Regardless, David no longer had the time to guess what the Elves were up in arms about this time; not that it held any real significance anyway. Just like in the movies from Blue Star, there were dozens, if not hundreds, of absurd reasons why a nuclear war might start, each more preposterous than the last. Film plots at least require some semblance of logic, but reality has no such constraints. For instance, David once recalled a news story: Germany was allegedly conspiring to use Taurus cruise missiles—which they had openly refused to supply to Ukraine—to destroy Russia’s Crimean Bridge. The password for this secret military meeting was, absurdly, ‘1234,’ and it consequently became known to the entire world.

And at that very moment, there was no need to wait for the Dragon Royal Court to consolidate opinions and dispatch troops to the Supreme Glacier, because the battle had already erupted from there.

A Teleportation Gate that seemed to slice the Supreme Glacier in half soared into the heavens, reflecting a dark, void-like expanse of twisted starry sky.

Flying high in the sky, David narrowed his eyes. From afar, he could see the horde of Giants on the Supreme Glacier. They were charging like mindless automatons, heedless of the Dragon Breath raining down from the Chromatic Dragons. Their peculiar, varied gaits only reinforced this impression.

What was worse, under a north wind whose maddening effects surpassed even those of the Dragon Mad Lock, numerous Chromatic Dragons had already begun to lose their sanity, indiscriminately attacking friend and foe alike.

Dragons could still resist the Slaying King Star’s ascent by entering hibernation preemptively. But David estimated that against this contamination from the Gate of Ferodiel, even hibernation might prove useless.

After all, even if we dragons want to hibernate, we still need to get into the mood for sleep, don’t we? he thought. Even with mating, if you skip foreplay, you still need to rub together for a bit to build heat and find the feeling, right?

Most importantly, with the ‘apocalypse’ at hand, who the hell could sleep anyway!

David, endowed with divinity, could clearly sense an indescribable wave of fear and Despair spreading…

David instinctively glanced back. Sure enough, apart from Landis and his spouse, who gazed intently at the horizon, his own ‘sensible’ Metal Dragons were cluelessly craning their necks towards the North Pole, like cats on a roadside gawking at an exploding manure truck.

Such a detached attitude, David mused, as if they believed they could simply flee if disaster struck. This was the typical arrogance of a winged, long-lived race.

In contrast, the Elves, who had only just established their Free City-State, were pale as ghosts, trembling so violently they nearly wet themselves.

Sometimes, fear stems from the unknown, David reflected. More often, it stems from past experiences, from a despair passed down through generations until it’s etched into the very soul. When the horrors of the past resurface, this trauma response only intensifies. But some problems can’t be solved by merely claiming ‘ignorance is bliss.’

This was not a Lovecraftian world.

David, having connected with numerous timelines during his recent hibernation, already knew: this contamination from the Gate of Ferodiel was, at minimum, an enhanced version of the Dragon Mad Lock.

The insanity of the Dragon Mad Lock only affected Dragons.

But under this contamination from the Gate of Ferodiel…

All creatures were equal.

It didn’t matter where you ran; it was futile.

Understanding this, David hesitated no longer. Soaring above the mountainous Dragon Court, he spread his wings and extended his claws. Thousands of electric serpents emerged from the gaps between his scales and, at his command, coalesced into a swirling maelstrom that permeated the air.

This was [Thunder Guard], the legendary arcane spell designed by his father, Attilicia, during the construction of the Tokamak Fortress.

In that instant, David, hovering above the Dragon Court on the mountain peaks, appeared to the dragons and Elves below like a rising sun. He was a beacon of dawn, pushing back the oppressive darkness and re-illuminating the land.

Very soon, both Metal Dragons and Elves found the agitation in their hearts somewhat soothed by the radiant, thunderous light. Instinctively, they began to gather towards the Dragon Court where David hovered.

But the mountains were too vast, the dragons too numerous. With my current power, David realized, I’m like a lone flare burning itself out to illuminate a patch of earth in the night. I’m bright, yes, but I can only cover an area a few kilometers in radius. And as time passes, I can’t maintain this forever. This small an area can’t possibly shelter the thousands of Metal Dragons from across the mountains, let alone the Elves at the foot of the peaks, far from my light.

“Father Landis,” David called out, invoking the divine name of the Scales of Justice, “please gather our people towards the Royal Court as much as possible. It’s the only way I can currently slow this cacophonous contamination.”

“Understood,” Landis replied, giving David a deep look. He knew his son was still hiding many things, but now was not the time to press for details. He chose to believe in his child.

At the decree of Landis, the North Wind Dragon King, Metal Dragons converged on the Royal Court from all corners of the mountain range. Against the ever-darkening sky, they resembled a flock of sparrows migrating before a tempest, quickly overwhelming the limited space within the Royal Court.

In this desperate struggle for survival, the zone illuminated by David became a veritable Noah’s Ark against a rising flood. The dragons could barely secure their own safety, much less spare a thought for the Elves at the mountain’s base, who could only flee on foot.

For a time, the Elves, seemingly abandoned by fate, sank deeper into collapse and Despair. And the more Despair they felt, the greater their resentment toward the Elven gods they once worshipped. For it was their own gods who had, at this very moment, pushed them into the Abyss.

“Your Highness David Uthos…”

From a high tower in the city, Iryst gazed at David’s distant silhouette, murmuring his name.

