At this point, Ralph turned to Felix and said, "Grace may be blind, but her hearing is extraordinary. If you try going out at night, she'll know immediately. Don't break our village rules—you've been warned!" So that was part of it. If she could recognize Ralph by his footsteps, her abilities weren't to be doubted. Sometimes, what the ears heard was more reliable than what the eyes could see. "This is your room. Grace sleeps in the outer room. I'll take my leave," Ralph said.Hope spoke without thinking. "Is there just one bed?" Felix frowned. How could a headquarters agent make such a basic mistake? Ralph probably thought they were married. "What's wrong? Can't you even sleep with me as your brother?" Felix joked.Shaking his head, Ralph left without another word. Upon realizing her blunder, Hope hung her head in silence. "Don't question Grace. The chief and villagers are too guarded, so asking questions will only make them more suspicious. I'll investigate myself when it'
In one fluid motion, the figure gripped the sheep's head with one hand, its body with the other, and effortlessly tore it in half. Blood poured everywhere as the figure began gulping down the blood and devouring the raw meat. This scene took Felix aback. Even the most ruthless criminals wouldn't consume raw flesh and blood like this. The creature ate with frightening speed and finished the entire sheep in about ten minutes. If not for the blood and wool on the ground, it might have seemed like a dream. "Damn it. I need to see what's really going on here." This horrific scene had piqued Felix's curiosity to the max. Since humans were involved, this definitely needed some investigation. He followed the sheep thief a short distance until they disappeared into a cave, after which all went quiet. At this point, Felix hesitated before reaching for his phone to contact Xena. Despite his abilities, he did not want to risk alerting whatever might be in that cave. The headquarters' spe
Under Felix's torture, the fake chief had revealed everything under Felix's torture, so Felix knew exactly where to go. At the cave's deepest point, what appeared to be a dead end was actually an entrance to a hollowed-out section of the mountain. It was a considerable engineering feat. Hidden cameras identified him as the village chief. With a rumbling sound, the rock wall retracted sideways, revealing a passage guarded by four men. "Why are you back?" one of them asked.Felix smiled submissively and said, "I just remembered something important I needed to report to Mr. Croft." "Follow me!" Of the four guards, two carried AK-47s, which was some serious firepower that suggested these were not ordinary criminals. Guns were banned in Dragonia, so even obtaining a pistol was difficult, let alone assault rifles. With glass panels lining both sides of the passage, nobody could see what was behind them. After several turns, Felix entered a room where he met Reece Croft, a sturdy m
At this point, Felix should have been begging for his life, but he wasn't naive. He could see the murderous intent in Reece's eyes. There was no way he would let Felix leave alive. "You could have lived a bit longer, but you made the wrong choice," Felix said.Seeing Felix stand straight with no trace of his earlier fear, Reece immediately understood. "No matter who you are, once you're here, you die!" As he spoke, Reece pressed a button in his pocket, triggering alarms throughout the facility. "Since you're brave enough to sneak in disguised as the chief, you must be quite confident in your abilities. Too bad you still have to die!" A sharp sound cut through the air. Felix tilted his head as six figures emerged and surrounded him. Interestingly, these six wore combat suits similar to the shadowstalker who had committed suicide at his home last night. But they were in purple instead of black. "Shadowstalkers? So Astoria is involved in this, huh?" Reece wasted no time, pointi
While he could not act under official orders, Felix could act personally. Once he got the Dragonspine from Ross, he planned to visit Astoria. A family like the Steeles had no right to exist. As he drove, two figures suddenly appeared on the road ahead, making him hit the brakes. He was puzzled. While he did not recognize the old man, he knew the other person. It was Aiden. "Does someone from the mighty Greene family need a ride?" After getting out of his car to tease them, Felix found Aiden's face looking expressionless. "I know you took the Frost Crystal from the cave. Don't even bother denying it," Aiden said.Felix narrowed his eyes. This guy's intelligence network was impressive. He was surprised that Aiden would even know about that. But he was right! After interrogating Reece, Felix had found the Frost Crystal in one of the lab rooms. It was suspended in some liquid that seemed to be extracting its properties. Fortunately, it was not badly damaged, so Felix had taken i
Felix focused on Cairo Crest, the man who had jumped from the fighter jet. He had a square face and carried an imposing presence. He was clearly no ordinary person as he radiated such a powerful air. Being able to command a fighter jet meant he had to be with the headquarters. After Aiden whispered something to him, Cairo said, "So you're the Dragon Knight working under the Phoenix Warlord? Come here! I am the Tideborne Warlord." Before Xena, there were the Four Great Warlords—the Shadowdragon Warlord, the Warlord of the East, the Warlord of Thunder, and the Tideborne Warlord. Felix had met the first three; today he faced the last. The Greene family must be so influential to be able to summon even a Warlord. They had clearly come prepared and determined not to let the Frost Crystal slip away. As Felix approached, Cairo spoke again. "Give me the Frost Crystal." Aiden smiled beside him. From his perspective, the Frost Crystal was as good as theirs. How could a mere admiral refu
