Chapter 126: Dragon Soul Warrior

He walked slowly forward, ignoring those who were still discussing things. Under the light rain, the scene outside the city was particularly chaotic, reflecting a sense of profound change. With a heavy heart and under the puzzled gazes of some people, he headed inward, ignoring the voice coming from behind. Rod continued to move forward and soon entered the city.

The situation inside the city was slightly better than outside, but it was still solemn. There were soldiers stationed every five steps and sentries every ten steps; the atmosphere was tense. The soldiers running around all had serious expressions, showing that the fire dragon’s attack had imposed severe pressure and consequences on them.

“I must absolutely not let anyone know that I’m the one who has the dragon egg!” he told himself. Unless it was a life-or-death situation, he must not reveal the Dragon Soul Beast, unless he had the strength to face others. Rod was well aware of the consequences if discovered at this time. As that mercenary had said, even if the empire wouldn’t trouble him, wouldn’t those ambitious organizations take action? Then he would only become easy prey in others’ eyes. Without absolute strength, he would only sink deeper into trouble.

He headed toward the hotel where he was staying. After deciding on his future plans, he sighed inwardly. It might be better to let the little dragon cultivate inside him for a while—silent until the moment to strike.

Sighing again, he realized why he had felt something was off on his way back today. That’s why it was so different from five days ago—no crowded mercenaries, no bustling scenes. Although there were still many mercenaries, their numbers had significantly decreased. Perhaps the fire dragon’s menace had scared away most of those looking for easy gains, or maybe they had left because they knew the dragon egg and wealth were beyond their reach. In any case, those who remained were those truly on mission or relying on the Collins Forest for a living.

Before he knew it, he had arrived at the door of the hotel he was staying at. The lobby was bustling, but not as noisy as usual. Entering the hotel, he saw the scattered mercenaries, each with a worried expression. Listening carefully, he realized most of them were complaining about this recent attack by the magical beast and the fire dragon’s rampage.

As the culprit, Rod’s face turned slightly red. It seemed he had indeed caused quite a problem, which was why the fire dragon vented all its anger on Iron Bar Town.
“Rod, is that you? Damn kid, you’re finally back. Where have you been these past few days? In Collins Forest?” A familiar voice came from behind, tinged with excitement. Turning around, he saw Kiro looking at him eagerly, with Anderson and Alice by his side.
“Hmph, what luck you have. Where else could you go but Collins Forest? And yet you still survived! A scourge that lingers for centuries!” Alice said resentfully with a cold snort; it seemed the resentment from that day still hadn’t faded.
Looking at Rod across from him, she felt a mix of emotions. She clearly hated him, so why had she been so worried these past few days after he disappeared, knowing he might have gone to Collins Forest? Why couldn’t she sleep? Why were his image and that evil smile constantly in her mind? Why did she keep recalling the past events? Why did that scene from when they were chased by the Earth Bear keep replaying like a slideshow? Pressing her lips together, feeling a hint of sourness in her heart, she saw Knight Rod standing in front of her. Though she couldn’t swallow her anger and spoke resentfully, she was still happy.
“Cough, cough… Good, Rod. It’s great that you’re back. Huh, you must know by now that the damned fire dragon was finally provoked by those people. On the day you disappeared, it led its beasts in an attack. Thankfully, the Black Tooth Legion was on high alert, with two holy-level warriors in charge, along with the help of mercenaries, and they managed to hold back the attack! Everything’s fine now. I knew you wouldn’t just leave without saying anything!
Well, you’re finally back. Otherwise, we really would have left! It’s good you’re back. Aren’t you going back to Blaze City? It happens to be on our way anyway. Want to come with us?” Kiro asked, offering his signature smile. He didn’t ask what exactly had happened or what Rod had done, because he knew Rod would tell him if he wanted to.
“Okay, let’s go together!” After hesitating for a moment, he quickly agreed. It was a good chance to leave this dangerous place. If their presence were discovered or their identities exposed, everything would be ruined. The sooner they left, the better—at least for now.
Since it was already noon, and although it was drizzling, it seemed there was some urgent matter waiting for them to handle, so they decided to set off immediately.

