Under the Red Dragon.

Chapter 546 Heaven's Mandate is Clear, This World is Long

After the rise of the Golden Empire, an idea once emerged in the northern continent of the world of Ekania—Manifest Destiny.

Alternatively, this concept can be described as a theory of destiny or a view of fate. The views held by dragon researchers in the northern continent of the world of Ekania and other continents are largely the same.

As the saying goes, the world is divinely ordained, and thus the born King Gorgmora was born among the dragons of the Northland.

Of course, if it weren't for the deliberate alienation of divine influence within the Northern Golden Empire, perhaps this statement should be changed to "the divine mandate that led to the birth of Emperor Gogmora."

By order of the true dragon emperor Gogmora, the Golden Empire and the dragons are destined to start from the northern continent, conquer all directions, expand southward, and eventually dominate the entire world of Ekania.

Countless historians and dragon researchers in the world of Ekania believe that the unification of the entire Northern Continent by the Northern Golden Empire is the general trend of Ekania's historical development.

What is the general trend of historical development? The general trend of historical development is the basic direction of historical development.

The major trends in historical development encompass two aspects: the inevitability of historical development and the contingency of historical development.

Before the Golden Empire established itself in the Northern Continent, the various noble kingdoms in the north, the monster tribes in the northern wilderness, and the nations of various civilized races were all entangled in conflicts, resulting in countless wars of all sizes.

Even powerful continents like the Central Continent and ancient continents like the Southern Continent have experienced long periods of peace, because ancient and powerful hegemonic empires rose one after another on those continents.

These dominant empires bound the civilizational order of the entire continent to their own will, thus ensuring long periods of peace.

Therefore, the emergence of a true hegemonic civilization in the Northern Lands was an inevitable outcome of historical development.

But the fact that such a powerful ruler was born among dragons, and that the will of the Golden Empire became synonymous with hegemony, is a historical accident.

But behind the randomness lies an inevitability, such as the wisdom and rationality of the kings of the Goggmora dragonflight, and how a generation of dragons became enlightened rulers by the side of the Goggmora emperor.

This fatalism has also become strong evidence for many civilizations to promote the threat of a golden empire.

Because such unifying kings and powerful rulers have emerged among the dragon race, they are destined to bring the entire world of Ekania under the greedy and insatiable claws of the dragons.

But when the Golden Empire returned from its expedition to space, the sounds in the world of Aikania had already changed.

Many scholars and historians seem to have just discovered the many policies and rules of foreign relations of the Golden Empire, and they are advocating the Golden Empire's gentle foreign policy and orderly conduct.

"The winds and fallen leaves blowing from the northern continent of Ekania carry messages, telling the civilized races and nations of the world of Ekania,"

"A majestic and rational dragon has become the true king of the Northern Lands!"

"His benevolence and virtue were so great that even a white dragon, which was worse than a wild beast, had to be educated! Even a demigod evil dragon would not allow the world's order to be disrupted."

When Prince Adrian of the Orx Empire slowly stepped through the gates of the Dragon Royal Court with the orderly flow of people, he realized why many scholars had made such a statement.

The majestic Dragon King's Court is bathed in sunlight, which filters through the dome, casting countless dappled rays that illuminate the colorful murals on the walls of the dome and the massive pillars.

The colorful and magnificent ukiyo-e prints were scattered across the transparent domed windows, and beams of sunlight illuminated the entire vast royal court with dappled light and shadow.

Each ray of light was enough to encompass the figures of dozens of people, so much so that even when these envoys from hundreds of countries looked up, they couldn't see the dome of the royal court.

What made these envoys from various countries feel even more insignificant was the terrifying presence that surrounded the emperor's throne on both sides of the long steps deep within the royal court.

Those were the dragon kings of the Golden Empire, including the Crimson Scale King, Klenaya. This powerful dragon king stood amidst the grand light and shadow of the ukiyo-e print, her scales and armor shimmering with a dim halo under the reflection of the colored light.

Even Prince Adrian and the other powerful mages and warriors from various countries' delegations could not see the full appearance of the Red Dragon King; they could only see a roughly clear outline of light and shadow.

Then came the Blue Scale King of the Golden Empire, the Thunder Master Dos, and the Azure Thunder King Akz.

