The drifting mist slowly settled into shape.
A tall elderly man emerged from within it, appearing to be in his late fifties. His golden hair fell loosely over his shoulders, and he wore plain white robes that made him look no different from an ordinary scholar. Yet the moment his feet touched the ground, the surrounding spiritual energy instinctively bowed toward him, as though the world itself recognized his authority.
Emery had no doubt who stood before him.
The Nine Heavens Supreme of the Sky Dragon Clan.
Emery inclined his head, keeping his tone calm and respectful.
"I apologize for the intrusion, Senior. I came on an urgent matter and am looking for someone."
The Supreme regarded him with open amusement.
"Looking for someone?" he repeated. "And who, exactly, would you be looking for on my sacred mountain?"
"The Serpent Supreme," Emery answered without hesitation.
"Oh?"
One of the man’s brows rose slightly.
"And what are you to Ronan?"
Emery considered the question for only a brief moment.
"I have the honor of being called a friend"
It wasn’t a lie.
Ronan himself had said as much years ago during the conflict with Ishtar on Golden city matter. Emery could only hope that the claim still carried some weight.
The Supreme studied him for several long moments before finally speaking.
"If you truly are Ronan’s friend, I would gladly allow you to see him."
He paused, the faint smile never leaving his face.
"But you forced your way into this sanctuary... That trespass still requires an explanation."
Emery released a quiet breath.
He clasped his hands together respectfully.
"And what punishment does Senior have in mind—"
He never finished.
The Supreme casually raised one hand.
The surrounding air instantly folded inward, rushing toward his palm with terrifying force. For the briefest instant, the entire valley fell unnaturally silent before the compressed wind erupted forward in a single invisible blast.
Emery reacted purely on instinct.
Black dragonfire gathered around both palms as Killgragah roared behind him with all the force he could muster.
The two attacks collided.
BAAAMMM
A deafening explosion ripped through the valley as compressed wind and black dragonfire intertwined, twisting into a towering vortex.
Yet even after the collision, nearly half of the Supreme’s attack continued forward.
It slammed directly into Emery.
The impact crashed against both of his arms with enough force to buckle the stone beneath his feet.
His expression tightened.
If I take this head-on... it’ll shatter both my arms.
Without hesitation, Emery drew upon the strength of his primal bloodline, reinforcing every muscle and bone on his two arms before meeting the remaining force head-on.
His boots gouged twin trenches through the earth as he was driven backward across the terrace, but his arms held.
Barely.
When the gale finally dissipated, Emery flexed his numb fingers before rubbing his forearms with an irritated look.
"...That actually hurt."
He looked up at the Supreme and frowned.
"Launching a surprise attack before I could even finish speaking..."
He muttered and shook his head.
"That’s hardly the conduct I’d expect from a Supreme"
The Supreme’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"You’re not from any dragon clan."
Emery kept his expression perfectly composed.
His primal beast strength had clearly revealed more than he intended. Fortunately, the Star-Devouring bloodline was rare enough that even a Supreme was unlikely to identify it immediately. At most, he had aroused suspicion rather than certainty.
That would have to be enough.
"I never claimed to be, Senior."
He inclined his head once more.
"As for who I am... please allow me to see the Serpent Supreme. He can answer the rest far better than I can."
The response clearly failed to satisfy the old man.
"Very well."
The Supreme nodded leisurely.
"I’ll allow you to meet Ronan, and I’ll even overlook your trespass..."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"...provided you can withstand three of my strikes."
Emery blinked.
"Three?" He forced out a helpless smile.
The thought of facing the might of a Dragon Supreme made him slightly anxious, yet deep within, his blood began to boil with excitement. He wanted to see just how far his strength had grown over all these years.
"Alright..." He smiled. "So, two more?"
The Supreme offered no reply. Instead, his palm swept through a slow, graceful arc.
This time, Emery saw it clearly.
The surrounding wind no longer simply compressed—it revolved around the Supreme’s hand in spiraling layers, gathering momentum until the entire valley seemed to breathe in unison with his movement.
Emery grinned.
"Daurgototh... you’re up next."
The black flames surrounding Emery shifted at his command, their searing heat fading into an eerie, deathly chill as a second draconic silhouette slowly emerged beside Killgragah. Unlike the Guardian of black fire, Daurgototh’s body forged from frost and ancient bone, its breath pouring from its jaws in dense white mist that instantly coated the nearby leaves in glittering crystals. The surrounding temperature plummeted so abruptly that the moisture lingering in the air froze where it drifted.