Rod naturally had no objections. After a quick meal, the group set off immediately. Rod, who hadn’t eaten in days, devoured food like an elephant, leaving Kiro and the others stunned, not knowing how to express their shock.

Walking along the road, he patted his round belly and let out a satisfied burp. It was still about four days’ journey to Flaming City! Four days was a short time, and the thought of returning to Flaming City filled him with excitement. Were Kambi, Sambik, Jerome, and Jim still there? This thought stirred his emotions.

Looking at Knightrod beside him, whose expression was slightly distracted, Alice also became preoccupied. For some reason, she had the feeling that something had changed about him since they last met—her keen feminine intuition told her so.

“I heard the Fire Dragon’s egg was stolen?” Rod asked casually, as it was better to clarify certain things for safety.

“That’s what I heard. Who knows? We didn’t see anything, but it’s possible. There are two theories at the moment—no one knows which is true. Another theory is that the two people who took on the mission were very strong. After injuring the Fire Dragon, they realized they couldn’t win and fled, angering the dragon and affecting Iron Bar Town. But it doesn’t matter which one is true. The Church has already gotten involved, and the Empire has sent people to observe. We’ll likely find out soon. This incident has really escalated.” Anderson replied in a low voice with a sigh.

“The Empire and the Church are both involved?” Rod asked gravely, frowning. He knew the Empire was involved, but what was the Church doing here?

The Church was the most powerful organization on the continent, even comparable to any empire. Its followers were spread across the entire land, with invincible strongmen within. The Holy Knights and Holy Warriors were terrifyingly powerful, capable of ruling their own territories. The Pope was one of the eight divine-level powerhouses on the continent. These wolves in sheep’s clothing surely brought nothing good when they got involved. Rod was convinced of this—those hypocritical guys were no good. He had never had any fondness for the Church. For example, the priest in Flaming City was a greedy and lustful scoundrel. These people were nothing but opportunists who abandoned morality for profit.

“Not only that, almost everyone believes it was a dragon egg that was stolen. Many organizations have already taken action, and even other empires are showing interest. After all, this is the third dragon egg to fall into human hands in tens of thousands of years on this continent, so they must pay close attention. Whether obtained by a mage or a warrior, the consequences are obvious. A Dragon Knight, a Dragon Warrior with a dragon soul, or a Dragon Master Mage—each of them possesses formidable strength. Throughout the ages, every Dragon Knight and Dragon Master Mage has been an invincible powerhouse.” Kiro added in a solemn tone. Indeed, only two beings with pure dragon bloodline had appeared in tens of thousands of years: one, the invincible figure from ten thousand years ago; the other, the representative of that era thousands of years ago, who established his own era. Thinking of these two, Kiro’s gaze became distant and thoughtful.

Hearing their words, Rod felt a weight settle in his heart. It seemed the situation far exceeded his imagination. Troubles would begin from this moment onward and never cease—something he understood clearly. All he could do now was to hide things for as long as possible. He never expected himself to become the third person in tens of thousands of years on this continent to possess a dragon, not just any dragon, but a living beast infused with the soul of a divine dragon—the first Dragon Soul Warrior! This thought filled him with anticipation and a hint of excitement.

Looking at Knightrod beside him, Alice’s expression turned slightly unusual. It seemed she had understood something, though her eyes held disbelief. There followed a silence—a rare moment of quiet, as if she were lost in thought. From time to time, she glanced at Knightrod, her gaze filled with complexity. As for Rod, he was already racking his brains to plan their future course of action, remaining silent and ignoring the rest of the surroundings. Kiro and Anderson both frowned slightly, lost in their own thoughts.

For a while, the entire group fell silent, each lost in their own thoughts as they continued forward. Walking along the path in the valley under the light rain, breathing in the scent of soil, they moved quickly. Before dark, they arrived at a small town a hundred miles away from Iron Fence Town and settled down there. The day’s journey was over, much earlier than expected. At this pace, it would take them less than five days to return to Flame City.