The bodies of these two powerful male blue dragons, illuminated by the light and shadow of the colorful ukiyo-e print, resemble a bay shimmering with lightning, exuding a terrifying destructive power beneath their calm surface.

Prince Adrian and the foreign delegation looked around and took in all the kings who ruled the Golden Empire.

Rosani, the King of Blackscale, stands like a majestic, black mountain.

The Green Scale Queen, Antajena, bursts forth like a vibrant, thriving spring.

The White Scale King, Garmott, and his twin son, Kamid, stand like ancient, icy peaks.

King Obirash of the Golden Scales turned his head to the side and stared intently. Queen Chris of the Silver Scales and the Silver Dragon Flor stood quietly. Queen Alina of the Bronze Dragons raised her head slightly. King Alfred of the Copper Dragons bared his fangs, and the Brass Dragon Hollister bowed his head.

There are also Naxon the Ocean Dragon, Droni the Mist Dragon, Midil the Steel Dragon, Talia the Goth Dragon, Naronaka the Gray Dragon, Loa the Amethyst Dragon, and Liam the Eternal Punishment Dragon.

The sheer number and diversity of dragon species appearing in this colossal Dragon Royal Court left all the arriving delegations utterly astonished.

Even though these delegations from various countries numbered in the tens of thousands, they felt that their numbers were so insignificant in the face of these giant dragons.

Because these iconic dragons are surrounded by many other dragons of the same kind.

Adult red dragons such as Kadiros and Delos are led by the Imperial Red Dragon King, while green dragons such as Ellie are led by the Green Dragon King.

Black dragons, white dragons, blue dragons, bronze dragons, copper dragons, and so on—there are many great dragons that are well-known to the outside world.

White dragon Sloca, white dragon Ronnie and Sakles, blue dragon Sabrina, black dragon Cecilia, and so on—these enormous dragons are now gathered together, their shadows overlapping.

The scales, each a different color, shimmered brilliantly under the iridescent light emanating from the ukiyo-e print, their vibrant hues complementing each other.

But this beautiful scenery was a terrifying sight that chilled all the envoys present to the bone.

What alarmed Prince Adrian even more was the presence of the ancient crystal dragon that revealed its true form as a dragon, elegant and well-mannered.

And then there were the most outstanding second-generation dragons in the Golden Empire: Nero the Mad Dragon, Caesar the Conqueror, Derrick the Cloud Dragon, Salera the Green, Behemoth Achilles, and so on. The terrifying sight was so overwhelming that these messengers could hardly describe what they had witnessed in words, even after a lifetime of searching.

All things are born from breath. The steady breathing of enormous dragons stirs up thick white mist, obscuring the view. Under the sunlight, their sacredness is tinged with ferocity and savagery.

Prince Adrian didn't know when he had bowed down to the Dragon Emperor, who sat on the Emperor's throne, nor did he know when the entire Dragon Royal Court had been filled with that vast, deep sound.

All he knew was that when he regained some consciousness, he was calling out the name of the Dragon Emperor.

"The Dragon Emperor who holds the Mandate of Heaven is above! The Kings who govern the world and operate the Mandate of Heaven are above! And the dragons under the Mandate of Heaven are above!"

"Homage to the Holy Emperor Gogmora, Homage to the Kings of the World, Homage to the Supreme Dragons!"

Adrian heard the words he uttered clearly, as if his soul had left his body and become a bewildered bystander.

In a daze, he seemed to see that the magnificent colorful ukiyo-e painting of ten thousand dragons soaring into the sky on the dome of the Dragon King's court had also come to life, casting pairs of terrifying, piercing eyes into the court, just like the gazes cast by the Dragon Kings and the great dragons when they looked at the envoys of the various kingdoms.

This brought Prince Adrian to his senses somewhat. His gaze swept over the leading envoy in front of him, and he suddenly realized what was going on.

“Oh, so it’s the Middle-earth Empire, the most renowned regent Josiah among the Farnese. No wonder you’re so calm.”

Adrian thought to himself.

"The world is ever-changing, and the Farn Empire may have been just like that in the past, but the protagonist of this era has changed to the Golden Empire."

"The sun in the starry sky is far away from Aikania, but Aikania's sun is very close to us. Even the regent of the Farn Empire must change his attitude."