"Good day to you, Lord Hugh. It's urgent, and I need to verify something. Please forgive my intrusion! Do you know a young man named Felix Zeller?" Cairo asked.Hugh laughed and said, "Are you talking about Felix, our Dragon Knight from headquarters? Of course, I know him. I treat him like my own grandson. What's the matter?"Cairo drew in a sharp breath. He had considered many possibilities but hadn't expected Felix to have this level of connection. He treated Felix like his own grandson? "No... it's nothing. Please rest well." After hanging up, Cairo looked uncomfortable, coughing twice before saying, "Dragon Knight, since you have a mission to complete, you should hurry along. Don't delay it." Nodding, Felix left. Despite his frustration, Aiden could not intervene further and could only watch the car disappear. "Aiden, that young man has deep ties with Lord Hugh. There's nothing we can do." Though retired, Hugh could easily take down the Tideborne Warlord if provoked. Aide
"Dane, this doesn't feel right." Outside the manor, Ross and Dane were sprinting in pursuit of someone. "What's not right about it? That bone was super rare. Do you think I'd give it up if I didn't have to? Now that the deal's done, I need my property back. Besides, I left my mark on him. He won't get far!" Ross could only manage a bitter smile, not daring to say more. Though he had blood on his hands, this was his first time pulling something like this. After all, Felix had just saved their lives, and that tip about another Dragonspine was completely made up.Minutes later, they cornered Felix in the forest. "You seem awfully calm." Dane furrowed his brows. Felix's reaction was unexpected. The look in his eyes seemed to say he knew they would come. "Calm? I guess you could say that." Felix shrugged with a smile. While treating Dane, he had already set things up to make sure he could track this Super S-rank criminal from the Thirteen Aces. But Dane had decided to strike fi
The guide said, "This is where the selected contestants rest. The yard is huge and has everything you need. As long as you don't leave this yard, you're free to move around. I'll bring you to your room now."The yard looked huge, with fixtures of bridges and flowing rivers. Felix even passed by a fake mountain. It was large enough for hundreds of people to climb, standing thousands of feet tall and looked quite majestically.No one on Earth or Aquamarinus could have built such a luxurious residence. Felix could even see a bar and massage parlor, showing how indispensable technology was in the universe. His room was luxurious, around 2000 square feet, and was decorated with traditional but modern touches. "This is your room. I'll take my leave now, goodbye." The young man left with a bow. Felix turned around and stood on the patio. Outside his room was a large lake, with even fish swimming inside."A new neighbor? Did you just arrive today?" The sudden voice came from the patio
Felix arrived at the location of one of Nine Flames, where the guards instantly collapsed, their eyes rolling back as they fainted.By now, darkness had arrived. He walked forward without any hesitation, his right hand touching the flame.There was no need for any special tools. The flame simply vanished, and only Felix knew that it was absorbed in an instant by his Starmark.With the disappearance of the flames, people in many places immediately dropped to their knees.The light that should have lasted throughout the night vanished, and the darkness of Desolated Lands descended almost instantly. Every light went out in an instant.Screams echoed everywhere, and panic spread like wildfire. Even though their loved ones were close by, they couldn't see them with their eyes and could only communicate through voice.Scenes like this were unfolding in many places, even in Cloud City."It's really started," Eira said. She was in Cloud City. Although Luigi was standing on her left, h
Despite Thiago's murderous glare and overwhelming killing intent, Felix wasn't scared. In fact, it made him smile.Due to the unique trait of the Dragon Rebirth, his opponent had to harbor a true desire to kill him in order for Felix to grow stronger. Otherwise, it would all be meaningless. At least so far, everything was unfolding just as he expected.Meanwhile, Holt was silently praying like crazy as he lay on the ground. The battle had already begun, and his companion had understood his message. This was their only shot, however slim, at killing Felix.As time passed and the afternoon crept past 3:00 pm, his companion started to falter. His attacks were growing sluggish. He hadn't been injured, but he was clearly on the defensive now.Seeing this, Felix completely lost interest. Once his opponent lost the will to kill him, the Dragon Rebirth would no longer grow.Still, the battle wasn't for nothing. He'd made solid progress and was a little closer to becoming a Celestial Realm
Felix had clearly found Holt's weak spot. These guys were so desperate to extend their lives that they turned the entire Aquamarinus into a breeding ground. Obviously, they were terrified of death. As long as there was even the slightest chance of survival, they'd take it.And sure enough, Holt immediately agreed. He pulled out some kind of device and flew off, clearly contacting his comrades."But even if I agreed," Holt said, "the three of us split up and searched in different directions. Even if they rush over, they won't make it until tomorrow."The fear in his eyes was obvious, so much so that Felix couldn't help but laugh."How interesting," Felix said. "You made a deal with the Ant Queen, right? Couldn't she at least give you something to help you move freely through Desolated Lands at night?"Holt shot him a bitter smile. "The Ant Queen's children—the soldier ants—are born hunters. That instinct can't be erased. And honestly, we've never needed to go out at night anyway."
