Several stacks of papers were carelessly tossed down, and Shena hurriedly caught them one by one, frowning as she looked through them.

"Go back and wait for your good news," Raphael turned his head to the other side and lay down, no longer wanting to speak with Shena.

Seeing Crimson Dragon's attitude, Shena could only swallow her anger and slowly leave with the materials.

The surroundings fell back into silence, except for the guards standing by at the edge of the dragon training ground. Raphael lay alone on this warm grassy field that seemed like a paradise on earth.

But it didn't last long before this tranquil scene was broken by the "caw caw" of a bird call from high above, as a black streak shot down rapidly.

Raphael opened his eyes, a dark golden pupil reflecting the shadowy figure of the raven named Huginn.

Huginn landed on the protruding dragon horn, preening his feathers with his beak before narrating in a mosquito-like low voice about what he had seen and heard on this latest trip.

"No movements from the Dragon Council?"

Raphael pondered after listening.

Whether it was the human invasion or the schemes of the old Morey nobles, it was all just child's play in his mind that he could endure, even if there was a total rout.

Because of time - the longevity and tenacity of dragons. He himself still had 1,700 years left to live.

Even the most prosperous human family dynasty only had a few decades at its peak before inevitably declining and fragmenting.

By then, Raphael would descend upon the land again to take his revenge, and the territories and secular power would return to him.

Only his own kind, those dragons with equally long lifespans, posed the greatest threat.

"It seems this group really isn't in a hurry. Perhaps they can wait a few hundred years before making their move. Can I withstand it by then?"

Raphael knew in his heart that whether it was the Prulis Faction or the Conservative Faction, their pursuit of interests was the same - one was aggressive and predatory, the other staunchly defending what they already had.

However, he had already slowly pried open a hole to the outside world, and his compatriots would inevitably begin to expand outward through this opening.

Yet how could Raphael, with the meat already in his mouth and at his lips, let it go?

Conflict between the two sides was inevitable. But for now, humans still had an enormous presence. No matter which side acted, it would be an uphill struggle that brought no benefits. Erl's little territory was simply not enough to be worthwhile. Crimson Dragon had occupied it and would not relinquish it.

"In the future, once I succeed in defeating the humans, my relationship with the Dragon Council will inevitably deteriorate rapidly. They will stab me in the back. Perhaps I can do something now to prevent it."

Raphael took Huginn down and placed him on his dragon claw, gently stroking the raven's black feathers with his sharp talons, pondering the future changes in the situation.

It could be foreseen that in the current era of population explosion, regardless of how the various races of beings acted, their overall desires - or rather, the energy needed to sustain their own lives - were constantly increasing.

Yet the Mu continent was only so large. The land had already been exploited to the limit with the advancement of magical technology. The minerals in the mountains had almost been completely excavated, and the resources of the oceans and rivers were also being continuously developed. Eventually, everything would reach a critical threshold.

At that time, regardless of race, power, or ideology, all beings would be swept up in fighting for one thing alone - survival.

"Chaos always spreads toward order, but order cannot spread toward chaos. This is the maxim of the ancient," Raphael vaguely sensed that this world had come to that threshold, and a great calamity was about to occur.

This was the law of nature that no one could stop, just like the Twilight of the Gods in the church scriptures. Every being, including the gods themselves, had already been destined for an ending.

"Time to go back for a while. In addition to bringing Shena experimental materials, I'll pick up Nana as well and see what my compatriots are plotting."

Raphael suddenly stood up, and Huginn flapped his wings, flying towards the distant south.

...

"You're leaving?"

At the top of Pillar Mountain, the ruins of the Dragon Academy.

Arnold pushed aside the stack city game he had been playing, looking at his close friend in surprise.

"That's right, and I hope you can take me back to your hometown, because I want to apologize to the Draconic Sage. In the past I offended him quite a bit, but now I've come to my senses," Raphael's long tail swept away the fallen boulders as he spoke nonchalantly.

"Heh heh, little Raphael, what scheme do you have in mind this time?" Old Flame slowly crawled out from the other side, teasing, "Apologize? I've watched you grow up, when have you ever admitted defeat?"

