Under the Red Dragon.

Chapter 475 The Dao has no high or low, the God has no form.

Some say that in the world of Ekania, the ruler of the Golden Empire of the Northern Continent, the Emperor of the True Dragons, Karon Gogmora, is not only the supreme ruler of the intelligent race, but also the master of all the monsters on the Northern Continent of this world.

In the northern continent, even in remote and desolate wildernesses and the frosty plains of winter, the monsters that roam there would have to give way upon hearing the name of the Supreme King of the Golden Empire.

It is said that the people of the Golden Empire once encountered the spirits of wild beasts, which are extremely rare in the mortal world. These are elemental beings that are transformed from the souls of many wild beasts and monsters that died in the wilderness through some special opportunities.

However, these powerful beast spirits, who started at the level of extraordinary beings, also held Emperor Gogmora in great awe, and few citizens of the Golden Empire dared to offend them.

Only those foolish enough to provoke these powerful beings will be punished by the spirits of the beasts.

In the most powerful monster lair in the northern continent of Ekania, Karon's human form sits beside his true dragon form, absorbing the abundant elemental magic within the lair.

Familiar models of low- to mid-level spells rapidly took shape within his body, and densely packed magical runes absorbed and released massive amounts of elemental magic power, which then fell into a huge magical furnace.

The spell seeds he constructed contained and absorbed these outlined spell models, encapsulating them within the magic furnace, allowing the spells to be released at near-instantaneous speeds.

After an unknown amount of time, Kalon's face finally opened its eyes and slowly exhaled.

The excess magical energy stored in the magical furnace within his body made his eyes exceptionally bright.

"Although it's possible to draw upon the power of faith as a source of strength to unleash spells and attacks, just like the divine magic of priests,"

"But this would inevitably require storing and accumulating a large amount of faith power within the body, which is too troublesome,"

Kalon's eyes shone brightly as he sensed the level of magic power accumulating within his body, which was already comparable to that of a high-level mage.

If calculated based on energy level assessment, Karon's avatar's power level is approximately level fifteen at this time.

Although a high-level mage is nothing compared to Karon's true dragon form, he is actually an extremely powerful being.

In any material plane of the mortal world, a level 15 high-level mage can roam freely in the wilderness with a little caution, and can also barely occupy a high position among the nobles in civilized countries.

Thanks to Charon's own height and the vast amount of knowledge he possesses, Charon's avatar only needs to accumulate power to easily reach heights that are difficult for ordinary people to attain.

However, although it is not difficult for this human-faced avatar to break through to the Saint rank, the highest level it can reach so far by accumulating power is only the peak of the Saint rank, just the threshold of the Legendary rank.

After all, this is an independent physical body. Although its origin is the same as that of Charon, even Charon doesn't fully understand its mysteries.

Fortunately, while the threshold of becoming a legend is an insurmountable barrier for most people, it is not an insurmountable obstacle for Charon.

Having gained experience and insights from the true form of the dragon, this avatar has crossed the threshold of legend. All that is needed is to determine the path this avatar should take and give it ample time to develop.

"Only those above the legendary level are qualified to seek the path to godhood. They can either continue on the path of legend, seeking the laws of legendary destiny, or, having exhausted their potential and knowing they cannot ascend the ladder of legendary destiny, they can only seek the path to godhood."

"My physical form is unique in nature; I don't need to transcend legends to attempt the path to godhood. I am a born saint,"

"However, I'd like to see what changes will occur after this incarnation of a face enters the legendary realm, possesses legendary power, and embarks on the path to godhood."

Kalon stood up from the ground. His facial avatar was so unique that he could vaguely sense something.

Once this avatar accumulates enough power in the future to attempt to sublimate divinity and ignite divine fire, transforming the power of faith into divine power, it will be subject to the instinctive rejection and suppression of the material plane of Ekania.

If the unique power seed within Charon's avatar body were to fully develop its authority after igniting the divine fire and sublimating its divinity, it would be completely rejected by the entire infinite material world and forced to go to the astral plane.

Fortunately, the laws that Kalon himself created encompass all laws, including even the path of gods, and can be regarded as a branch of the laws of all phenomena. Therefore, he can suppress such a repulsive force with his own legendary laws.

The only thing to be careful about is that the achievements of Charon's avatar after embarking on the path to godhood cannot exceed the growth rate of Charon's own laws of creation.

In order to prevent the laws of the main body of Charon from being unable to cover up and suppress, causing the power of the avatar to be rejected and suppressed by the infinite material world.

Therefore, although this avatar did not embark on the journey to godhood because Kalon did not have a more detailed and precise method for ascending to godhood, it was also because Kalon could not be sure whether the progress of this avatar could be suppressed once it embarked on the journey to godhood.

