Chapter Fifty: Electra’s Prisoner (Part One)

ICP Registration No.: Xiang B2-20100081-3, Internet Publishing License: New Internet Certificate (Xiang) No. 11, Online Cultural Operation License: Wen Wang Wen [2010] No. 128

In the jungle, at the central area.

He could sense the little being inside his body responding on a conscious level to that demon dragon, though unfortunately, he had no idea what they were communicating about.

Polymorph was a rather advanced nature spell; Gong Hao had not expected a demon dragon to command such power.

Considering how silently this demon dragon had arrived, it meant she was, at the very least, adept in both nature and spatial magic.

Yet, curiously enough, she hadn’t bothered to conjure clothes for herself—the woman transformed from the demon dragon was utterly naked.

Gong Hao lowered his head and said, “I hadn’t expected you, my lady, to possess the ability to transform. Had I known, I would have brought some clothes for you.”

The woman, born of the demon dragon, let out a haughty laugh. “You’re very articulate, Xiu Yigelai’er. You can simply say I should put on some clothes. It isn’t difficult for me. Oh, and don’t wonder how I know your name.”

With a casual wave of her hand, countless leaves swirled up to wrap around her, concealing her most vital parts.

Yet most of her body still lay bare, exposed in all its alluring radiance.

The demon dragon muttered to herself, “I remember human women like to dress this way.”

“Only when they’re facing their lovers, my lady.”

“So that’s how it is.” The demon dragon nodded, clearly her understanding of the human world was limited—but the next moment, she looked at Gong Hao with teasing eyes and said softly, “Your body carries my child. From a human perspective, you could be considered my lover, couldn’t you? I assume you don’t mind me dressing like this?”

Gong Hao sighed helplessly. “No, I don’t mind. But I must clarify, men cannot give birth. In truth, I’ve been quite anxious, wondering how your child intends to leave my body—I mean…I lack the necessary passage to bring forth a child.”

“Usually, we use a rather simple method.” The demon dragon extended a hand, her slender fingers tracing lightly through the air. A spatial rift appeared, then vanished again.

As expected, truly powerful, and rather forceful.

Gong Hao continued, “But your child promised me he would use a gentler method.”

“Yes, he told me,” the demon dragon nodded. “He said you are different from everyone else on this island. You cherish magical beasts greatly, and care for them as friends. You even helped the Flamebird regain its life. Oh, by the way, the Flamebirds often speak of you to me, too. They’re very grateful; they say you are the only good person on this island.”

Gong Hao suddenly understood. “So it was you who helped Red recover?”

The demon dragon nodded. “Red was merely suffering from blood loss; given time, he would have recovered. I only expedited the process. I hear you named the Flamebirds Red and Green?”

“Yes, but I never imagined they were your friends.”

“Lonely lives grow desolate. I’ve been trapped here for so long, long enough that I needed to befriend lesser beings just to pass the dull hours of wakefulness. The Flamebirds are among the few spiritual creatures; though they cannot speak, they understand most languages and intentions, so when I’m awake, I often chat with them. But those little ones can be quite outrageous. Red even dared to secretly warn you behind my back. He knows I won’t harm you, but he worries I might hurt that young girl. If only I could leave this place…hmpf!”

Clearly, the demon dragon was displeased about Red warning Gong Hao, but in the end she forgave him. Had Red not alerted Gong Hao back then, perhaps the demon dragon might have become jealous upon seeing Avril together with “the boy carrying her child.” And a jealous female demon dragon was a terrifying thing. Flamebirds respected love; Red would never wish for the girl blessed by his own mate to die beneath a demon dragon’s claws. Only now did Gong Hao understand why Red had been so desperate to urge Avril to leave quickly that time.

“That’s precisely what puzzles me,” Gong Hao mused, unable to contain his curiosity any longer. “I can’t fathom what force could confine someone as powerful as you, even to the point that…”

“That I was injured, my wings broken, never able to fly again, yes?” Gong Hao lowered his head. “I hope my question doesn’t anger you.”

“If not for my child inside you, I might well have torn you apart.”

Gong Hao sighed inwardly. As expected.

It was always taboo to touch upon someone’s scars, whether human or magical beast.

“A human,” the demon dragon answered suddenly.

A human? Gong Hao was stunned. What kind of person could possess the power to imprison this demon dragon? And why would he do such a thing?

