Chapter 35: The Dragon Slaying Warrior

Blood sprayed like a rain of crimson, leaving everyone stunned as they stared in shock at the scene before them. A deafening roar seemed to shake the very heavens and earth before suddenly disappearing. A loud crash followed, and the massive fire dragon collapsed to the ground, convulsing twice before coming completely still and losing its life force.

Rod stood before the dragon, his body reeking of bloodlust, staring blankly at the fist-sized hole in its chin and throat. Dark red blood, still warm, sprayed onto him like hot springs, sending waves of tingling pain throughout his body. Gradually, the spraying stopped, and everything settled down.

Standing in disarray in front of the dragon, he panted heavily, using the Dark Dragon in his hand to support himself. His body swayed dangerously, yet he paid no attention to the changes in the Dark Dragon or to how it devoured all the blood, allowing its cold aura to mix with the warm scent of dragon blood.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to move—he simply couldn’t. He was too exhausted, covered in wounds, and any movement caused excruciating pain. At the same time, a voice from within his body told him to stay there and accept the baptism of the dragon clan’s essence blood spilled from the shattered dragon scales, claiming it would be beneficial to him. Meanwhile, a pulling force emerged from his dantian. In the next moment, he could faintly sense that an energy from the dragon’s corpse was drawn into his dantian and absorbed into his body. The scorching sensation was wonderful, but it vanished in just a short time.

“Head… did he… did he really kill the dragon?” It took a long time for those stunned people to regain their senses. They looked at the blood-soaked man standing there like a demon, wielding a sword, and Curly murmured to the person beside him.

“It seems… it seems so!” The warrior beside him swallowed hard before speaking reluctantly.

A dragon had been slain—truly slain! For the first time in centuries, they witnessed the extinction of the dragon race and the emergence of a dragon slayer. It felt like a dream to them all.

“The dragon is dead! The dragon is dead! We’ve won!” Cheers erupted at that moment, spreading throughout the entire city. The guards who had fought against the dragon began to cheer as well, holding up their weapons and shouting loudly. This was undoubtedly a historic moment, one worth remembering for a lifetime—a monument, a great turning point.

“Leader, hurry over!” In the distance, Rod’s body swayed slightly, almost falling to the ground. The attentive Nightingale noticed this and, with a cry of alarm, quickly called out to Curly and the others nearby.
In the next moment, a group rushed toward Rod at full speed. Behind them, the battlefield had turned into a sea of joy. The soldiers’ morale was greatly boosted, filled with ambition. Rod’s victory had greatly increased their confidence. Naturally, he became the dragon-slaying hero in everyone’s eyes. Although everyone knew it was Rod who finally killed the dragon, without the cover and help of so many people, he wouldn’t have succeeded. But history is always like this, and people are too—how hard one works may not matter; all they care about is the final outcome. Since it was he who killed the dragon, it seemed all the credit went to him.
“Leader… are… are you okay?” Curly stopped in front of Rod, swallowing hard. Seeing his shaky appearance, pale face, and disheveled state, along with the strong smell of blood, he asked anxiously.
“Are… are you alright?” Nightingale bit her lip and stepped forward, also asking in a low voice. At this moment, Rod was covered in wounds, looking pitiful—seemingly ready to collapse at the slightest wind.
“It hurts! Everything hurts! It seems I can’t fight anymore. Lei Ao, help me down. Nightingale, I leave this to you. Continue fighting with the others. Tonight will surely be a fierce battle!” With a bitter smile, Rod took a deep breath. The pain made his lips twitch involuntarily. He was unable to move, on the verge of collapse, especially due to the effect of the dragon blood. He wondered if Xuanyuan was doing this for his own good. That dragon blood was too powerful, especially its essence. His whole body was burning with heat, and the pain was unbearable, as if scorched by fire, compounded by the pain from his wounds.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it!” Nightingale nodded, showing rare sincerity. Tears even welled up in her eyes. This was the first time she had seen Rod like this, so weak and exhausted.

Even during that most dangerous moment, when the four of them fought against him alone, and later with the pursuers joining in to kill him, he had never been in such a dire and weakened state, never so powerless and pale! This time, it seemed he was truly badly injured! Nightingale knew that for a man like him, admitting he was done meant things were extremely serious—perhaps even his life was at stake.

