Chapter Seventy-Two: The Dragon’s Forbidden Scale

I rushed out of the northern gate of Heavenly Dragon City.

“Longxin! Where are you?” I called out immediately, using the chat window to shout for her.

“Wah!” At once, Longxin’s crying echoed back to me. “Stupid big brother! You’re finally back? Wah!”

I hastily said, “Don’t cry! Tell me what happened. Where are you all?”

Feng Xiaoyue quickly contacted me, saying, “Longling, are you back? We’re all at the rest area at these coordinates in the Forest of Death. Hurry over!”

“Got it, wait for me!” I threw this message down in a rush, mounted the Hurricane Wolf King, and hurried over with Amaterasu.

“Brother! Wah—” Longxin threw herself into my arms and finally broke down in loud sobs.

Feng Xiaoyue bit her lip, her face full of anger, resentment, and heartbreak. Xiao Xi stood quietly off to the side, and even Xiao Ai’s face was shrouded in sorrow, tears silently falling.

“What exactly happened?” I suddenly raised my head and roared in anger.

“It’s all because of that quest. This morning, that Silver Moon came to cause trouble.” Ye Shuang gritted her teeth, her face twisted with indignation, and by the end, tears started to fall from her eyes.

“Silver Moon?! That one? Tell me exactly what happened.” I asked anxiously.

“She’s still holding a grudge about before. This morning, we went to do a mercenary group quest, ready to establish a group. But that wretch showed up out of nowhere with her people, stole our boss, and made all of us lose a level. The sword you gave me and Longxin’s staff both dropped, and Yezi had it worst—she lost three pieces of equipment, Xiao Xi and Xiao Ai each lost one.”

“So why are you all out here?” I asked.

Ye Shuang said, “Half an hour ago, we left the city, thinking to try the quest again. But that b— actually sent people to ambush us outside the city. As soon as we showed up, we were surrounded and had to run here to hide. And who’s this girl? Where did you find her?” she said, leering suggestively at Amaterasu.

“My new summoned beast,” I replied.

“What!” Everyone exclaimed in unison.

“Scared us! Do you take us for fools that are easy to trick? Don’t try to fool us with such a lame excuse…” Ye Shuang said.

I replied, “Look at her stats! I’m not lying.”

As I displayed Amaterasu’s attributes, everyone stared in shock. Ye Shuang couldn’t help but blurt out, “So it’s real! Damn, a summoned beast that can help fight and is fun to play with—this is amazing…”

I was speechless. “What do you mean, ‘fun to play with’? Don’t lump me together with your perversions!”

…

I said, “I get it now. Xiaoyue, you take this sword for now. I’ll go get our equipment back.”

Feng Xiaoyue accepted the Soul Devourer sword and said, “Longling, you’re so generous. Last time it was a purple weapon, now a green one. Do you have some ulterior motive for me?”

I replied, “I have no designs on you. I’m not into that big-sister/little-brother stuff.”

Ye Shuang stepped forward and said, “Bro, shouldn’t you…” I understood her meaning instantly and traded her the Sky-Tempered Armor, saying, “Here, take this.”

Ye Shuang took it and said, “Now that’s more like it.” As I was about to leave the rest area, Xiao Xi asked, “Brother Long, where are you going?”

Longxin answered, “He’s triggered the dragon’s reverse scale.”

Everyone tensed at her words, wanting to follow, but by then I had already vanished.

Amaterasu stepped in front of me and said, “Master, I know the fury in your heart. I, Amaterasu, will use slaughter and bloodshed to quell your rage. Savage killing intent will be the best proof.”

“Good! Don’t hold back when the time comes.” With that, I paid for a system-wide shout.

“Ding~! System Announcement (Player Mighty Dragon shouts): Silver Moon, listen up! Give back the equipment you took from my friends. If you have a problem, come at me! I’m waiting for you outside the northern gate of Heavenly Dragon City. If you don’t show up, I’ll turn this city upside down to drag you out, unless you never want to show your face in this city again!”

“Ding~! System Announcement (Player Silver Moon shouts): Mighty Dragon, if you’ve got the guts, don’t run. I’m coming right now!”

Instantly, the crowd around me stared in stunned amazement.

After shouting, I sat in the open space outside the north gate. Ten minutes later, five players surrounded me. One of the warriors barked, “Kid, what are you yelling for? No need for Big Sister Silver Moon to deal with you—I'll cut you down myself!”

Just then, he saw the corner of my mouth lift into a smile—one so chilling it made his blood run cold.

“Watch out!” a mage in their group suddenly sensed something wrong and instinctively leapt back, shouting.

“Shhk!” Blood spattered. The warrior howled in agony as a giant paw raked across his chest, and a massive maw clamped down on his head. The pain was indescribable, his health dropping rapidly. He screamed for help, but in the next instant, with a sickening crunch, his head was bitten to pieces.

A headless corpse collapsed to the ground. In the blink of an eye, the so-called warrior had his skull crushed by the Hurricane Wolf King, dropping all his loot and respawning back in the city.

“Damn you!” the mage roared in fury, retreating several steps. He stretched out his right hand—a faintly glowing, curved staff appeared, radiating icy magic.

“Ice Roar!” the mage shouted as a massive block of ice shot toward me. I dodged quickly.

The other three warriors charged at me, but though they were all level 27, Amaterasu had already leapt into the fray. Against her, they didn’t stand a chance.

With just her Crimson Reaper, she struck each of their throats with lightning speed. Blood gushed forth like a spring. The three who had just rushed up stared wide-eyed in horror, collapsing heavily to the ground as damage numbers—5440, 5670, 5900—floated above their heads.

The mage was panicking now, hastily chanting a spell. A howling wind whipped up as countless snowflakes spun into a massive vortex. He was a level 32 Elementalist, skilled in ice magic. This Blizzard was formidable, and before I knew it, I was caught inside.

Shards of ice slashed at my body like knives, each hit taking 50 health. I forced myself to charge through the pain, broke his spell with a sudden attack, and then smashed into his shield with my Ruyi Staff—Crushing Blow, Energy Burst, and Assault in quick succession.

His shield trembled violently. The mage tried to blink away, but the Hurricane Wolf King had locked onto him. Mages are the least agile class of all, and his speed was lacking. Just as he blinked, the Wolf King appeared before him, slammed him in the chest, sending him flying into the city wall, and then bouncing him to the ground.

The pain drove him half-mad, his shield shattering and his health plummeting. The Wolf King grabbed him by the head, lifting him up. In utter despair and terror, he screamed, “Kill me! Our Dragon Phoenix Mercenary Group won’t let you get away with this!”

“Is that so? Perfect. Finish him!” I replied coldly. At my command, he was dispatched back to the city. Not far away, players who had come to watch were staring in awe at the scene.

In the blink of an eye, a five-person squad was completely wiped out—crushed by overwhelming force.

From afar, more people gathered, all realizing that the show was just beginning.

By now, Ye Shuang and the others had arrived, just behind me, their eyes immediately drawn to the bloody scene and the corpses of several players strewn about.

“This... this is the dragon’s reverse scale! That wretch won’t dare be arrogant now,” Feng Xiaoyue said.

Excitement flashed across Ye Shuang’s face as she shouted, “I almost pity that girl for provoking my brother. Don’t hold back, let that arrogant brat taste the fury of the dragon’s reverse scale!”

I said coldly, “I will. I’ll make them understand just how terrifying it is to provoke the dragon’s wrath.”

More and more people hurried over at the sound of battle, the crowd swelling as the excitement grew.