Chapter 151: Sky City

The dragon brother and sister devoured their share of elemental essence. Feeling the warmth spread from the inside out, they wore expressions of comfortable intoxication.

Dragons were quintessential magical creatures. As they aged and matured, the magical elements accumulating within them steadily increased. Under the natural laws of growth, a dragon's physical development always outpaced its magical capacity.

However, if their stored magical elements remained abnormally high for their age over an extended period, that excess energy would cycle back to nourish their physical growth. The White Dragon Lord was a prime example: he had not yet reached adulthood, but his sheer size already rivaled an adult.

The White Dragon Lord took out a sack of gems and set it before his brother and sister.

"This is your share for the year," Amos said. "I've already ordered Gurgalu to purchase water-attribute magic gems in bulk. Once you run out, just go to him for more."

Felicia furrowed her brows. Torn, she couldn't help but speak up.

"Amos, isn't this far too extravagant? We're burning through high-quality gems! Oh, by Tiamat, this is practically a crime!"

To summon a Master tier water elemental and have its true form descend, you needed a good lure. Humans die for wealth, birds die for food, and only high-quality gems could effectively increase the chances of a successful summon.

However, the sheer cost of high-quality magic gems was enough to make an average member of the nobility wince in pain. Burning through them in such massive quantities was practically tossing money away. Even though the white dragons were quite wealthy now, watching the gems get sacrificed still made their hearts ache.

The White Dragon Lord's mouth twitched with his own heartache, but he spoke his true thoughts anyway.

"It's all worth it. Converting wealth into strength is the only way to better protect everything we own. Don't you want to become stronger?"

The logic was simple, but very few dragons could actually put it into practice. Hoarding wealth was in their nature; making a dragon spend its precious gold coins was utterly impossible—there wasn't just no door for negotiation, there weren't even windows.

However, under the White Dragon Lord's influence, Willy had become different from ordinary dragons. He had learned to think rationally. He picked up the sack from the ground.

"I think our brother is right," Willy said. "If you don't want them, just give them all to me. As soon as these water elementals are summoned, the magic array will restrict their movements anyway. I can handle them myself."

"In your dreams!"

Hearing Willy's teasing, Felicia immediately stopped agonizing over the loss of wealth and snatched the sack of gems from his claws.

"I'll hold onto these for now, just in case you swallow them whole in your sleep."

Watching the young female dragon hoard the gems like a lioness guarding her food, Amos and Willy exchanged a glance and shrugged helplessly.

...

Flying through the sky, the White Dragon Lord gazed up at Samiria, resting at the pinnacle of the clouds. Even though he had mentally prepared himself before coming, he was still awestruck by this highest achievement of Nordhill's magical civilization.

High above, the rising sun cast gentle rays of light. As the beams pierced the morning moisture in the atmosphere, they scattered into colorful halos. City of the Sky, Samaria stood proudly atop the sea of clouds, enveloped in a pale purple magical energy barrier, looking immensely powerful and mysterious.

After watching for a moment, the white dragon used his Councilor's Badge to pass straight through the energy shield and fly into the interior of Samiria. Magic Towers filled Sky City, arranged in a symmetrical layout. The outer walls of the buildings were predominantly white, accented with purple patterns. Giant purple gems slowly orbited the spires of the Magic Towers.

Amos knew that these massive, artificial purple gems—slowly revolving around the spires and looking entirely harmless—were actually alchemical creations. They were the firing muzzles for Nordhill's most powerful weapon: the Mana Superconducting Pulse Cannon.

It was said that if all the Mana Superconducting Pulse Cannons in Sky City fired simultaneously, they could pierce straight through the entire Nordhill Plane. Even a deity taking a direct hit risked falling on the spot.

Whether the Mana Superconducting Pulse Cannon could actually kill a deity had never been proven, but Amos figured there was an eighty percent chance it could. After all, an abyssal leader—a being on par with a deity—had once been slain by it.

Thirteen thousand years ago, during the final battle against the abyssal army invading Nordhill, the Continental Allied Forces deployed this ultimate weapon.

One of the supreme leaders of the abyssal forces, the Child of Sin—Mordor Londo—perished under a concentrated volley from the Mana Superconducting Pulse Cannon.

According to epic records, purple light descended from the heavens, illuminating the entire world. Amidst agonizing roars, the enemy was reduced to a sky full of dust. Thus, the legend of the Child of Sin, Mordor Londo, came to an end.