"My dear uncle, perhaps you're so old you should perform the Farflight Ritual. We dragons never wish to die naturally here and leave our bones behind, do we?" Raphael replied ominously, his tone full of threat and malice, not caring at all that the other was his elder and relative.

"That's more like it!" Old Flame didn't get angry at all. "You look so lively now."

Arnold said cautiously, "Raphael, if you want to see my father, I can arrange an audience for you. But he may have a hard time leaving the Dragon Council."

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"I know."

Ignoring the cranky Old Flame, Raphael turned his head. "As someone who has been long supported, I should still have the right to enter and exit that building, right?"

Arnold nodded in agreement with this statement. "Okay, so when are you planning to set out?"

"No rush, you need to accompany me to Nana's home first."

"Nana!?"

Arnold was taken aback, only now realizing that Raphael and Nana had become mates, and he still hadn't met the blue dragon.

"You didn't know?" Raphael paused, then told him everything that had happened.

The golden dragon's brow furrowed deeper as he listened. "I see!"

His bright golden dragon eyes showed an unprecedented anger and ferocity. "What did the human you mentioned look like? Do you have any specific information about them?"

"You want to go find them for revenge? Forget it! I haven't even thought about digging them out from among the billions of humans." Raphael laughed.

"I'm serious!" Arnold was unusually solemn, his earnest attitude reminding Raphael of how he had spent decades helping to clear Raphael's name when they were young.

"Hmm...I only remember that one of the females had very distinctive long blue hair. That old Moran told me this is an ancient remnant race called Ceilonian," Raphael answered casually.

"There may still be some remaining on the Strife Plain. They are said to have come from the distant sea."

Arnold memorized all of this. "Got it. Then let's set out to find Nana."

"Tomorrow. I still have some things to arrange." Raphael flapped his wings satisfiedly and took off. He had only come to find an accomplice to go back with him.

Apart from helping shield his entry into the Dragon Council to gather information, perhaps Arnold could also help persuade that green dragon Delores.

"Mmm." Arnold gave a perfunctory reply, his mind already fully immersed in the information provided by Crimson Dragon. He even forgot to ask where that other golden dragon Nicole was - he hadn't seen her in weeks.

...

Inside Erl City.

The wolfman Anubis had now made up his mind and was heading towards the royal palace.

Heretic Wing mercenaries were now dispirited, as Anubis had no intention of returning to the Strife Plain. He had even sent the young members of the mercenaries into Erl University, isolating them from the world. The mercenaries had no doubt that after graduating, this group would be die-hard loyalists of that Crimson Dragon, having nothing to do with Heretic Wing anymore - they would probably love to annihilate the organization.

However, all of this was orchestrated by Anubis himself as one of the leaders.

After Hil and Alvis' respective visits, he vaguely understood his own situation.

That was to be a weight tipping the scales of Erl.

If he was determined to return to the Strife Plain, no one could stop him, and Raphael would probably be happy to see them go.

But if he wanted to stay, he would have to join one of the powerful factions, as he could not exist independently without a foothold.

Currently, the major forces were divided into two sides - Crimson Dragon and the human nobles.

Or to put it another way, two levels: the dragonkin who wielded military might and ruled, and the vast human populace.

Although Raphael would be more domineering, from the perspective of his own interests, Anubis should choose to side with the human nobles.

First, because they had a foundation of cooperation; second, the humans were smaller in scale, so by joining them he would have a certain say and freedom, while on Crimson Dragon's side he would be more oppressed, possibly just a burden who lost his freedom.

And yet Anubis had decided to join Crimson Dragon's side.

"The Paladin was right - giving charity is unreasonable, kicking someone when they're down is the right thing to do."

The wolfman recalled the rare advice from the black priest: "For the rich, let them become even richer to rival nations; for the poor, take away even what little they have."

It all meant the same thing - help the strong and hasten the demise of the weak. Then, once the powerful side had taken everything, he could casually claim a sizable share of the expanded benefits.

In the long run, this was far better than joining the human nobles and being a mere shield.