After all, the accumulated wealth of the human face avatar was too terrifying. Even if the countless people who believed in Charon were all frivolous believers, the number of people who ruled over several planes was enough to support the rapid growth of Charon's face avatar.

"The endless paths lie ahead, waiting for me to explore."

Caron smiled slightly; he already had plans for his future.

Even if the Golden Empire's current power serves as a hound for Charon's future path, it is still far from sufficient to perfect Charon's own path.

The various manifestations of Charon's face are destined to lead him into the endless universe to seek the highest achievement for his true self.

Compared to Charon's own future, the legendary destiny of Lipnos is only a temporary threat and not worth Charon's time to focus his power on.

Charon took a few steps forward and walked to the eleven holy artifacts that were floating erratically in front of Charon's head.

The sacred artifact forged by the super mage Pavin Wilson using legendary laws has been shattered and devoured by the true form of Charon, who then extracted the power of the laws within and used it for his own purposes.

Of the remaining eleven sacred artifacts, the Book of All Laws is the most powerful, but it does not suit Charon's own habits and power, and there was already a plan for it.

Charon's gaze swept over the remaining ten holy artifacts, then he reached out and grasped a legendary holy sword floating among them.

This legendary holy sword is a two-handed longsword, with various ferocious beasts and strange creatures carved on the hilt. As soon as he held it, Kalon felt a sudden weight in his hand.

"Good stuff. Fortunately, although the physical strength of my avatar is not comparable to that of a dragon, its innate physical strength surpasses that of the ogres in the wilderness. Even many ordinary giants cannot match the physical strength of my avatar."

"Otherwise, I would have no way to master the use of this holy sword,"

Kalon gripped his longsword, skillfully twirled it, and nodded slightly.

This legendary holy sword is a sacred artifact forged by a powerful legendary warrior at great expense. Its specific material is unknown, but according to Karon's investigation, it should be on par with the Star God Iron in the Astral Plane and the Deathly Cold Iron nurtured for millions of years in the Abyss, making it extremely sturdy.

After being refined and nurtured day and night by that legendary warrior with his own strength and the power of laws, even the power of Karon's true dragon form would have to expend considerable effort to destroy this holy sword.

Only by combining it with the Ten Gai Great Disintegration magic forged into the dragon's claws within its flesh can it be completely destroyed.

It was precisely because this holy sword was so powerful that it caught the eye of Charon, saving it from destruction by his dragon claws.

The holy sword vibrated continuously in Kalon's hand, emitting sharp whistling sounds. Within its gleaming blade, countless ferocious beasts, dragons, and various humanoid races vaguely appeared, as if trying to rush into Kalon's mind.

Fortunately, since Kalon's avatar was at such close range, he could borrow the power of his true body. With just a slight tremor in his hand, he easily subdued the holy sword with immense force, and it immediately became docile in Kalon's hands.

"From now on, you will obediently become my weapon. In my hands, perhaps your brilliance will not be buried like that of your former master."

"From this day forward, your name shall be Soul Stealer!"

Kalon smiled slightly, reached out and stroked the holy sword, imprinting his will into it, causing the holy sword to hum softly.

Charon did not know the original name of this holy sword.

However, the power of this holy sword is related to its former owner. It not only possesses unparalleled sharpness, but also, with each slaying of a great enemy, it can extract a portion of the enemy's soul and power, transforming it into nourishment for the sword's continued growth.

The various ferocious beast shadows trapped within the blade of this sword are the spirits of enemies this sword has slain.

The spirits of these fallen enemies are not merely for intimidation; they can also be driven by the will of the sword's owner to rush into the enemy's mind, striking at the enemy's spirit like a mind sorcerer's spell—a truly formidable ability.

Moreover, the most powerful ability of this holy sword lies in the fact that every time it wounds or kills an enemy, the life force and vitality it plunders can be transformed into power to replenish the life force and power consumed by the sword's owner. It can be called the best weapon for sustaining itself in battle and for group battles.

Unfortunately, the legendary warrior who died at the hands of Charon encountered an unprecedented first-generation species. Although, theoretically, the legendary warrior's power and laws were enough to wield the holy sword and harm Charon.

After all, the power of laws is equal, but theory must follow reality. The Tao has no high or low, but people have strengths and weaknesses.

Not only was the Holy Sword's unparalleled sharpness unable to penetrate Karon's defenses, but even the various ferocious beast shadows extracted from the sword's body were annihilated like dreams in the face of this incomparably powerful monster.

Otherwise, given the power of this holy sword, if it could wound Charon, the immense vitality of Charon's true dragon form would be enough to keep that legendary warrior invincible.