After admiring Samiria's grandeur, the White Dragon Lord arrived at the tallest Magic Tower in the center of Sky City. This was the headquarters of the Nordhill Guardian Council.

Of the many Magic Towers spread across the city, some belonged to the Council, some to major organizations, and a small portion belonged to ancient, long-standing families or old monsters with immense lifespans.

Amos stopped in front of the Magic Tower's doors. A magical Scan swept over the White Dragon Lord, feeling as though it had examined his very soul.

Driven by biological defensive instincts, Amos's body stiffened before he quickly relaxed. This exclusive Magic Tower affiliated with the Guardian Council would never pose a threat to a white dragon who was a councilor.

A hollow, emotionless, synthesized female voice echoed in the white dragon's mind.

"Identification complete. Greetings, Councilor Amos. Tower Spirit One is at your service. How may I assist you?"

Naturally, a place as massive as Sky City couldn't possibly have only one Tower Spirit. From what Amos understood, Sky City had nine Tower Spirits, each responsible for a different sector, working together to maintain the normal operation of the city's various functions.

Tower Spirit Seven was in charge of monitoring the plane, while Tower Spirit One handled the normal internal operations of the Guardian Council.

The White Dragon Lord walked inside the Mage Tower, replying in his mind.

'Hello, Tower Spirit One. I need to travel to the Elemental Plane of Ice. I am requesting authorization to use the dimensional Teleportation Chamber.'

"Your authorization is valid. Scanning for available Teleportation Chambers not on cooldown... Available chamber located. Please step onto the hover disk and proceed to the eighteenth floor of the Magic Tower."

The Council's Magic Tower fully accounted for the needs of councilors with massive bodies, so it was built to an enormous scale. Even a white dragon inside wouldn't feel cramped.

At the very center of the Magic Tower's interior was a massive, empty shaft shooting straight up to the peak. There were no stairs; the only mode of vertical transport was giant white disks that freely ascended or descended.

A flat, circular disk descended from above and stopped in front of the White Dragon Lord.

Although he could fly, seeing that everyone else used these elevating disks to go up and down, the White Dragon Lord decided to follow local custom and stepped onto it.

As soon as he found his footing, the disk began to rise. The sensation was exactly like riding an elevator in his past life, except the power of magic made it even smoother, with barely any turbulence.

In total silence, the White Dragon Lord rapidly bypassed various floors. Guided by Tower Spirit One, he arrived at the dimensional Teleportation Chamber.

Originally, as a councilor, the White Dragon Lord possessed the clearance to bypass the Spatial Lockdown Magic Array entirely and teleport directly to the Elemental Plane of Ice.

However, after a brief moment of thought, the white dragon abandoned this tempting idea of using his privilege. Instead, he chose to come to the Guardian Council's Magic Tower and use a safer method to reach the Elemental Plane of Ice.

Traveling to the Elemental Plane of Ice using his own power would drain a massive amount of mana, whereas using the Magic Tower's Teleportation Chamber would draw from the energy accumulated in the tower's Elemental Pools.

The White Dragon Lord wanted to arrive in peak condition. After all, no one knew what might be waiting for him there.

The magic doors to the Teleportation Chamber opened automatically. The White Dragon Lord stepped onto the Teleportation Platform in the center of the room.

'Scan.'

[Name]: Dimensional Teleportation Magic Platform

[Description]: This is a teleportation magic platform of near-perfect quality. It is inscribed with a series of magics, including dimensional anchoring, teleportation warding, and precise routing. It can safely transport you to the vast majority of planes within the multiverse, provided you have the corresponding dimensional coordinates.

"Councilor Amos, please enter the dimensional coordinates of your destination."

The white dragon mentally recited the coordinate data left behind by Motznovi. Tower Spirit One's prompt rang out once again.

"Dimensional data detected: Elemental Plane of Ice. The challenge rating is Level 20. It is not recommended for professionals below the Legendary Rank to travel there. Councilor Amos, you do not meet the level requirement. Teleportation aborted."

The White Dragon Lord felt this was rather bizarre. He hadn't expected Tower Spirit One to have a function that analyzed a destination's suitability based on the traveler's strength and the coordinate data, effectively intercepting them if deemed dangerous.

After pondering for a moment, the White Dragon Lord figured it out and made a decision.

'Tower Spirit One, can you transmit the data on the Elemental Plane of Ice to me?'

