxious. He had almost no chance against Lilith, let alone that old guy! And what about the other three even more monstrous beings behind that old guy?

Seeing Sognar’s distress, Rod also fell silent, his face expressionless. He knew the path ahead was extremely difficult and dangerous. Since he still needed to rely on this dark guy, he decided not to continue arguing.

……

“Lilith, Sognar… Heh, I never expected both of you to leave your posts. Have you forgotten your duties? Coming this way… It seems that little guy has quite some charm. I really want to see what he’s capable of. That familiar aura from back then must be his. It seems he’s from the demon race. What’s his connection to that person?” At that moment, from a cave about three kilometers away from Rod and the others, a faint voice echoed, as if reminiscing, murmuring to itself.

“It seems times are about to change. It’s been almost thirty years—thirty years without moving a muscle. It’s time to go out and get active! It seems your words from back then are about to come true. I wonder what those old guys will think. It doesn’t seem as simple as I thought!” At the same time, from an even deeper hillside, another faint voice murmured.

At that moment, several pairs of eyes in the forest were fixed on Rod and his group, each owner of those eyes having their own thoughts and motives. The once quiet forest became somewhat eerie, with hidden currents surging—a massive storm was slowly brewing.

“Damn it, still no news? It’s been a year already—still not a single clue?”
Outside the Void Space, in the Collins Forest, three men in black were gathered together, looking at each other. One of them, the leader, asked in a deep voice.
If Rod were here, he would surely recognize that this man in black was the one who had accompanied him for quite some time, the one who had taken Rod to this Collins Forest for so-called training.
“Nothing. We’ve searched everywhere. There’s only one possibility—that guy went toward the Source of Darkness. Our strength is limited; we can’t reach that place, my lord… Please see…” One of the men in black said hesitantly after a moment of thought. The Source of Darkness! It was also a mysterious place to them, with an extremely difficult path to get there. They didn’t have the courage to enter—it was a place even god-like warriors feared.
“Damn that kid! I dealt with a few little creatures that day and lost track of him. If that old man finds out, he’ll be furious! Damn it, keep this news under wraps for now. I’ll go to the Source of Darkness. You stay nearby and send a signal as soon as there’s any news!” Taking a deep breath, the man in black muttered in frustration. He was originally responsible for Rod’s training, but after arriving in this forest, he got carried away and killed a few creatures, which attracted a swarm of enemies. It was his bad luck. Although he managed to escape, he lost track of Rod. It had been over a year now. He had gathered several people to search, but still found nothing, which made him worried. If that kid died, someone would come after him, and then he too would be finished.
“Yes!” Hearing the old man’s words, excitement and reverence flashed in the eyes of the other two men in black as they hurriedly replied. This man held a high position in the organization, and his strength was terrifying. He wanted to enter the Source of Darkness? That was the domain of Death itself. How powerful could he be? It made the two of them feel admiration.

“Damn it, forget it. I’ll go back and check on those two old men. Going in alone won’t get me anywhere! There isn’t much time left in these three years! That little girl, Nightingale, seems pretty good—she’s made significant progress, as have the others. If I fall behind, I’ll probably be laughed at!” As he walked away, the old man muttered to himself. Entering the Source of Darkness wasn’t a problem, but going in alone wouldn’t achieve anything; he still needed to go back for reinforcements. At the same time, the progress of Nightingale and the others put immense pressure on him. Being someone who never gives up, he certainly didn’t want the people he trained to end up being overwhelmed by others.