Lumen flew out and quickly returned. Felix's expression eased completely, and with a step, he vanished from where he stood."Chasing me was fun last time, huh? Did you think it'd go the same this time?" he asked.When he reappeared, someone was already lying on the ground about ten yards ahead. It was a figure fully shrouded in a gray robe, a man named Holt Bovington.That was Felix holding back. Otherwise, Lumen's previous strike could've shattered Holt's soul on the spot."Felix Zeller? It really is you!" Holt's voice was full of shock. Whatever he'd planned to do was already too late. His soul had taken a devastating blow, and he no longer had the strength to fight."Yeah, it's me. Just like I suspected, you people really aren't all that strong when it comes to soul power."Felix had spared his life because he wanted answers."If you answer a few questions honestly, I'll let you live. Even with your soul badly damaged, I assume someone who knows about Nine Flames and Desolate
Three months later, deep within a mountain on Aquamarinus, a meeting was taking place. Who would've imagined palace-like structures hidden within the mountain itself?In one of the chambers, a sky-blue dome adorned the ceiling. Beneath it, three figures in gray robes sat cross-legged, their bodies cloaked in shadow. Their faces were completely obscured."I went to see the Ant Queen yesterday. There's definitely something wrong.""Enough with the vague talk. Be specific.""In just three months, the Ant Queen has lost millions of her children. Do you even understand what that means?"The atmosphere shifted as all three took a sharp breath. A long silence followed before one finally spoke, "Perhaps our earlier theory is right. Is someone hunting soldier ants in Desolated Lands at night?""It has to be. How else do you explain millions of casualties? At this rate, we're down to just a million soldier ants across the entire planet. If this keeps up, they'll be wiped out in a month. An
"I didn't expect you to be a doctor, too. Thanks," Myles said, but then suddenly froze. His mind started racing.Wait a minute! He took down a tiger of True Blood Realm. On top of that, he was extremely skilled in medicine. That could only mean…"You figured out who I am?" Felix asked with a smile, trying to put Myles at ease. Despite that, Myles couldn't hide his fear. "You're Felix Zeller?""That's right. Judging by your reaction, I take it I've become a traitor to The Recovery Association? Or maybe some kind of unforgivable villain?"The air grew a bit awkward, and Myles shot him a strained smile."Not exactly… It's just that you took down the Flame Monarch. That's kind of hard to wrap my head around."His expression shifted again."Actually, everyone's still pretty confused. When we woke up this morning, every city, town, and even the smallest villages received a message. Five days from now, the Flame Monarch is holding a Flame Ceremony."Felix paused, frowning. "What's t
With Lumen and Indigo attacking and the Infinite Shield defending, Felix held his ground. Occasionally, he cast minor spells that barely consumed any soul power. Even as the monsters surged toward him like a tidal wave, not one of them could so much as scratch him.Feeling the steady stream of energy flooding into him, Felix grinned. If things kept going like this, there was a high chance he'd break through to the next major soul realm—Soul Overlord Realm.If he could level up again during the elimination rounds, his odds of winning the whole thing would increase significantly. Especially since Soul Overlord Realm required soul enhancement, it was a whole different league compared to Aetherium Realm.Once he hit Soul Overlord Realm, he was confident he'd be able to go toe-to-toe in a soul battle with the powerful figure who had chased him during dusk.That guy didn't dare appear in Desolated Lands at night, which likely meant his soul wasn't strong. In that case, Felix might actual
The sun had already begun to set. After fleeing in a panic, Felix had no idea if there was even a single place ahead that could shield him from the coming darkness.A few minutes later, the presence chasing him within his domain disappeared. Logically, the pursuer should've caught up in less than ten minutes, but they gave up. Still, Felix didn't relax for a second. The darkness was about to fall, and that could only mean two things. Either the pursuer wasn't confident they could survive the desolate night themselves, or they assumed there was no flame nearby and Felix was as good as dead.Either way, this was the most dangerous moment yet.After sprinting several more miles, Felix finally stopped. All around him stretched a barren wasteland with no end in sight. Even though he had memorized maps to identify different areas, they were useless now. As darkness swallowed the land, all reference points vanished."Damn it! I guess I'll have to see for myself what the hell comes out i