Caron wielded the extremely powerful Soul-Stealing Holy Sword and leisurely passed through the gaps in the lair, traversing the mountain-like veins of essence minerals before finally stepping out of his cave.

It wasn't that Caron got lost like he did when he was a child, but rather that he was organizing the many close-combat techniques he had in his mind.

When Kalon created the secondary brain, he collected a lot of combat information and, through long-term practice and combat, mastered and created many close combat techniques for various races.

Although these combat techniques do not form a distinct school of thought, they are highly targeted against the races that Charon has faced in close combat, making them one of the reasons Charon dominates the melee combat field in his true dragon form.

However, the human-faced avatar differs greatly from Charon's true dragon form, and the techniques he had previously developed for creation cannot be directly applied.

Moreover, with the advanced Complete Transformation technique that Charon has mastered in his true form, he can change any joint or muscle of his body at will during battle, and can cause great destructive power by exerting force in any way.

Although this human-faced avatar also possesses knowledge of advanced shapeshifting, it cannot use it as freely as the true dragon form, let alone reach the pinnacle of its power. Therefore, previous combat techniques need to be adapted and modified based on the human-faced avatar in order to achieve a profound level of mastery.

"Phew, I wonder who will be lucky enough to get ambushed by me when I return."

Kalon stood at the entrance of his lair, gazing at the distant mountains, the vast sky, and the flowing clouds. He felt that the road ahead was still long, and he needed to strive forward to reach his ultimate goal.

"My lord!"

"His Majesty!"

The two different titles represent two different identities.

The Storm Giant's guards, wielding lightning tridents, stood like stone sculptures outside the lair. Upon seeing Charon's arrival, they all beat their chests in respect.

These storm giants are the private dragon retinue of Kalon Gogmora. Although they are also part of the Golden Empire, they exclusively worship Gogmora, the red dragon.

While the warriors of the Golden Guard are also a guard force exclusively belonging to Karon Gogmora, the Golden Guard, in the name of the nation, is exclusively respected by Gogmora, the Dragon Emperor.

Therefore, although the warriors of the Golden Guard privately refer to the same names as the Storm Giants and regard Emperor Goggmora as their god, they must abide by the order of the kingdom in public.

"Everyone, disperse. I'm awake now,"

Kalon patted the Storm Giant Guard Captain and the Golden Guard Centurion on the shoulder respectively, and said casually, "Go, you have guarded me here for more than ten years, that is enough."

"Tell your legion commanders that every soldier and guard must take a three-month leave as a time for relaxation."

"Loyalty is our greatest reward, my lord!"

An adult storm giant lowered its head, pounded its chest, and said in a deep voice.

Kalon shook his head, said nothing more, and walked past the loyal warriors down the mountain.

Charon, with his outstanding dragon charm, formidable strength, and wisdom, attracted numerous followers and ruled the entire Golden Empire.

However, unlike many rulers, Charon did not transcend humanity and gradually began to treat his subordinates as less than human.

This is not only related to Charon's infinitely perfect spiritual perception of self-division, but also to Charon's individual dragon personality.

The reason why the Golden Empire was able to transcend the limitations of Aikania's current era and develop to an unprecedented level is largely due to the influence of the ideology of the supreme dragon emperor, Kalon.

Only by treating other living beings as tangible 'humans' with fully autonomous personalities can the diverse races of the Golden Empire unleash their full potential, propelling the entire empire forward with boundless vitality.

Only the beliefs and ideals born from the heart of a person with a completely autonomous personality are the purest beliefs and ideals in the world.

Beliefs and ideologies born from deception, fraud, coercion, and brainwashing are often not very firm.

Many believers of gods have betrayed and rebelled, and this is one of the reasons why.

However, even this ordinary trait of Charon is a fundamental quality that many self-proclaimed arrogant rulers cannot fake.

Kalon descended from the mountain peak where his lair was located and strode toward the Dragon King's Court.

It is now dusk, and on the peaks of the Dragon's Nest Mountains, not only do young dragons soar, but also various giants move about.

They might carve out caves for young dragons that have earned the right to nest, or they might carve massive stone palaces atop mountains for the great dragons of the empire to rest and recline.

Among these giants, there are also quite a few cloud giants.

Occasionally, the dragon songs of these giant races, howling and singing with all their might, could be heard from between the mountains, but their sounds were so shrill and unpleasant that Kalon wanted to plug his ears.

If Charon hadn't been such a foolish emperor, he might have issued an edict forbidding the giants from singing in the future.

Because those young dragons flying around were disturbed by the songs of many giant species, making them restless.