Even though he had used every avenue available to gain a general understanding of the plane before coming, he still wanted to see what information the Tower Spirit had stored.

"You possess Level Three clearance. Authorization granted. Preparing to transmit data on the Elemental Plane of Ice. Please relax your mind."

The White Dragon Lord did as instructed, and Tower Spirit One beamed the information directly into his mindscape.

After reviewing it carefully for a while, the white dragon indeed reaped new rewards, gaining a deeper understanding of the Elemental Plane of Ice.

Having achieved his goal, he once again issued a mental command.

'Tower Spirit One, I will take responsibility for my own actions. Please initiate the teleportation.'

"Warning. This is highly irresponsible toward your own life, as well as highly irresponsible toward the world that nurtured your growth. Every councilor is a precious asset to Nordhill. Tower Spirit One has the authority to refuse your request."

Amos furrowed his brows.

"Tower Spirit One, in my capacity as a councilor, I order you to send me to the Elemental Plane of Ice."

"Warning, warning. You have insufficient clearance to forcefully command a cross-dimensional teleportation."

Amos's face stiffened. He hadn't expected this outcome. Just as the White Dragon Lord was about to stamp his feet and curse, the synthesized voice spoke up again.

"The anomaly in this location has been reported to a higher authority."

The white dragon's expression flickered unpredictably.

A moment later, Tower Spirit One's voice chimed again.

"The higher authority has approved your request. You have been granted temporary clearance for cross-dimensional teleportation. Please prepare for transport."

The White Dragon Lord silently expressed his gratitude to the unknown higher authority and readied himself.

"I am ready."

"Teleportation Platform charging."

He could feel a majestic surge of magical energy gathering in the Teleportation Platform beneath his feet.

"Charging complete. Teleportation commencing."

"3."

"2."

"1."

"0."

The magic array inscribed in the platform activated, and the White Dragon Lord vanished into the dense magical energy.

At the very top of the Magic Tower, Merlin Heavenly Principle and a middle-aged elven man sat across from each other. Through means Amos couldn't detect, the two of them were watching the scene of the white dragon's disappearance.

Merlin chuckled. "Old friend, is this the outstanding white dragon you told me about?"

The Grand Duke Silver Dragon, having taken human form, withdrew his gaze from the Teleportation Chamber. "That's right! What do you think?"

"His potential is enormous. If I'm not mistaken, he still has quite a while before reaching adulthood, yet he already possesses such formidable spellcasting abilities. Another magic-addicted dragon."

Merlin remarked with admiration. Then, he let out a sigh.

"Alas, I just don't know whether the appearance of a rare magic-addicted dragon in Nordhill is a blessing or a curse."

The Grand Duke Silver Dragon swirled the teacup in his hand, his gaze shifting uncertainly. Once a magic-addicted dragon matured, it either heralded the rise of a new Guardian or signaled a massive catastrophe.

Throughout the history of the Chromatic Dragons, the three magic-addicted dragons that had emerged all bore infamous reputations that shook the entire multiverse—entities so powerful that even Tiamat couldn't do anything about them. The Grand Duke Silver Dragon didn't know how the White Dragon Lord would develop in the future either.

A long while passed.

"Don't worry, Merlin. Based on the current situation, there's nothing inappropriate about Amos's actions. I believe he will walk the right path."

"I suppose that's all we can hope for. Nordhill is currently in dire need of capable individuals. Let's hope he gives us a pleasant surprise."

"Yes. I'll do my best to guide him, helping him grow as quickly as possible so he can become Nordhill's new... cough, cough, cough!"

The Grand Duke Silver Dragon bent over, covering his mouth as he broke into a painful fit of coughing. Merlin's expression drastically changed, and he hurriedly took out a potion for the Grand Duke to drink.

Looking at the fresh blood between the Grand Duke Silver Dragon's fingers, Merlin's brows locked tightly together.

"Old friend, your injuries..."

The Grand Duke Silver Dragon took a white silk handkerchief from his pocket, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and then cleaned away the black clots he had coughed into his hand.

"It's fine. I won't die anytime soon. I still have a score to settle with the demons. Until then, I refuse to die."

A vicious, all-consuming hatred erupted in the Grand Duke Silver Dragon's eyes.

Merlin's gaze was complicated.

"Then your body has to hold out until that time. Accept the Elven King's goodwill. Go to the Elven Forest and recuperate for a while. The Fountain of Life can ease your pain."