“Don’t be surprised, Xiu Yigelai’er. There is no such thing as an invincible being. If there were, it could only be one thing: wisdom. Though demon dragons are mighty, in the face of human wisdom, we are often powerless. The one who imprisoned me here—his name is Electra.”

Electra—almost every mention of this name was accompanied by awe and resignation.

People often wonder what kind of person could accomplish such earth-shattering feats, and cannot fathom how one man could possess such wisdom, such a collection of towering achievements.

Electra was clearly such a figure—one who perpetually inspired admiration and wonder.

According to the demon dragon, the spatial gate here indeed led to the Abyss, and the demon dragon race itself was born of the Abyss.

No one knew how Electra traversed the energy-storm-ridden spatial gate to reach the Abyss, but there he had defeated countless powerful beings. He was not only a master alchemist but also a formidable mage, possessing at least two supreme schools of magic—holy magic and soul magic.

Gong Hao was not surprised. He had seen Electra use a holy barrier to ward off a meteorite, and the flesh golems were closely related to soul magic.

The demon dragoness had been defeated by Electra and brought to Purgatory Island.

She was still alive only because Electra required a powerful being to guard the spatial gate and prevent anyone from approaching. Of course, Electra had promised her that upon his return, he would release her completely. Thus, unable to escape, the demon dragon could only keep her lonely vigil on the island.

“He is the most powerful and most terrifying mage I have ever met. I can hardly comprehend how a human could reach such heights. I hear you categorize human mages into seven levels, above which is the Saint rank. Let me tell you, Electra’s achievements in personal magic have absolutely reached the standard of a Saint. I am no match for him. Even without the aid of his advanced golems and alchemical devices, I would still be no match for him. That is why I am here. He made me understand that humans are the most unfathomable of all beings—you should be at the bottom of the food chain, yet through effort and cultivation, you can rise to the pinnacle of strength… It’s terrifying. Fortunately, there are not many like Electra.”

“I’m sorry, my lady. I thought that when you mentioned his name, you would hate him; but now it seems you also respect him?”

“Yes, of course I hate him. He took away my freedom for three hundred years. But at the same time, he delivered me from the Abyss. You must understand, that place is nothing like this one, vibrant and full of life. Unless you have been there, you can never imagine what it takes to survive in such a hellish place.”

Here, the demon dragon’s gaze moved tenderly to Gong Hao’s belly, making him shiver. “Had Electra not brought me here, my child would never have survived. So, despite my hatred, I am grateful to him. Aside from my inability to fly freely, I could hardly wish for a better life. These three hundred years have been the loneliest, but also the most peaceful of my existence. And my child was successfully born within me… For us, it takes a long time to bring a child to life, and even then, it may not survive.”

“I see.”

“And of course, I must thank you. Without you, my child might not have made it this far. He is at his final trial now. If he passes, he will be truly formed; though still a child, he will no longer need your protection.”

“I hope you won’t turn on me once that happens.”

The demon dragoness laughed. “I completely understand your concern. But my child has spoken well of you; he likes you very much, so you need not worry.”

With that, the demon dragon suddenly reached out and touched Gong Hao’s lower abdomen. A warm current flowed from outside his body inward.

Gong Hao felt something inside him squirming, slowly rising as the demon dragon’s hand guided it. Her voice sounded beside his ear: “My child should have emerged six months ago, but he didn’t want to hurt you, so he waited. He believed you would eventually come here, to my side, so he kept using his will to influence you.”

“No wonder my subconscious kept telling me that coming here might not be dangerous. Even when you were hunting Lancelot, I wasn’t afraid.”

“Exactly. Unfortunately, he couldn’t convey anything more explicit to you, so he could only use hints to dispel your fear of me and make you believe you weren’t in danger. He worked at it for half a year, and now he has finally succeeded. Last time, when you rescued Lancelot without coming here, I missed an opportunity… That troublesome Red, he underestimated my tolerance. Admittedly, I do dislike that girl being with you.”

Gong Hao was at a loss for words.

As the demon dragon spoke, Gong Hao felt the foreign presence inside him settle in his chest.

The demon dragon used her finger to poke a small hole in Gong Hao’s chest, and to his surprise, there was no blood, nor any pain.

“Don’t worry,” the demon dragon said with a smile. “You’ll suffer a minor injury, but you’ll recover quickly. It’ll just sting a bit.”