“Slow down… Ugh… slower!” As Curly’s hand touched his body, Rod nearly collapsed. Taking a sharp breath, he said weakly. The pain made his whole body tremble. Even covered in blood, his pale face could still be clearly seen, his body shaking slightly, his teeth clenching together as he was on the verge of collapsing and groaning on the ground.

“Head… you…” Seeing this, Curly was extremely worried. A grown man like him now seemed at a loss, sweating profusely.

“Nightingale, you guys go first. And you too, leave. I’m fine. The other dragon depends on you. I can’t go on!” Feeling the concerned looks around him, Rod said with a bitter smile.

Turning to look at Nightingale, whose tears were silently streaming down, Rod comforted her, while also addressing those who were watching him with concern after the battle. The fight was still ongoing; they had tasks to carry out and couldn’t keep their hopes pinned on him.

It wasn’t until those people left that he stepped forward!

The demons’ combat strength was truly terrifying. Even with a god-tier warrior leading them along with dozens of strong fighters, they still didn’t fall behind and even seemed to gain the upper hand. Coupled with the cooperation between the vampires and werewolves, the defenders suffered greatly! The god-tier warrior was even suppressed by several demons and couldn’t fully exert his powers! Relying on their physical strength, which was no less than that of dragons in terms of attack and defense, these demons dominated for a time. Help from Nightingale and the others was needed over there.

As for the rest, they rushed toward the other dragon! Clearly, with the fire dragon dead, the wind dragon began to show some fear. With the arrival of reinforcements, it kept retreating and no longer posed a significant threat.

All this made Rod secretly feel relieved. With the death of the fire dragon, a new era of dragon slaying had begun. These dragons were no longer terrifying, no longer mysterious or powerful—they were just living magical beasts.

Without accepting Curly’s assistance, Rod moved forward with difficulty toward the city, followed by Dark Dragon; Curly merely acted as a guardian by his side. Wherever he went, the guards cast admiring looks and willingly made way for him. Even those engaged in battle would strive to repel the magical beasts while giving Rod respectful glances, allowing him to pass unimpeded! Rod was quite pleased with all this, feeling that his efforts had not been in vain. Upon reaching the city gates, news of the dragons’ defeat had clearly already spread. Rod was greeted by thunderous cheers and congratulations, along with looks of admiration and joy. In an instant, he became the greatest hero of Iron Bar Town! The Black Tooth Legion even sent a squad of soldiers to escort Rod to his barracks! They later stood guard outside the barracks as bodyguards, leaving Rod helpless but amused. Back in his room, he sent Curly away first and eagerly began practicing cultivation. The effects of the dragon blood’s purification began to show at this moment—the blood had seemingly been completely absorbed by Rod at some point earlier. His skin turned extremely red, burning hot like a flame. Rod knew it was time for the medicine’s effects to take hold, and Xuanyuan within him also urged him to quickly absorb these energies. After all, these energies were condensed from the essence of the fire dragon, refined over thousands of years, containing terrifying power. Although Rod couldn’t absorb them all, even a small amount would be incredibly beneficial to him. Enduring the pain all over his body, Rod gritted his teeth, sat in lotus position, and immediately immersed himself in cultivation. The fire elements around him rushed over without his command, as if finding a focal point, surrounding him. For a moment, his surroundings resembled a blazing flame, emitting a faint red glow that was strikingly bright. Fortunately, no one could see this scene; otherwise, it would likely cause a stir throughout the city. Allowing the elements to flow into his body, Rod used his combat energy to refine his entire body according to the methods taught by Xuanyuan, enhancing every cell and inch of his skin. The combat energy in his meridians was also stimulated, rolling and surging under his control as it spread throughout his body to refine it.

Instantly, every inch of his skin and every cell was stimulated by the combat energy, causing the essence of dragon blood within to become active and begin to move. Its form changed constantly. From the outside, Rhode appeared terrifying—it was as if thousands of ants were crawling inside him, with every inch of his skin writhing continuously, creating a truly horrifying and eerie sight.