"Moreover, Crimson Dragon's daily speeches at the university are quite compelling! When I was a young wolf, this is what I thought too, but I just didn't have the strength to unify the Strife Plain and bring peace to all demi-human races."

Boom!!

A crimson figure streaked rapidly by at low altitude! The shredding tornado howled and blew everything away in its path.

Caught completely off guard, Anubis was immediately blown away. He quickly drew his massive sword and stabbed it into the ground to avoid crashing into a tree.

"Hmm? Someone there?"

Raphael noticed a tiny figure being blown away and immediately stopped in mid-air to see who it was.

Not because he thought he had harmed the person and wanted to apologize, but because this was work hours, and Crimson Dragon wanted to know which idler was slacking off and delaying Erl's construction process.

"Great dragon! It's me, Anubis of Heretic Wing!"

The wolfman looked up from the ground when he saw Crimson Dragon slowly flying towards him. He immediately jumped up, waving and greeting him.

Then he reacted to something, raising his left hand in a straightforward salute and shouting "Crimson Dragon is supreme!"

"Ah, it's you..." Raphael vaguely recalled the mercenaries who had instantly submitted after being terrified by him. To be honest, if not for Hil constantly updating him on the situations being monitored in various parts of Erl, he would have forgotten about this group long ago.

"Yes! I've come specifically to pledge my allegiance to you!" Anubis had originally planned to take a circuitous route to defect - first find the dwarven king, and express his stance in a roundabout way. After all, it was difficult to meet Crimson Dragon directly, and even his kin vassals couldn't fathom his inner thoughts, so being indirect left him an exit.

But now that he had this fortuitous encounter, he declared his position on the spot.

"..."

Raphael studied this wolfman with an opportunistic look on his face.

Almost all of Erl's specific affairs were being handled by humans, while Hil was attempting to infiltrate. Raphael truly did not know what impact absorbing this force would have.

"Go find Hil, he will tell you what to do," Crimson Dragon eventually said coldly before leaving, only leaving Anubis standing in the wind.

"Although snubbed, my decision cannot be changed." He was not deterred by Raphael's indifference and headed towards the city interior.

...

The next morning at dawn, Raphael had already flown to the peak of Pillar Mountain to wake Arnold up.

"Time to go."

"Huh? The sun's not even up yet..." The golden dragon rubbed his eyes groggily, unwilling to dispel the heating barrier enveloping him.

Raphael basked in the winter chill, his dark golden eyes glinting sharply, his wings frosted over, wisps of steam rising from his body - the evaporating snow heated by his immense red dragon inner temperature. Light snow had begun to fall, the temperature dropping below freezing - extremely uncomfortable for the heat-loving golden and red dragons. Wandering dragons would choose to hibernate through the winter, while those lords with means would spend their days in greenhouses created by magic.

"I bet Nana would love this weather," Arnold hesitated for a moment before finally overcoming his reluctance and dispelling his magic.

"Yes, along with those silver dragons that prefer the highlands," Raphael added, taking a deep breath to further raise his internal heat, instantly melting the surrounding snowflakes.

"Let's go." Arnold cast several draconic spells to insulate himself from the cold.

The two dragons flew shoulder to shoulder northward into dropping temperatures.

"Hey, Raphael, I just remembered our childhood and youth," Arnold found a conversation topic along the way.

"?"

"When we were going on adventures everywhere, like now with you dragging me out of bed on winter mornings in the wild." The golden dragon reminisced about those happy times.

Raphael, however, remained unmoved. "That was all a long time ago."

"But you can't deny how purely joyful we were then, ready to spend all day trying to catch fish from a single stream."

"Perhaps..." This time Raphael fell silent, perhaps touched by those words.

"By the way, what are you clutching in your claw?"

Arnold suddenly noticed his close friend's claw was tightly clenched, seemingly protecting something.

"Little playthings from Emersen," Raphael grinned wickedly and opened his palm to reveal a cage containing the Leonardo elves from before.

"Oh? Why bring them along?" the golden dragon asked, puzzled.

"They'll be useful - I need them to guide me somewhere," Raphael said coldly, looking at the shivering elves in the cage.