Bill immediately recognized her: Audrey, the bone dragon princess. With extraordinary talent and a powerful bloodline, she was the pride of the Bone Dragon Clan.
“Owen the Emperor and Leslie the Empress have already entered the Sanctuaries. You’ll meet them there,” Bill said, offering a comforting response.
But Audrey was dissatisfied.
Tugging at the sleeve of the Bone Dragon King beside her, she pouted, “Father, why does Seraphina get to stay by Brother Owen’s side? I want to stay by his side too!”
The Bone Dragon King sighed, casting a helpless glance at his daughter.
Audrey had been his beloved little girl, but ever since she met Owen, her thoughts seemed entirely consumed by him.
This time, she had eagerly embarked on the journey just to see Owen again, only to find that he had already departed.
“You’ll see him soon,” the Bone Dragon King said indulgently.
Since the Millennial Cataclysm, he had been tirelessly working to unify the three major dragon clans after their split.
But such a unification required a figure capable of commanding respect from all three clans—a true dragon prodigy.
At present, only Owen had the power and charisma to achieve that.
“Fine, I guess that will do,” Audrey sighed with mock arrogance before perking up once again.
At her young age, she hadn’t thought too deeply about these things yet.
Under Bill’s direction, the various factions began to enter the teleportation array one after another.
“The Sanctuaries—controlled by The Celestial and long beyond our reach. Now, under the Emperor and Empress’s leadership, we have a chance to conquer it. Just thinking about it is exhilarating!”
“Indeed! Following the Emperor, our power has grown tremendously. Even the Sanctuaries will bow before us!”
The factions were full of morale, their eyes alight with battle spirit.
…
Meanwhile.
The Sanctuaries, Skyline Gorge.
Skyline Gorge was a narrow path nestled between two towering mountain ranges that seemed to stretch endlessly into the heavens.
The gorge itself served as the boundary between two territories: one under the control of the Emerald Dreamscape and the other governed by the Celestial God Palace.
At this moment, powerful figures from both factions had gathered on the mountains flanking Skyline Gorge.
Each radiated an aura of immense power, shaking the very heavens.
Today, all eyes were on Skyline Gorge.
Both the Emerald Dreamscape and the Celestial God Palace were among the most elite forces within the Sanctuaries.
A clash between them would undoubtedly have profound implications for the balance of power across the Sanctuaries.
What made this confrontation even more significant was the fact that their supreme leaders were set to face each other in a duel to the death.
While the forces of Emerald Dreamscape and the Celestial God Palace stood off against one another, other factions had already begun to converge in the area.
The Shadow Guild, the largest intelligence organization in the Sanctuaries, had also arrived on the scene.
Leading them was Kawa Zang, a middle-aged man with an eerie third eye on his forehead.
A duel between Ysera and the Lord of the Celestial God Palace was an event too monumental for the Shadow Guild to miss.
Upon arrival, they began setting up recording crystals throughout the area.
No matter the outcome, this battle would be one for the ages, studied and admired by generations to come.
The Shadow Guild operatives were visibly excited. Opportunities to witness such historic moments firsthand were rare, and they were thrilled to be part of it.
After all, the combatants were not just supreme mages—they were also breathtakingly beautiful women.
“Boss, why don’t you seem even a little excited?” one of the Shadow Guild operatives asked Kawa Zang.
Normally, such major events would elicit visible enthusiasm from him.
Kawa Zang didn’t answer. Instead, he looked in the direction of the Azure Kingdom.
While the Millennial Cataclysm had left most of the Sanctuaries untouched, one place stood out for remaining completely unaffected: the Azure Kingdom.
And Kawa Zang’s true interest lay in Owen, the Emperor of that kingdom.
The duel between Ysera and the Lord of the Celestial God Palace was captivating, but what intrigued him even more was Owen’s current actions.
After thoroughly researching Owen’s history, Kawa Zang had concluded that not even figures as legendary as Ysera or the Lord of the Celestial God Palace could compare to him.
Owen’s unparalleled talent, immense power, and boundless ambition were beyond comprehension.
He was also the only figure to have ever caused the Forbidden Zone to falter and the sole leader to preserve his faction intact during the Millennial Cataclysm.
Rumors were already circulating that Owen was preparing to make his move on the Sanctuaries.
For Kawa Zang, learning about Owen’s plans far outweighed the spectacle of today’s duel.
In fact, he had a strong hunch that Owen might make an appearance here.
That hunch was one of the reasons he had come to Skyline Gorge in the first place.
While his operatives eagerly recorded the scene, the air suddenly shimmered with a brilliant emerald light. The radiance bathed the land, casting a jade-green hue over everything.
Then, a striking figure emerged from the Emerald Dreamscape faction.
It was a tall woman with skin so fair it seemed to glow faintly green. A reversed scale adorned her forehead, lending her an exotic beauty.
Her presence captivated everyone present. She seemed flawless, an embodiment of all the good in existence.
One glance at her was enough to render many unable to look away.
Some mages, unable to resist her charm, stared at her with eyes like hearts, utterly bewitched.
This was Ysera, a woman who combined the best traits of humanity and the Jade Dragon lineage.
At the same time, a powerful aura radiated from her, pressing down on everyone like the might of an emperor.
“Queen Ysera, undefeated in battle!”
Fans of Ysera and those newly entranced by her beauty erupted into thunderous cheers.
Moments later, a golden light illuminated the other side of Skyline Gorge, emanating from the direction of the Celestial God Palace.
A barefoot woman, her skin like white porcelain, appeared, her swan-like neck held high with pride.
She exuded an aura of aloof elegance, her long legs drawing countless awestruck gazes.
The Lord of the Celestial God Palace had arrived.
Her appearance triggered a new wave of cheers.
If Ysera was an empress radiating domineering authority, the Lord of the Celestial God Palace was a queen of icy beauty, distant and unattainable.
The arrival of these two stunning figures left the crowd spellbound.
Even Kawa Zang, usually unshaken by such things, found himself momentarily captivated by their overwhelming allure.
But then, his sharp senses caught something unusual.
His eyes narrowed as he looked toward a nearby mountain peak.
“That aura… Owen is here, after all!”
In his perception, a faint and fleeting energy had appeared before vanishing completely.
Only someone with Kawa Zang’s exceptional senses could have detected it.
As Kawa Zang stared at the mountain peak, Owen, who had just arrived with Leslie and Madelyn, looked back at him.
“As expected of a master intelligence operative. Even with my efforts to conceal it, he managed to catch a trace,” Owen mused, narrowing his eyes.
Leslie smirked. “I think he’s looking at you a little too intensely, almost… obsessively.”
Her tone was playful, but the intensity in Kawa Zang’s gaze did bear a resemblance to the crowd’s reaction to Ysera and the Lord of the Celestial God Palace.
But Kawa Zang was a man.
Owen shrugged. “He’s probably just curious about me. What can I say? My charm makes it hard to stay low-profile.”
Leslie: “…”
Madelyn: “…”
Seeing their exasperated expressions, Owen chuckled before turning serious.
“Given his influence in the Shadow Guild, gaining his support would be invaluable for our plans to invade the Sanctuaries.”
