"No, there cannot possibly be something like you among dragons." She could say this with certainty, because she had studied scales, blood, and other materials many times, yet the results still pointed to a Black Dragon dragon beast, which she did not believe at all.
Every structure was far beyond what a Great Dragon could achieve, and logically speaking, the material composition of Belial's body should not have been able to support such a monster. Coupled with that exaggerated strength, the only explanation was the existence of a power she could not even touch. It was like the kind of human blessed by the gods described by bards.
Beneath the surface of this Black Dragon, there was absolutely an incomprehensible monster hidden. "The examination is finished?" Belial tilted his head, but Lilith, who had grown somewhat used to him these days, shook her head and said there was one last item, temporarily added.
Watching the Great Dragon fly away, Lilith carefully sealed away a wisp of Battle Aura wrapped in layers of Magic. Truly cultivating Battle Aura was an unexpected result with great significance, possibly meaning that even non-human races could master it. Moreover, she still could not tell which stage this dragon had reached.
"A being like you, if you can keep cultivating and growing stronger, what kind of sight would that be?" The Witch returned to her mage tower. The Great Dragon also returned to his warm bedding.
"This really is a good place." Belial had already drained the mineral veins of the area several times, and deposits of this quality could not support long-term absorption. Usually, after sleeping for a few days, all the Magic in the region would be gone, and he would need to find a new bed.
After repeating this cycle several times, Belial accidentally discovered a treasure spot. Deep underground, there was an area extremely rich in Magic, with even more abundant minerals. If that were all, it would only mean a couple more nights of sleep, but the key point was that this area could recharge itself.
"I do not understand the principle, but every time I wake up and come back, the Magic here slowly replenishes. This is great." The replenishment was slow, but the amount was large, and as the Magic Array he set up became more complete, crystal proliferation also became faster. It had the potential to become his long-term sleeping bed.
He also learned from the lesson of the previous volcanic crater explosion. At every outer Magic node, he deployed guided ghost crystals that acted as both batteries and one-time defensive missiles. After absorbing massive amounts of Magic, their power was considerable, theoretically enough to kill any creature he had seen many times over.
As long as nothing too strong broke in, he could sleep without worry, and the crystal growth would repair itself. It was practically perfect. "La la la, I am just going to sleep." He skillfully rammed into the central node and covered himself with a small crystal blanket, falling into peaceful sleep.
"Boom!" The ground shook violently, and an underground cavity dozens of meters wide was blasted open without immediately collapsing, as Shard stone was held in place by an unknown force. The surrounding crystals, however, detonated in a chain reaction. A steel war vehicle with a massive drill spewed smoke, a barrier forming on its surface as the crystal explosions failed to harm it.
Hidden cannons emerged again, releasing Gold Rank-colored light waves that blasted huge cavities ahead, while the surrounding explosions still could not affect it. Soldiers swallowed nervously as they looked at the four or five meter tall machines behind them, suddenly feeling frustrated by comparison. Gray-white gas sprayed from behind the war vehicle, and strangely, crystals covered by it dimmed slightly and did not explode.
Within the outer layer of the Magic Array, Ludwig stood with arms crossed, invisible threads pulling at the distant behemoth as he worked, his expression cold. To deal with these crystals, he had paid a price, moving part of that weapon, namely the war vehicle, here to explore, and there was more than one. The previous round of crystal bombardment had nearly blown this body apart, and though he did not know what the crystals were, the constant surge of Magic and hidden spatial fluctuations made it clear.
"The thing must be here." Beside one of his eyes, three round eyes opened with Rend, and his mouth split wider and wider, exposing sharp fangs. The war vehicle pushed forward with its massive drill and solid frame, clearing nodes along the way. Ludwig had endured several explosions to open this path, finally creating the closest route to the core.
Those bizarre large crystals seemed to have gone mad. Even when he ordered others to pull them out, they destroyed the puppets and then targeted him instead. By relying on being blown up again and again to probe the traps, he finally reached the core area.
"We are almost there." The Mana Domain formed by those crystals forced Ludwig to descend personally to maintain control. The advancing war vehicle finally crashed into a vast open space.
Countless clear and dreamlike crystals filled the area, and at the center stood an enormous crystal tree over a hundred meters in diameter, its roots surging with Magic. Ludwig could easily see that the Magic of the massive Crystal Domain covering the region ultimately flowed into this central crystal tree. This result was not surprising, as he knew from past battles and control that these weapons could regenerate like living beings as long as energy was sufficient.
"But it is a pity. You should have remained an obedient weapon in someone else's hands." He raised his hand, and the cannons of the nearby war vehicle glowed again. Farther away, two other units also preparing to fire joined in, their drills still boring downward.
Three units firing at full power would be enough, according to his calculations, to destroy the remaining nodes of this Crystal Domain and trigger a chain collapse. As the cannons charged, his mouth split wider with Rend. "Once I get the core, it will only take a little effort to go back and reassemble."
"When I revive with my strongest body again, this world will ultimately be mine." Ludwig was ecstatic, for his own strength was not outstanding, but unlike others who had vanished, he was about to win his revival. Wild laughter burst out along with blinding light.
The beams pierced the crystal structure and struck what he believed to be the core, while the other shots destroyed the nodes and caused the region to collapse. Then Ludwig's eyes widened slightly, as the crystals not only did not fade but shone even brighter. A deep rumble followed, and the massive tree exploded apart in an instant, refracting countless lights that flared beyond sight.
"What is going on?" he shouted, as things clearly were not matching his expectations. Then the truth itself answered him, with a roar of unimaginable power and penetration that detonated the surrounding crystals and blasted all Shard debris away.
"Which bastard disturbed my sleep again!"
What would it look like if every crystal in this space detonated at once? At the final moment, Ludwig ordered the nearby machine to shield him, but the massive body weighing thousands of tons was still lifted and thrown by the shockwave. A gigantic explosion erupted underground, and endless light and heat flooded every corner.
Heat and pressure raged without pause as vast Magic was forced into raw destructive power and punched through everything in its path. The gray-white metal hull of unknown material ground away and then rapidly repaired itself, over and over. Even so, despite being only a part of a former weapon, Ludwig felt himself on the verge of collapse as the surrounding metal components screamed under strain.
The impact from the detonation of such a massive amount of Magic twisted and warped the entire machine body. Voices shouted through the chaos, asking what was happening and calling out that the ground was shaking. Collapsing crystal giant trees exploded along their roots, and because earlier nodes had been destroyed, the Magic stored in the Magic Array lost restraint and sent waves that caused the entire underground space to fail and cave in.
Most of the soldiers and technicians responsible for blasting in the area were torn apart by exploding crystals before they could react. The few who survived that were then buried by the collapse itself. Caught directly in the blast, Ludwig panicked and shouted in disbelief, unable to understand how this could have happened.
A terrifying presence slammed into him like a tidal wave, filled with violence, destruction, and ruin. The pressure crushed down like falling into a deep black abyss, and even the metal around him reacted as if alive. The biological instincts of this body broke past conscious control and began to tremble.
He could not believe fear had reached him, and before he could finish speaking, he heard the shrill sound of metal being torn apart by Rend. All external cameras and sensors had already been destroyed, leaving him blind. As he tried to extend his perception outward, weightlessness struck, followed by the sound of the machine failing under unbearable stress.