Chapter 263-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation
Soon, the woman who had come to pick a fight surrendered along with her friends, swearing allegiance to the Disciples on the spot and pledging loyalty to Sierra.
Sierra couldn't be bothered to manage them and tossed them to her subordinates to handle.
She looked up and beckoned to a Dragon-Bodied Human resting on the rooftop. The figure flapped its wings and landed on the ground. Yet Sierra kept her head tilted upward, gazing at the night sky, her eyes unfocused.
After the previous chaos in the South District, security had been reinforced. Sierra had no choice but to shelve her plans for the South District for now. As for the Dragon Bone that Ye Zheng had taken, Sierra had to admit the chances of reclaiming it were slim at the moment. She could only let Ye Zheng strut around for a few more days.
She'd heard there was Dragon Bone in the Middle District too, but the distance was too great. That made the North District of the lower district the most viable target.
Ever since being trapped in the Blood Flower Demonic Domain at the age of seven, Sierra had spent her days and nights alongside the cold Dragon Bone. It couldn't speak—it was a dead thing—yet it provided her with a ceaseless supply of power. It was her most reliable ally.
The bright full moon scattered its glow. Sierra reached toward the moon, then clenched her fist until her blanched nails nearly dug into her palm.
She would find all the Dragon Bone before Ye Zheng could!
The Black Dragon's massive body suddenly lowered. The woman fused with the dragon's frame leaned down, her pitch-dark eyes fixed on Sierra as she forced out halting syllables beside her ear.
"...At the border zone?" Sierra muttered.
The black-scaled face showed no expression. The Dragon-Bodied Human slowly straightened and let out a cry no human body could possibly produce.
Sierra looked up at the Dragon-Bodied Human, a flicker of confusion crossing her shadowed expression—was it her control ability at work? These creatures were getting smarter and smarter, and their power seemed to be growing silently as well.
She couldn't actually understand their language at all—just garbled nonsense. Strangely, though, she could guess their meaning by instinct.
Sierra gave the Black Dragon's body a half-hearted pat. Whatever the case, they had fully accepted her as their leader. Getting stronger was simply what they were supposed to do.
Just let Ye Zheng wait and see—she would lead true demon dragons to flatten the upper district, to flatten that place that would never open its doors to her, that had always trampled her underfoot!
The next day, just as Sierra was gearing up to head for the North District, she received news that put her in a foul mood.
The Sei Curia had redrawn the Empire's Dioceses. Some merged, some were split into separate ones, and the West District was no exception.
Sierra had never cared which area fell under which Diocese's jurisdiction. She didn't understand what Ye Zheng was trying to accomplish with this sudden move. However, the new Archbishop of her Diocese was that nagging old nun Annabelle.
Upon hearing the news, Sierra let out a derisive snort. Even better if it was someone she knew—Annabelle and her kind were the same as Lucy: weak and useless.
Sierra leaped onto the Black Dragon's spine. Her wild golden hair blazed under the scorching sun. Black wings unfurled and carried her into the sky.
*
"Dragon Bone, Dragon Bone... where on earth is it..."
The breathless young man slumped to the ground in exhaustion. Roy watched the white Barrier slowly dissipate, revealing a dark metallic space.
Half a day earlier, they had followed a secret passage downward until a wall of black metal blocked their path. Percy used his Metal Transmutation ability and the Divine Sword to break through, but what awaited them wasn't buried Dragon Bone—it was a lush, thriving paradise.
They quickly came to their senses—a Demonic Domain!
This Demonic Domain was highly abnormal. The longer they stayed, the greater the pressure on their bodies. They soon identified an unusually nimble rabbit and determined it was the core, but it was far too fast and skilled at hiding. No one could catch it.
Roy nearly thought his organs would burst. Fortunately, at the critical moment, Bai Yi made a snap decision and set the entire Demonic Domain ablaze. Just before they choked to death on the thick smoke, the Demonic Domain finally dissipated.
Looking thoroughly battered, Percy brushed the dust off his clothes and pulled his teammates to their feet. His still, blue eyes watched the Barrier fade. Suddenly, as if sensing something, his gaze shifted to the center—white remains lay quietly on the ground.
Bai Yi approached carefully, crouched down to examine them, and after a long while reached his conclusion. "It's a demon dragon's Wing Bone."
"So why was Dragon Bone hidden inside... a Demonic Domain?"
After speaking, Percy surveyed the surrounding metallic space and determined it was an underground sealed chamber constructed from Heterogeneous Stone.
Heterogeneous Stone could block the encroachment of Demonic Domains, which was why it was used to build shelters and certain special passages.
Percy quickly understood. To bury the Dragon Bone, the leaders of the past had built a two-layered prison: first, the impenetrable Heterogeneous Stone; second, an extremely dangerous Demonic Domain. If anyone breached the outer metal cage, the Demonic Domain inside would kill the intruder without mercy.
Percy shuddered at the thought. That lethal pressure still kept him from fully straightening his spine. Without Bai Yi, they might well have perished down here.
"The Duke Bai of that era had a Barrier ability." Bai Yi frowned. Even he hadn't known how perilous it would be inside.
"Perhaps he 'captured' this Demonic Domain, placed the Dragon Bone within it, and then sealed everything off with Heterogeneous Stone—eliminating any possibility of the Dragon Bone ever resurfacing..."
As Bai Yi spoke, a moment's hesitation passed through his mind. The heads of the Bai Family had guarded the Dragon Bone's secret generation after generation, and alongside that secret came a warning.
No one was allowed near the Dragon Bone—not even the Bai Family's own descendants.
"Mr. Bai, thank you."
Percy said suddenly, his expression sincere. "If not for you, even if we'd found this place, we couldn't have left safely—let alone secured the Dragon Bone before the Pope."
Bai Yi glanced at the three young men surrounding the Dragon Bone. He slowly closed his eyes. Yes, this was something that had to be done. No matter how powerful and wise his ancestor had been, the man could never have foreseen that five hundred years later, someone like Ye Zheng would appear.
If they didn't act, sooner or later Ye Zheng would come here personally to retrieve the Dragon Bone. No one could guess what she would do with it.
"Without you setting me straight, I'd probably still be wallowing in guilt. I've never met anyone as stead—"
The middle-aged man smiled and patted his junior on the shoulder. But suddenly, the image of a cold, resolute white figure flashed through his mind. His smile faded and he cut himself short.
Percy noticed the shift in the man's mood and was about to say something when another figure interrupted them.
"We found the Dragon Bone, sure—but how do we get it out? And where do we take it?"
Percy turned to Roy, who stood with his arms crossed. He rose to his feet and said, "Mr. Bai has already contacted his people in the South District. The South District is still undergoing large-scale repairs after Sierra's rampage, so personnel and traffic are chaotic. We can use that cover to smuggle the Dragon Bone out."
"Our plan is to consolidate all the Dragon Bone and transport it to a desolate area. That way, even if the Demonic Domains in other regions don't disappear entirely, they should at least be greatly reduced."
Roy listened and nodded approvingly. "Good plan."
He didn't reflexively argue as he usually did, nor did he ask where that desolate place was.
After a pause, Percy's hand moved to the scabbard at his waist.
"Actually, that's my backup plan."
He drew his sword in one swift motion. Golden light flashed across everyone's eyes.
"Destroying the Dragon Bone on the spot—that's the best solution."
Roy's eyelid twitched. He stared at the sword in Percy's hand and instinctively opened his mouth, the words jamming in his throat.
"No—wait!"
The gust from the sword stroke drowned out his voice. Roy's eyes went wide as the blade's light bore down unstoppably on the Dragon Bone lying quietly on the ground.
*
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