These cloud giants are remnants from the Forsaken Mountains. After the multi-armed giant king Mogeyes destroyed the main city and habitat of the cloud giant race and subdued many cloud giants, a large number of cloud giants fled and scattered into the Forsaken Mountains.

As the giant king Mogeyes led the giant races of the Forsaken Mountains southward, the Golden Empire gradually took over the territory of the Forsaken Mountains. The empire's militia and garrisoned legions had frequent contact with these cloud giants during the development of the Forsaken Mountains.

Many cloud giants who refused to join the Imperial order were either killed or captured by Imperial Legion warriors and transported to the Empire as slaves, where they were sold to Imperial merchants in the market.

Those cloud giants who were willing to submit to the imperial order and civilization were assigned to the Dragon Nest Mountains, with a piece of territory there serving as their habitat.

These cloud giants, living in the perilous Dragon's Nest Mountains, must undergo a long period of re-education before they are qualified to leave their habitat and travel throughout the Empire.

However, over the years, the number of cloud giants, which originally numbered only a few hundred, has gradually grown, and now there are about 1,500 cloud giants remaining in the empire.

Many of the great dragons in the Gogmora dragonflight coveted the cloud giants, a race of giants known for their high intelligence, aesthetic sense, and immense potential.

Even the Imperial White King Gormott, who particularly favored using frost giants as his dragon king's guard, wanted to add some cloud giants to his own guard.

Kalon had no fondness for the cloud giants. He endured the noisy singing until he reached the Dragon King's Court, where he finally found some peace and quiet.

The entire Dragon Royal Court is majestic and vast, like a kingdom within a kingdom. The power of Kalon has a profound influence here, so much so that it is isolated from all external influences.

However, Caron stopped before stepping into the back garden.

"Well, since we're going to pursue our path recklessly, we can't reveal our identities when we're causing trouble. Although my true body is in the world of Aikania, and my soul aura is difficult to detect, I'm bound to encounter some extremely special individuals,"

"Concealing one's identity might have some unexpected benefits in the future,"

Karon stroked his chin, and layers of magical light flowed through his body.

Its body, which was originally taller than many ogres and trolls, suddenly shrank rapidly, eventually settling at about 1.8 or 1.9 meters tall, looking no different from an ordinary person.

"God has no form, and the sage is formless."

"Reality and illusion are reversed, shadows follow you everywhere!"

With a slight sway, Kalon used his ability to comprehend the reflections of all things from the Shadow Realm to simulate the aura of a mortal being he had once seen, using the reflection of another's existence for his own purposes.

His extraordinary and heroic aura also changed, and even his innate majesty was restrained. With the aura of his soul subdued, even his appearance became ordinary.

Caron smiled slightly and stepped into the back garden.

The maids in the back garden, busy watering and pruning the many flowers and plants with silver-hooped carved pots, did not notice Karon passing by. Even Charlize, the head maid who had been injected with the dragon blood potion and become an extraordinary being, could not detect Karon's presence.

But this back garden belongs to the World Tree Owo.

The World Tree Owo guards the entire rear of the Dragon King's court for Kalon, and has already planted its tentacles in every part of the earth's mountains.

Although the World Tree itself resides within a small dimensional space created by Owo, nothing that happens there can escape the World Tree's notice.

"Who do you think you are? Get out of here right now! This is Daddy's backyard. Entering here without Daddy's permission, I'll throw you into the void, and you deserve to be thrown into the Chaos Sea!"

The World Tree Owo shook its thick branches, the wind rustling, and an enormous python descended from the World Tree's lush canopy, its serpentine body protruding its head.

Haninek's two horns resembled ancient, gnarled trees, and his vertical pupils, filled with a dangerous aura of predation, stared at Kalon, locking onto all movements in the space where Kalon was located.

"Capture him first. This person came here stealthily; he must be a bad guy. Oh, we have to capture him and hand him over to Dad to see if he's up to any scheme!"

Haninek hissed, his hostility particularly evident in his vertical pupils.

Caron smiled slightly, then dropped his pretense and said with a laugh, "Well done, you two clever little ones, but it would be going too far if you tried to capture your old man!"

"Owo, open the door to the world for me, quietly, without alerting anyone!"

"Hey, it's Dad!"

Suddenly, the incessant grumbling of two 'little ones' echoed from the back garden.

From every city in the Golden Empire, the boundless spiritual energy contained within the golden bell atop the central tower flows through invisible channels into the dragon's lair.

This boundless spiritual energy flowed into the swirling cloud of light hanging before Kalon's slightly open fangs, where it was absorbed by the bell floating within. The time it took to take shape gradually increased as the light intertwined.

As the bell collapsed once again, the True Dragon Emperor, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly stirred slightly and opened his eyes.

(End of this chapter)