Prince Adrian heard the deep, resonant voice of dragons echoing throughout the vast royal court. He looked towards the now indistinct sound and saw a figure on a throne surrounded by dragons, also blurred and shrouded in light and shadow.

So much so that Adrian couldn't tell whether the one sitting on the throne was a human king, a dragon emperor, an elven god-king, or the supreme king of some other race.

Occasionally, Prince Adrian could catch a glimpse of that hazy, resolute face; sometimes he could see a few glimpses of the emperor's armor; or, in a fleeting moment, he might catch a glimpse of that perfect, masculine figure.

Prince Adrian refused to admit that he was so afraid or frightened that he could neither hear the Dragon Emperor's words nor see his true face.

Even when Prince Adrian's gaze casually swept over the trembling Prince Hezhe, he found that his own physical reaction seemed to be exactly the same as the other's.

Even Weston beside him seemed to be on the same wavelength, almost identical to himself.

In this state, Adrian seemed to hear the Dragon Emperor, seated high on his crown, speaking in a deep voice about sin and punishment, about judgment, and about the existence of the Dragon Codex.

Only then did he see that not only were the dragons of the Golden Empire surrounding the throne, but also many unfamiliar giant dragons were also hidden in the shadow of the Dragon King.

Only then did he see that the kings of the northern continent of Ekania also existed in this royal court, standing in a tripartite balance.

The kings of the Northern Lands seemed to respond to the voice of the Dragon Emperor, and he saw the other seven kings standing side by side, chanting ancient incantations as rulers of their kingdoms and races.

A myriad of spiritual light and boundless power emanated from these kings, who were also shrouded in light and shadow, and fell upon the enormous codex that slowly floated into the air, outlining the marks and blessings of these kings.

Then he saw Rosani, the black dragon king who wielded the Codex, stride out from the dragons surrounding him, through the dragons, through the legions, through the envoys lined up on both sides, and disappear into the gates of the Dragon King's Court.

A temporary silence fell over the Dragon King's court, but Prince Adrian and the other envoys from various countries could hear the sudden shouts and dragon roars that echoed through the magnificent royal capital.

The shouts of hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of people rose and fell, making those in the royal court feel as if their eardrums were about to burst.

They seemed to hear the roar of a colossal dragon sweeping across the sky with a howling storm, and felt the ancient and evil might of the dragon.

It wasn't until they heard the resounding, mournful roar of the dragon that they realized what they heard and felt was not an illusion, but a real event.

As sixteen storm giant warriors clad in dark armor carried the enormous, ferocious, bluish-gray dragon skull, following behind the Black Dragon King Rosani into the Dragon King's court, the dying might of the demigod dragon and its blood-stained, hideous head pierced the dazed Prince Adrian awake.

Prince Adrian and the envoys from many kingdoms watched helplessly as the head of the demigod dragon passed by them, its enormous vertical pupils still carrying the pain of relief and the anger of resentment, as well as a horrifying ferocity and savagery even in death.

This gave Prince Adrian a very strange feeling.

"Even the death of the demigod dragon was accomplished at the command of the Dragon Emperor. He had no interest in watching it, nor in letting the envoys of various countries witness it, as if it were insignificant to him!"

The lucid Prince Adrian scanned the Dragon King's court and discovered more details.

Deep within the Dragon King's Court, separated by a massive screen engraved with countless images and texts, stand golden guards and storm giants clad in armor behind each enormous pillar.

Behind these terrifying warriors were countless dragon hatchlings.

These countless dragon chicks seemed just as nervous and timid as Prince Adrian, each biting their fangs and holding their breath.

Like a sculpture, they only dared to stand cautiously in place without moving.

He let his breath turn into white mist, shrouding his figure, as if even the slightest loud exhale would disturb the emperor sitting high on his throne.

The Dragon Emperor, Kalon Gogmora, who sat atop his crowned throne, surveyed the entire scene. Only after watching the bleeding head of the colorful prince Nur being brought before him did he speak.

"From this day forward, let this serve as a warning. All creatures in the world, including dragons, must abide by the laws and regulations!"

"This dragon's blood and skull are my proof!"

The Dragon Emperor's divine decree had been delivered, and all those in the royal court bowed their heads.

"The Dragon Emperor, who is ordained by Heaven!"

(End of this chapter)