Drawing upon the Guardian’s power, Emery gathered the freezing Khaos energy into his arms and answered the incoming strike with a torrent of absolute cold.
The collision sent frost racing across the shattered terrace, ice spreading in branching, spiderweb-like patterns over the broken stone.
Daurgototh’s possessed a clear advantage over Killgragah’s flames when it came to defense. Combined with the full strength of Emery’s Primal Form flowing through his arms, it created a formidable defensive technique.
Even so, the force behind the Supreme’s palm technique overwhelmed the frozen current, driving Emery backward another several steps as his boots carved deep trenches into the ground before finally stopping only a few feet from the cliff’s edge.
The Supreme watched him with growing curiosity, his calm expression betraying the first genuine surprise since the battle had begun.
"Flame and ice...." His eyes narrowed slightly as he studied the two draconic phantoms lingering behind Emery. "I wasn’t aware the Twin Dragon Clan had produced someone like you."
Emery simply remained silent, making no effort to correct the misunderstanding.
"That’s two strikes," he replied instead, forcing the words out through gritted teeth.
Something in the Supreme’s expression changed. The playful amusement gradually faded as he slowly raised both hands, and with that simple movement, the atmosphere of the entire valley transformed. Vast currents of wind converged around him as the phantom form of an enormous dragon slowly materialized behind his back, its majestic silhouette towering over the valley and radiating an overwhelming aura that made even the surrounding mountains seem to fall silent.
The Dragon Knights instinctively retreated several steps, their captain’s face turning unusually solemn as he looked toward the white-robed figure.
"The Patriarch..." he muttered quietly. "...is using the True Dragon Air Palm."
This time the surrounding air did not merely gather around the Supreme.
It collapsed inward.
The entire valley fell into an unnatural silence as countless streams of wind compressed toward his outstretched palms. Above them, the clouds twisted into an enormous spiral stretching across the heavens.
Seeing the attack take shape, Emery ready himself.
Killgragah’s black flames wrapped around his right arm while Daurgototh’s freezing aura engulfed his left. Instead of keeping the two opposing forces apart, he brought them together.
This had been the true reason he summoned Daurgototh earlier.
He had been preparing for the third strike all along.
Guiding both Khaos Guardians through his comprehension of the Dao of Heaven and Earth, Emery reshaped his Ice and Fire Dao into a palm technique, allowing flame and frost to circulate through the same meridians without destroying one another. Steam hissed violently across his arms as blazing heat and absolute cold reached a delicate equilibrium, each force sharpening rather than weakening the other.
Bringing both palms together, Emery unleashed everything he had.
[Frostfire Rend].
Flame and ice erupted simultaneously, colliding head-on with the Supreme’s overwhelming torrent. For the briefest moment the entire valley seemed to lose its color as black fire and crystalline frost engulfed the battlefield together, light itself bending strangely around the point where the two techniques met before the unstable balance finally gave way.
BOOOOM!!
The outcome stunned everyone watching.
The five Dragon Knights stood frozen in disbelief, and even the Nine Heavens Supreme allowed genuine surprise to flicker across his face. Against all expectation, Emery had held his ground. Not a single step backward.
The Supreme smiled.
"That is an impressive palm technique."
Outwardly, Emery remained perfectly composed, lowering his hands as though enduring the clash had cost him little effort.
Inwardly, however, it was an entirely different story.
Multiple bone in his body throbbed with pain, his meridians felt as though they had been scraped raw, and the violent collision had left his inner strength in turmoil. Simply remaining upright demanded every ounce of his will, but he refused to let any of it show. If nothing else, perhaps enduring the three strikes with dignity would earn him a little goodwill.
Unfortunately...
It did not.
Before Emery could even catch his breath, the Supreme leisurely rose into the sky once more.
His raised palm pointed toward the heavens as the surrounding winds answered his call. Streams of air spiraled upward into a towering vortex.
High above, dark thunderclouds rapidly converged until the entire sky over the valley had turned the deep violet of an approaching storm.
Lightning no longer fell from the heavens.
Instead, it poured into the vortex.
Endless bolts intertwined within the storm, weaving themselves together until the raging tempest gradually assumed the shape of an enormous dragon.
Emery’s eye twitched.
"...This despicable Senior can’t even count!!!.. That’s strike number four!"
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