Gong Hao watched as the hole in his chest grew larger and larger.

A small, black, puppy-like head squeezed out of the opening.

To his astonishment, the little black puppy’s skull was soft—it could reshape itself, like a noodle being pulled out, and once exposed to the air, it returned to its original form.

It really was a little black puppy—adorable, with a round head and big ears like a chihuahua.

The demon dragon took her child out, waved her right hand, and the enlarged hole shrank back down to a small bloody wound.

Now came the pain, and blood began to flow from Gong Hao’s chest, as if he’d been stabbed in the heart.

Damn, this was not just a little bit of pain!

The demon dragon waved her right hand again, a white glow flashed from her palm, and the bloody hole healed over, the pain vanishing.

“A spatial channel? You constructed a spatial channel inside my body?” Only now did Gong Hao understand what had happened.

The demon dragon had used this method to extract her child without killing Gong Hao.

“It seems you know quite a bit about spatial magic. Unfortunately, my abilities are limited; I had to make a hole in your body as an anchor. Otherwise, in the process of extracting him, my child might have accidentally slipped into some other space.” The demon dragon looked at her puppy-sized child, her face full of gentleness, tenderness, and love.

No matter how powerful a being, there is always an innate love for one’s own child.

“That was my purpose for coming here—I wanted to see the spatial gate, to understand its principles.”

“That’s another reason I admire humans. Demon dragons can unleash powerful magic, but we cannot explain why it exists. For us, it is as natural as breathing. But humans are different. You lack these innate abilities, yet through research and study, you can achieve your goals, sometimes even surpassing us…”

“So, may I come and see this gate whenever I wish?”

“Of course, you may. Just as you said to your friend outside, even humans can’t spend their days trampling ants for fun. Until you reach Electra’s level, you are, to me, no different from an ant. Besides, my child likes you; he hopes you’ll visit him often.”

“I also hope you’ll forgive Lancelot for his previous disrespect.”

“If he doesn’t disturb my peace again, and never takes my child away while I’m sleeping, then yes.” The demon dragon stroked her son’s little head. “He’s at the mischievous stage now. Worst of all, he is not bound by Electra’s constraints—he can leave the central area at any time. But if he does, I can’t protect him.”

“Don’t worry, I guarantee that won’t happen. Your child will be safe. As for Lancelot’s reason for coming here, it was to collect those spirit seeds. May I ask, what exactly are spirit seeds?”

“Oh, you mean those weak and filthy Sawtooth Beasts?”

“Sawtooth Beasts?”

“Yes, that’s what we call them—a bunch of contemptible, sneaky creatures. Even in the Abyss, they’re not liked.”

“They reproduce by parasitism?”

“Yes. The Abyss is a harsh environment—those who haven’t been there can’t imagine how hellish it is. Parasitism is an effective way to protect the young. In a world where the strong devour the weak, who cares about anyone else’s life? As long as your own offspring survive, that’s all that matters.”

From the demon dragon’s tone, it seemed that such parasitic reproduction was common in the Abyss. Life there survived by such means to escape the dangerous early stages of growth.

“How did they get here?”

“Electra didn’t bring back only me—he brought other creatures as well. One of his objectives in the Abyss was to seek new species. Among those he brought was a mother Sawtooth Beast, which carried the seeds of life within it. Unlike us—demon dragons rarely have more than two children at once—a Sawtooth Beast can give birth to tens of thousands of offspring at a time. Yet in the Abyss, only a thousandth may survive. Their method is to produce as many as possible, ensuring at least a few make it. We, on the other hand, rely on our strength for reproduction. In terms of reproductive success, the lowly Sawtooth Beasts actually outperform us. After all, we cannot afford to lose, but they can. The only thing was, Electra failed to notice that the Sawtooth Beast he brought back carried seeds of life. Not long after, he returned to the Abyss and abandoned the Sawtooth Beast.”

Gong Hao could only smile wryly. “That Sawtooth Beast may well be the happiest mother alive—my mentor collected every seed he could and ensured they all survived and bred.”

“For humans, they make a very useful weapon indeed.”

“How many years until they reach reproductive age?”

“Much like humans—twenty-five years.”

“So, in two years, if the Lanse Empire wishes, they’ll possess an endless supply of such weapons…” At this thought, Gong Hao looked up and asked, “Could you give me a few of those spirit seeds?”