Chapter 253 - 236: Have You Ever Been a Dragon? Wishful Thinking!
Faced with the Iron Dragon’s offensive behavior, Six-armed Snake Woman Naris’s slit pupils suddenly contracted into thin lines.
She slowly stood up, her arms interlaced like petals before her, fingers slightly spreading apart.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Six cold iron longswords broke through the water from the swamp, yet not a single ripple spread across the surface.
The Poison Tail Tribe is known for producing mages and shamans, but the leader of this tribe, Six-armed Snake Woman Naris, is an out-and-out warrior with a high status.
The warrior advancement branch she chose was—Sword Saint.
Sword Saint: The fusion of soul and steel, blending life and soul into the sword’s edge, merging man and sword as one, showcasing great power.
The Snake Woman gazed coldly at the Iron Dragon, the sword glinting sharply, but she did not attack impulsively.
Opposite her, Iron Dragon Solrog’s scales quivered slightly, watching the Snake Woman’s six arms unfold as if in a dance—each arm holding a sword in a different starting posture, yet forming a perfect system of attack and defense.
In the tense, murderous atmosphere, the frog calls from the depths of the swamp abruptly ceased.
"Six-armed Snake-man Sword Saint... a race and profession combination blessed by nature."
The Iron Dragon’s voice broke the dead silence. He did not hide his admiration, saying, "You possess not only beauty and wisdom but also immense power."
The Snake Woman’s slit pupils flickered dangerously, and the six longswords emitted a simultaneous hum.
"This power is enough to peel off your scales one by one, completely strip your skeleton from your flesh, and finally mince you into meat paste."
Solrog gently flicked his tail, expressing agreement: "I have no doubt about that."
Then, changing his tone, he said, "But my safety is irrelevant. Today I represent the entire Molten Iron Tribe, and more importantly—"
A silver dragon scale emitting chilling cold appeared suddenly in his claws.
"—The will of Lord Frost Mark."
When the silver scale came into view, the Snake Woman’s body visibly stiffened for a moment, and the apprehension in her eyes grew more intense.
Buzz—!
An elderly Snakefolk Shaman Elder waved a bone staff, and invisible ripples surged toward the Snake Woman’s body, flickering for a moment before disappearing.
At the same time, the Iron Dragon found he could no longer sense the Snake Woman’s mental waves.
Evidently, the Snakefolk Elder had discerned his identity as a Mind Mage and cast a spell to block the Iron Dragon’s telepathy regarding the Snake Woman Sword Saint.
Yet the Iron Dragon remained composed.
Having become a Mind Mage, his insight into emotions had significantly improved. Even without mental perception, he could detect her emotional reactions through the subtle expressions and physical changes of the Snakefolk, just not as straightforward as telepathy.
"Frost Mark, the Metal Dragon overlord of the Border Area."
The Snake Woman forced her gaze away from the silver scale and said, "He’s a Silver Dragon, how could he be associated with you evil dragons?"
"Don’t think we know nothing about the Dragon Race. Although I don’t know how you obtained this scale, Silver Dragon Frost Mark would never support you."
At the Snake Woman’s skepticism, the Iron Dragon’s lips curled into a meaningful smile.
"Have you ever been a dragon? Wishful thinking."
He said with a hint of mockery, "The relationships between the Dragon Race are intricate, never just black and white, something you outsider creatures could never understand clearly. Your thoughts are merely wishful assumptions."
The Iron Dragon stood tall, looking around grandly as if he himself were the lord of the Ten Thousand Snake Swamp.
Under the watchful eyes of the snake crowd, he continued, "Besides, haven’t you already seen Metal Dragons within our territory?"
The Snake Woman remained silent.
A few seconds later, she spoke, "Iron Dragon, first state your purpose. Why are you here?"
Solrog’s expression turned stern, and his voice grew lower as he said, "Regardless of the process, regardless of the cost, the Molten Iron Tribe will inevitably become the ruler of the Border Area, it’s only a matter of time."
"Naris, you’re not one of those stupid brutes like the Barbarians and Beastmen. You understand that this is an unchangeable reality."
