Chapter 184: Threat
Two days later.
Morning.
The first rays of sunlight spread across the Grimwood Mountains, bathing the towering peaks in a warm golden glow. A cool morning breeze swept through the endless forest below, carrying with it the sounds of rustling leaves and distant rivers. Standing atop the mountain peak were Asher and his many vessels. Beside them stood the dragon, his massive figure towering over everyone else. The two sides remained silent for a while, simply enjoying the peaceful scenery.
After a few moments, one of Asher’s vessels turned toward the dragon with a faint smile. "Well, it’s time for me to leave now, so I guess this is goodbye for now." He stretched lazily before a mischievous smile appeared on his face. "Although... are you sure you don’t want to introduce me to your family?"
The dragon shot him an indifferent glance before replying in a cold tone, "Just leave already. And I don’t have a family. Every living being on this continent is my family."
Hearing that answer, Asher couldn’t help but laugh. "What an answer. Exactly what I’d expect from the Guardian of an entire continent." His smile slowly became more meaningful as he looked directly into the dragon’s eyes. "But... you shouldn’t lie. I can see many things that others can’t."
The dragon didn’t reply, and Asher didn’t say anything further either. Silence filled the mountain peak for a few moments before a crack suddenly appeared in space. One after another, Asher’s fifteen vessels calmly stepped into it.
Soon, only the vessel that had been speaking with the dragon remained. With one foot already inside the crack, he turned back and looked at the dragon with a faint smile. "I hope we never have to meet again. And if we do... I hope it won’t be on a battlefield."
The dragon narrowed his eyes and replied in a cold voice, "Are you threatening me?"
Asher simply shook his head. "Nah, I’m just hoping we won’t have to fight." Just before stepping inside, his gaze suddenly shifted toward a distant mountain. After looking at it for a brief moment, he smiled and said, "Also... say hi to your family for me. I hope they live long and healthy lives."
Without waiting for a reply, Asher stepped into the crack. The spatial fissure slowly closed behind him, leaving the dragon standing alone on the mountain peak once again.
The dragon looked at the place where the spatial crack had disappeared before slowly turning his gaze toward the distant mountain Asher had looked at. His expression gradually became solemn.
After a long silence, he muttered,
"Yeah... not a threat."
He let out an exhausted laugh before continuing,
"If that wasn’t a threat, then what was?"
Shaking his head, he smiled bitterly.
"Who would have thought that one day I would be threatened by someone... within my own domain, no less."
After a few moments, he shifted his gaze toward the direction of the Human Continent.
"I wonder what kind of disaster will unfold for the humans once they learn of his existence and inevitably choose to fight him."
His golden eyes narrowed slightly.
"Will humanity win... or will that monster?"He slowly spread his wings."Only time will tell."
With a powerful flap, the dragon soared into the sky.As he disappeared into the clouds, he quietly muttered to himself,"It doesn’t really matter who wins."
He remained silent for a brief moment before continuing,
"As for who will survive..."
A bitter smile appeared on his face.
"That was obvious from the very beginning."
He recalled the words Asher had once spoken."A Coward never dies."
In the Southern Ocean, between the Human Continent and the Demon Continent...
There existed a small, seemingly unremarkable island.
From the outside, it looked no different from countless other islands scattered across the endless sea. It was covered with lush greenery, surrounded by clear blue water, and gave off no unusual aura whatsoever. Anyone passing by would simply dismiss it as another ordinary island.
But it was anything but ordinary.
This island served as the headquarters of Asher’s vessels, a place where every Master-rank vessel eventually gathered.
Any vessel that had reached the Master Rank—or was on the verge of advancing to it—would eventually arrive here. As of now, there were three hundred and two Master-rank vessels residing on the island.
As for the so-called headquarters...
There wasn’t a magnificent palace, a grand fortress, or an imposing military base.
Instead, the island was filled with surprisingly ordinary things.
Comfortable houses, kitchens stocked with food, refrigerators packed with ice cream and fruit juice, and every other daily necessity the vessels could possibly need.
The most important facilities, however, were the countless rooms filled with top-of-the-line supercomputers capable of running virtually any game in existence without the slightest difficulty. Alongside them were every kind of gaming device, entertainment equipment, and countless other things the vessels had gathered simply because they enjoyed using them.
And,there was absolutely nothing abnormal about any of it.
All of these facilities were concealed beneath an extremely powerful barrier. Not only did it hide the island from outsiders, but it also prevented wild beasts from wandering inside and causing unnecessary trouble.
Inside one of the ordinary houses on the island, a single vessel stood quietly by himself. Suddenly, the space before him distorted, and a spatial crack slowly opened. One after another, the fifteen vessels that had been on the Grimwood Continent only moments earlier stepped out of it.
As soon as they arrived, one of the vessels looked around before smiling.
"Looks like it was a success."
He stretched his arms before continuing,
"Now all of our mini spatial domains are finally connected. From now on, we won’t have to waste such a huge amount of mana or spend days traveling thousands of kilometers anymore. As long as one of us is already present at a location, every other vessel can instantly travel there."
The other vessels simply nodded in agreement.