Like David, I was born with divinity, she thought. I had the chance to flee up the mountain, to seek his protection. But ultimately, I chose not to. My identity, my bloodline… both are original sins. I don’t want to cause him any more trouble, especially now.

But just as she abandoned all hope of survival, preparing to perish with her fellow Elves, a silver Dragon Spear, hurled by that same Silver Dragon, plummeted from the sky. It descended like a spear of divine retribution.

For an instant, watching the Dragon Spear arc towards her, Iryst felt a flicker of relief, a ghost of a smile touching her lips. If this can appease even a fraction of His Highness’s hatred, she mused, then perhaps my death will have had some small meaning.

But a sudden gust of wind swept her hair across her face. When Iryst blinked her eyes open in astonishment, she saw the Dragon Spear embedded at her feet. It was apparently not a weapon…

With a snap, it transformed, a pale blue halo erupting outwards. As the halo expanded, all the Elves, Iryst included, felt the turmoil of negative emotions in their hearts melt away, like snow under a scorching mid-May sun.

It was as if another beacon of hope had been ignited within their Free City-State.

Soon, the suddenly redeemed Elves discovered that not only their Free City-State was blessed; more than a dozen similar ‘Dragon Spears’ had landed throughout the mountains, each blossoming like a flower bud.

What they didn’t know was that, in another world, it had a name known to all:

[Thunder Dragon Mace].

David had materialized these using the Authority of his [Arrogance].

Truthfully, I wasn’t too concerned about the fate of these Elves, David admitted to himself. After all, I can barely look after my own Metal Dragons. But who could have guessed these Elves would build so many useful city-states as footholds? Every Gothic spire and life-magic-grown treehouse offers a stable perch for an adult dragon.

But soon, David faced an unexpected situation. He suddenly found that his Authority, which should have been rapidly depleting, was now recovering—slowly, yet steadily.

[Sloth]

[Greed]

[Arrogance]

…

The power of faith? The conclusion was astonishing even to David. What’s even more absurd is that this power of faith isn’t coming from the dragons, but from those Elves in the city…

David glanced back abruptly. He saw the Elves, whom his unintentional act had pulled back from the Abyss of Despair. Led by Iryst, they were kneeling en masse in their Free City-State, their expressions a mixture of fervent devotion and adoration, as if in worship.

In that instant, David had a moment of enlightenment:

In Despair, to abandon all effort and place all hope in others—even gods—to save oneself… if that isn’t [Sloth], what is?

To desperately cling to life, to hope, to the future… isn’t that also [Greed]?

And all of this… it all stems from [Arrogance]…

Yet these very shadows of human nature, burning so fiercely, had paradoxically become his wellspring of power.

Screw it, David thought, a fierce grin spreading across his draconic features as his claw tightened. If it works, it works.

The next moment, more [Thunder Dragon Maces] rained down, like treasures from a king’s hoard, re-illuminating the mountains that had begun to fade into shadow.

They finally had the means to brace for war.

But that was all it was—merely the qualification to fight.

As a fierce gust of wind swept past, a four-headed ‘Monster’ landed beside David.

The sudden arrival of the Chromatic Dragon Queen gave Landis and his wife a terrible fright:

“Tiamat!!!”

Including David, they soon found that the once magnificent and valiant Chromatic Dragon Queen was now covered in wounds. A horrific cavity gaped in her chest, and her White Dragon head was gone entirely. Only a raw, writhing stump of a neck remained, the wound pulsing but refusing to regenerate despite her power.

Just as I thought, David mused bitterly. Even someone as mighty as Tiamat is no match for them.

But Tiamat, seemingly unconcerned with any other dragon present, spoke directly to him:

“David Uthos, think of something quickly.”

Perhaps in Her eyes, only David, the ‘transmigrator,’ could find a breakthrough.

David opened his mouth, then closed it. When it comes to sheer arrogance, You truly are unbeatable, Your Majesty, he thought.

But everyone knew this wasn’t the time for such commentary. He took a deep breath and asked, “But I need to know who our enemy truly is. That’s something I didn’t understand even at the moment of my ‘last’ death. So, Your Majesty, did you see them?”

“I saw them…” A flicker of utter disbelief and profound fear surfaced in Tiamat’s four remaining pairs of eyes.

David asked, “Then, what is that… thing… in the deepest part of it all?”

Tiamat was silent for a moment, then answered, her voice laced with uncertainty, “It should… count as a divine abomination. A divine Elf abomination, cobbled together from the corpses of an entire plane’s worth of beings, its form twisted beyond all recognition.”

“Just one divine abomination?” David found it hard to believe.

Could a single divine abomination cause this much devastation?

Honestly, I don’t get it, David mused. Things have escalated this far, so where the hell has the supposed Supreme Deity gone? Theoretically, if any system suffers a catastrophic, all-encompassing bug, isn’t the ‘backend support’ obligated to step in? They shouldn’t just be sitting idly by.

Then, Tiamat let out a long sigh. “Yes, just a divine abomination. However, atop its head stands another… existence.

“The Staff of the Traveler is stuck in His skull.

“If… my perception hasn’t been distorted…” Her voice dropped low. “He should be AO.

“Our Supreme Deity…

“But He seems…

“To have gone mad…”

David opened his mouth and, in the end, could only utter a profanity that seemed to express his current state of mind:

“Fuck!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep