Chapter 50: The Mirage Dragon’s Lair

“Golden Armor Trees! Giant Golden Armor Trees! Hmm-hmm-hmm~~ hmm-hmm-hmm~~~”

Along the way, Ahoge Dragon’s spirits soared as she hummed a cheerful tune, making her way happily deeper inside.

She soon encountered a large chunk of black gold ore on the path, which she delightedly collected.

After a considerable amount of time, they finally arrived at the location Luo Tiantian had described.

During their journey, Ahoge Dragon had also learned the little loli’s name: Luo Tiantian, a name that sounded deliciously sweet.

Before them lay an enormous cavern.

Ahoge Dragon gazed out, taking in the vast underground world.

Golden Armor Trees were abundant, alongside various peculiar trees, flowers, and grasses.

“There’s so much! How are we ever going to carry it all?”

Ahoge Dragon frowned in distress; there were simply too many items, and the space within her Void Dragon Horn was rapidly running out.

Such were the troubles of the wealthy!

“How beautiful~”

Mao Yuxia, too, was awestruck by the sight. Though underground, the presence of luminous crystals made it as bright as day.

From above, other colored objects resembling plant fruits hung suspended.

They glowed, imparting an unusual vibrancy to this miniature world.

While there were some magical creatures present, a closer look revealed them to be weak, animal-like monsters, posing no real threat.

“Power-boosting Flowers! Little Tiantian, did you plant these? And the ones outside, were they yours too?”

Ahoge Dragon spotted a field brimming with Power-boosting Flowers, even a few Fifth-Tier ones! This was incredibly impressive!

“Mm-hmm!” Luo Tiantian nodded in affirmation.

A blush crept unbidden across her cheeks.

“What’s going on over there?”

In stark contrast to the relaxed attitudes of Ahoge Dragon and Mao Yuxia, Yao Yueli remained vigilant, constantly scanning her surroundings.

She noticed a massive empty clearing in the center, where absolutely nothing had been planted.

Upon closer inspection, the soil beneath appeared freshly tilled!

Numerous tunnel-like openings snaked downwards into the earth.

The sight was eerie, prompting suspicion.

“This… could this be where the Cloudwind Tree Tower originally stood?!”

Yao Yueli suddenly realized something, exclaiming in surprise.

“Roar! So this is the Defensive Tree Tower’s lair! No wonder there were so many good things!”

“Heheheh… let’s search carefully; perhaps there are even more treasures to be found!”

Ahoge Dragon bounced around, her eyes darting everywhere, hoping to spot more valuable items.

“If there are any good things, they must be underground! A Defensive Tree Tower is actually more like a plant-type magical beast! To maintain its colossal form, it must absorb enormous amounts of energy!”

Mao Yuxia provided Ahoge Dragon with this essential piece of knowledge.

“Oh! So that’s how it is! That’s how it is! Let’s go down and take a look!”

With ready-made root tunnels available, the group quickly descended.

“These stark white things are all bones… Dragon bones!!!”

Ahoge Dragon shrieked, utterly astonished! They were actually from the Dragon Race!

“Dragon Race!”

Yao Yueli swiftly used her Lightning Dragon Sword to touch the massive bones below.

Her sword felt a sense of suppression, suggesting that this dragon must have been incredibly powerful in life!

They had stumbled upon a huge treasure! These must have been used by the Elf Race to nourish their Defensive Tree Tower after they defeated the Dragon Race long ago!

“There seems to be a pearl over there! A Mirage Dragon Pearl… it contains its own internal space… a super… super-sized spatial ring!!!”

Ahoge Dragon had kept her Analytic Dragon Eyes active, and though the Mirage Dragon Pearl had merged with the darkness, she still managed to spot it.

“A Mirage Dragon Pearl, this is the bone of a Mirage Dragon, meow! I heard that Mirage Dragons have an internal space within their bodies, where they like to cultivate herbs, meow~, and also raise powerful magical creatures, meow~!”

“Every Mirage Dragon is actually a colossal treasure, meow~!”

“Meow!!”

Mao Yuxia also exclaimed in delight, realizing that taking these items out would easily win them the Hunting Competition.

“I’ll go in first to check. It feels like this Mirage Dragon died a long time ago, and the magical creatures inside the Mirage Dragon Pearl should be very powerful. We’ll enter once I confirm there’s no danger.”

This was once a powerful dragon’s pet sanctuary, making it difficult to imagine the strength of the magical beasts within!

“Eh? Wouldn’t it be better if we went in together? With Kitty’s invisibility and my simulated aura, I’m sure we won’t encounter any danger once we’re inside!”

Ahoge Dragon declared, hands on her hips, emphasizing her current usefulness!

She considered herself the leader of this group!

Naturally, if they were to enter now, they should do so together.

“Alright… but you must hold on to me tightly!”

Yao Yueli knew that this approach offered good protection, so she agreed to Ahoge Dragon’s suggestion.

“Yay!”

Ahoge Dragon and Mao Yuxia were both thrilled at the prospect of seeing many treasures!

“I… I want to go too…”

Luo Tiantian nervously twisted a strand of hair by her ear, looking up at Ahoge Dragon.

She looked incredibly cute.

“Heheheh! Of course you can! But, little Tiantian, make sure to hold on tight to me! If we encounter danger, I’ll protect you!”

Having always been protected by others, Ahoge Dragon felt a touch of pride in being able to protect someone else now.

The group then turned invisible and simultaneously reached out to touch the Mirage Dragon Pearl.

The scene shifted, and they found themselves atop a massive altar-like pillar.

Looking around, there were eighteen such colossal pillars, each crafted from at least silver-grade materials.

They encircled a circular stone platform.

The platform itself was overgrown with weeds, and the stone surface was riddled with cracks.

“How… desolate!”

Ahoge Dragon sighed. The entire world was eerily quiet.

“Have all the magical beasts died off? Still, so many plants have grown; we’re bound to find some excellent medicinal herbs, meow~!”

Mao Yuxia exclaimed excitedly! Since this place had been desolate for so long with no magical beasts, some herbs would surely have lived longer!

They might even discover Seventh-Tier, Eighth-Tier, or even higher-grade medicinal herbs!

“You’re right! Let’s go dig for herbs!”

Ahoge Dragon flapped her tiny wings and, along with the others, descended.

“So many are just weeds!”

The group quickly grew disappointed. There was nothing of value.

“Don’t you think the magical energy here is very scarce, meow~?”

Mao Yuxia was the first to notice something amiss.

Ahoge Dragon also sensed it; indeed, the scarcity of magical energy here made her quite uncomfortable!

“The magical energy here must have been absorbed by the Defensive Tree Tower. The Elf Race wouldn’t simply abandon a Mirage Dragon Pearl with so many treasures and magical beasts inside.”

Yao Yueli picked up a handful of dry soil. Observing the altar, it strongly resembled something from the Elf Race.

“However, this world feels quite vast, so it should only absorb magical energy from this specific area, meow~! Perhaps in more distant places, the magical energy will be denser, allowing precious medicinal herbs to grow, meow~!”

“Yes! Let’s go take a look!”

Ahoge Dragon agreed with Mao Yuxia’s reasoning, nodding her head, eager for adventure!

“Now is not the time for such things, you silly Ahoge Dragon! We need to get out. It would be terrible if Yue Guangyao and his group found this place!”

Yao Yueli grabbed Ahoge Dragon’s wing; this creature always forgot their main objective when she saw something good!

She was truly exasperatingly foolish!