He spoke leisurely, "You can choose to ally with Dawn and Iron Blood, to fight us desperately, suffer heavy losses, be crushed and shattered, or choose to submit early to the Molten Iron Tribe, thus maintaining a prominent position in the Border Area after the war ends."
The Iron Dragon presented two options.
"What assurance do you offer?" The Snake Woman sharply retorted, "That we won’t be used as cannon fodder after submission? Such empty promises are meaningless, and the Poison Tail Tribe will never bow down just for a few pretty words."
Hearing these resolute words, the Iron Dragon largely understood the Snake Woman’s attitude and thoughts.
He swayed his tail and immediately continued, "I’ve seen precious courage in you Snakefolk, which indeed deserves admiration. But courage cannot alter reality; the Molten Iron Tribe will soon demonstrate enough power to make you change your mind."
The Six-armed Snake Woman coiled around the throne and said, "Then I shall wait and see, but at least at this stage, don’t expect the allegiance of the Poison Tail Tribe. We have our own principles and judgments."
The Iron Dragon laughed, "Time is long, and I’m very patient, not in a hurry."
The Snake Woman weighed her words carefully and decided to reveal more information, "To tell you the truth, before you arrived, envoys from the Dawn and Iron Blood Tribes were already here trying to persuade us to ally and fight against your Molten Iron Tribe."
She squinted her eyes, carefully observing the Iron Dragon’s reaction.
"That was within my expectations."
The Iron Dragon’s response was unexpectedly calm.
"However, you likely haven’t accepted their proposal."
The Iron Dragon’s composure surprised the Snake Woman—a far cry from her perception of dragons as irritable and volatile, even making her begin to question some of her ingrained beliefs.
"You’ve only guessed half right."
She honestly confessed, "We had indeed decided to accept the alliance invitation, but the Frost Mark Scale you brought made me reconsider."
"We have decided to adopt a delaying strategy, neither clearly agreeing to their alliance request nor forming an alliance or submitting to your Molten Iron Tribe. As long as the flames of war do not spread to our territory, the Poison Tail Tribe will maintain absolute neutrality."
After more in-depth discussions, and confirming more specific details, Iron Dragon Solrog finally left the Ten Thousand Snake Swamp.
Although he failed to gain the Poison Tail Tribe’s direct allegiance, his main objective was already achieved.
——He successfully wavered the Poison Tail Tribe’s determination to ally with other tribes, pushing them towards a neutral position.
"Chief, do you really believe that Silver Dragon Frost Mark is secretly supporting the Molten Iron Tribe?"
An Elder Shaman with a face full of wrinkles couldn’t help but ask after the Iron Dragon left.
Naris looked in the direction where the Iron Dragon departed and slowly shook her head: "That question is not important at all."
"If the human and beastmen alliance defeats the Molten Iron Tribe, they will inevitably suffer heavy casualties. At that time, we can reap the benefits; conversely, if the Molten Iron Tribe wins bitterly, we also have a chance to exploit the situation."
"As for the Silver Dragon Frost Mark..."
Her snake tail swayed gently, eyes gleaming with shrewdness: "With his usual style, even if he intervenes, he won’t destroy us outright, at most issue a warning. And if the Molten Iron Tribe shows overwhelming strength, it won’t be too late to swear allegiance by then. No matter what, our Poison Tail Tribe has a way to retreat safely."
In the southwest of the Border Area, the sunset in Dragon Valley stained the cliff walls a blood-red hue.
Galos slowly exhaled a turbid breath, the drumming thunder in his chest gradually subsiding, marking the end of the day’s Dragon Heart tempering.
Dewdrops condensed on the cliff walls were shaken off by aftershocks, while rolling heat waves emanated from the crevices in the slightly parted scale armor of the Red Iron Dragon.
Just then, a familiar throbbing from deep within his bloodline resonated — it was the sense triggered by the Bloodline Chain.
"The stance of the Poison Tail Tribe has been ascertained."
Solrog’s voice came through: "These swamp crawlers are far craftier than human or beastmen, aiming to sit back and watch the tigers fight."
Despite the Six-armed Snake Woman’s impeccable disguise, it couldn’t escape the Mind Mage’s insight.
