Chapter 641 - 259: Shadow-Stealing Wings, Thunderous Methods

Lektorn’s massive body began to tremble violently, but this time, it was no longer out of fear.

It was out of utter excitement and ecstasy!

It jerked its head up, its eyes burning with a cold, pale fire. It stared intently at the figure before it, a being that seemed incomparably magnificent in its sight. Then, from the very depths of its soul, it offered the most devout loyalty of its entire life.

Lin Ye felt the emotions transmitted through the contract, yet his dark eyes showed not the slightest ripple.

He spoke calmly, issuing his first command.

"Take me to your clan."

[Subjugation Mechanism Triggered!]

[You have obtained your minion Lektorn’s racial skill: Shadow Concealment Skill!]

[Shadow Concealment Skill: You can merge into any shadow and transform into a two-dimensional existence. In this form, you are immune to most physical and energy attacks and can travel at high speeds through connected areas of shadow.]

[Note: However, strong light, pure light, and holy-based powers will restrict your movement and may even cause you harm.]

A thought crossed Lin Ye’s mind.

The next moment, his entire figure seemed to be stained with ink. It rapidly flattened, grew illusory, and silently sank into the massive shadow Lektorn cast at his feet.

An unprecedented, strange sensation washed over him.

It was as if the world had lost its depth.

Lin Ye felt as if he had become a sheet of paper, a disembodied consciousness pressed tightly against the cold stone pavement.

He could "see" everything around him, but the scenery had lost all three-dimensionality, transforming into a series of moving, flat images.

The wind blew over his head, yet he felt no sensation from it at all.

This was what it was like to exist in a two-dimensional form.

"Master..."

Lektorn’s reverent voice echoed directly in Lin Ye’s mind through their master-servant contract.

"Let’s go."

Lin Ye gave the short command.

"As you command!"

Suppressing the excitement within, Lektorn gave a powerful flap of its massive, bat-like wings. Its body shot into the sky, kicking up a fierce gale as it flew toward the decaying world tree that pierced the heavens.

High in the air, the wind howled.

As Lin Ye adjusted to this new state of stealth, he used the contract to ask Lektorn for more information about its clan.

Soon, a clearer picture of the power structure began to form in his mind.

The Shadow-Stealing Wings, or rather, the Inkshadow Clan.

This was a massive tribe of over ten thousand lesser dragons, hereditarily ruled by the ancient Chateaubriand Family.

The current clan chief was named Belashen Sedobrian, a powerful member of the Shadow-Stealing Wings who had lived for nearly a thousand years.

And the sole purpose for their entire clan’s existence was—

To defend the outer perimeter of the Celestial Dragon’s Nest.

To put it bluntly, they were a pack of watchdogs.

For generations, they had lived on the withered outer branches of the world tree, forbidden from taking a single step inside the Dragon’s Nest.

Within that nest, built from the most central and verdant branches of the world tree, lived hundreds of thousands of true members of the Dragon Race with nobler bloodlines.

"Master, according to the secrets passed down through my clan for generations, the draconic ancestral land you seek is indeed located beneath the Earth Abyss, in the deepest part of this Eternal Dragon Tomb."

Lektorn’s voice was tinged with gravity.

"However, all physical paths leading to the Earth Abyss were sealed long ago by the ancient Dragon Kings with their supreme power."

"The only true passage is hidden in the deepest part of the Celestial Dragon’s Nest, guarded jointly by several of the strongest high-ranking dragon clans."

A realization struck Lin Ye.

’So that’s how it is.’

No wonder the stone disc’s pillar of light had been pointing downward; the final destination was indeed underground.

And yet, the entrance to the underground was in the sky.

’The organizers... they really knew how to set a trap!’

Without collecting all eight fragments to get the complete map, one could probably scour every inch of the Eternal Dragon Tomb and still never find the real entrance.

While he was lost in thought, Lektorn had already flown to the base of the decaying world tree.

The closer they got, the thicker the oppressive aura of death and decay became.

Lin Ye lifted his head slightly from within Lektorn’s shadow and finally got a clear view of the entire Celestial Dragon’s Nest.

It wasn’t a nest at all, but a city in the sky built upon the skeleton of the world tree!

Countless massive, withered branches, as thick as mountain ranges, grew wildly in every direction from the world tree’s main trunk. They intertwined and coiled around each other, forming a vast, boundless continent in the sky.

On this continent of dead branches, the Dragon Race had used giant stones and some unknown metal to build countless crude fortresses, sharp spires, and cave-like dwellings.

Suspension bridges woven from vines and bones connected the different branch regions, creating an incredibly complex transportation network.

Tens of thousands of Shadow-Stealing Wings circled like vultures, forming black patrol lines around the city’s perimeter.

Their flight paths were not random but followed some ancient, strict formation, keeping any creature that tried to approach within their surveillance.

The entire sky city was shrouded in a grim, oppressive, and militaristic atmosphere.

Just as Lektorn tried to approach a more remote branch platform, something unexpected happened!

"HISS—!"

"HISSS—!"

Several sharp hisses rang out. Seven or eight patrolling Shadow-Stealing Wings spotted it instantly, swarming in like lightning to surround it.

"Look! Isn’t that Lektorn?"

"The traitor who got his own father killed and was personally exiled by Lord Belashen!"

"He actually has the nerve to come back?!"