He carefully recounted his conversations in the Poison Tail Tribe and the reactions of the Snakefolk.
"As expected, I would do the same." the Red Iron Dragon remarked, "Once we crush Dawn and Ironblood, these Snakefolk will submit on their own."
The four major tribes’ leaders in the Border Area were initially on par with each other, roughly at the Great Workshop Master’s Alchemy Giant level, with little difference in power.
If confronted by all three simultaneously, regardless of any special means, cooperation among them would complicate the situation greatly.
But if it’s just dealing with two...the Red Iron Dragon’s spines tingled slightly from battle intent, and the Martial Dragon Qi surged faster within him.
"By the way, I’ve taken a liking to the leader of the Poison Tail Tribe."
Iron Dragon suddenly said.
Galos nodded slightly, saying: "The Six-armed Snake Woman...a noble lineage, inherently strong, perfectly fitting your preferences, it’s only natural you like her, but don’t let it muddle our grand undertaking."
Iron Dragon bluntly said: "How can the desires of the lower body compare to the grand vision in our hearts?"
"I’m not a foolish White Scale, I’ve already learned to control my desires and thoughts. If the Snake Woman ultimately chooses to stand against us, I would kill her without hesitation."
His words were low and thunderous, firm and decisive.
To Iron Dragon, nothing matched the vigorous ambition to establish the Dragon Realm. Moreover, he held no affection for the Snake Woman, merely some desire, and that wouldn’t disrupt his clarity of mind.
For Iron Dragon Solrog, Galos felt relatively assured, refraining from saying more.
After a moment of thought, the Red Iron Dragon asked:
"Solrog, tell me how this war should be conducted. What are your thoughts?"
After a few seconds of calm, Iron Dragon Solrog’s methodical and orderly voice slowly came through: "Assuming humans and beastmen are fully united, their advantage lies in middle and upper-level commanders and elite soldiers outnumbering ours, offering high tactical flexibility for multi-line battles."
"Currently, our situation is this: the bottom-tier Jackal-Wolf Folk and Kobolds are abundant, not afraid of attrition, and our top combat power surpasses theirs, but we lack sufficient middle and upper-level commanders, a deficiency partially offset by the Alchemy Golems produced by the Alchemy Workshop, yet still insufficient."
The war had just ended, and the goblins’ Alchemy Golems were largely destroyed, less than one-tenth remaining.
Although the Alchemy Workshop was operating day and night under Samantha’s leadership, with the Great Workshop Master’s assistance, the newly produced War Golems were far from adequate to fill the wartime gap.
"We have occupied the entire south, with many strongholds but the time is short, manpower tight, and the Southeast territories not fully assimilated, making comprehensive defense challenging."
"........"
Time steadily ticked away as Solrog first analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of both sides.
Utilizing his Mind Mage abilities, his thoughts were precise and swift, quickly and thoroughly analyzing the situations of both sides.
Ultimately, Solrog’s voice paused, concluding: "I suggest simultaneously adopting a ’top-level beheading’ and ’bottom-level attrition’ strategy to make up for the lack of middle-tier power."
Galos nodded, commended: "Hmm, pretty much what I thought."
The sound paused momentarily, as the Red Iron Dragon gradually restrained his smile, earnestly saying: "The war is imminent, we don’t have the time to slowly reap the fruits of victory and consolidate territories, as the human and beastmen alliance could strike at any moment."
"Prepare for battle, send orders to the servant leaders of all major strongholds, and have them all ready for war."
Immediately, commands transmitted through communication tools reached the ears of each leader.
The gap between now and the Molten Iron Tribe’s recent war with the Golden Tooth Tribe wasn’t long, and the Clans were still reveling in the victory’s afterglow, letting out war cries that soared into the sky, their fighting spirit strong and morale high.
They knew very well:
After this battle, the banner of the Molten Iron Tribe would be planted all over the Border Area.
And for these creatures, no matter how humble their race originally was, anyone who followed the great Master of Red Wings — the Molten Iron Race, would share this honor, becoming the rulers of the Border Area.
By then.
Even the base servants working on the assembly lines likely feel pride knowing the Molten Iron Tribe has already dominated the Border Area.