Steel torrents pioneering a different world

Chapter 208 Terrifying Humans! An Elf Besieged on All Sides! A Popular Instagrammable Spot! (Bonus Chapter, Please Subscribe!)

"Are you really going to fight the Dragon Empire?"

Annies's voice trembled slightly, without her even realizing it, as if she were confirming an absurd joke.

Gong Pengfei really wanted to grab the elf lady by the collar and ask her if she couldn't understand human language.

But in the end, he simply raised his hand and pressed the translator by his ear to confirm that the indicator light was flashing normally before speaking in a factual tone, word by word: "We humans should take it as our duty to eradicate evil and uphold justice. If the Dragon Empire is evil, we will surely go to war with it in the future."

These words, spoken in a calm tone, were like a heavy hammer, shattering the world that Annie had always held in her mind.

Her eyes blinked rapidly, her long eyelashes fluttering like startled butterfly wings, and she was completely stunned.

In her limited memories, the Dragon Empire was a concept on par with natural disasters and divine punishment, an existence that could only be avoided, revered, or even submitted to.

confrontation?

The word itself seems so presumptuous.

Gong Pengfei didn't give her much time to process her emotions and continued to press her for answers.

"Ms. Anise, do you know the dragon's weaknesses?"

"Both physical and magical aspects are fine, the more specific the better."

"How much do they eat? What kind of meat is best for their growth? What is their daily energy expenditure and excretion?"

"These should all be basic biological knowledge, and they shouldn't harm the core interests of the Elf race, right?"

A series of practical, almost trivial, questions instantly pulled Anise from the shock of her grand worldview back to a situation that left her even more bewildered.

She opened her mouth, but found that she couldn't utter a single word.

……

On the other hand, the atmosphere in the interrogation room was as cold as ice.

Tang Huanzhu looked at the arrogant and disdainful elven captive before her and smiled as she read out the other's full name: "Ms. Elene Dalit Lagstu, you said that dragons cannot be subdued and that we are extremely weak compared to the Dragon Empire. I will take these as your attempts to provoke us."

“Rhetoric?” Eleanor scoffed, her contempt undisguised. “You humans have barren bloodlines and fragile souls. Even if you manage to glimpse a sliver of magical secrets, you will never comprehend true power! Controlling dragons? That’s an inherent right of dragonborn, a grace bestowed upon believers by the Blood God. You? Unless you kneel at the feet of an evil god and exchange the souls of millions for a trace of your corrupted bloodline, it’s absolutely impossible!”

“Madam, sometimes you shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep,” Tang Huanzhu said with her smile unchanged. “According to our previous agreement, if we really gain control of the Demon Dragon, you’ll need to answer some questions for us. You can also swear an oath in the name of your mother goddess, right?”

“Of course!” Elene straightened her back, her expression solemn as if making an oath. “As long as it doesn’t harm the interests of the Elven race, and doesn’t make me do anything evil that would betray my own people, I swear in the name of the Mother Goddess—but you will never have that chance!”

Seeing her confident expression, Tang Huanzhu finally couldn't help but smile, revealing a row of neat white teeth.

She didn't argue anymore, but simply tapped the tablet in her hand.

The screen lights up.

The image shows a brightly lit, spotless laboratory.

A small creature, its entire body covered in green scales and its belly adorned with milky-white scales, was fluttering its wings, chasing after a human-made skewer of meat that was moving around, making a sizzling sound as it moved with incredible agility...

A human in camouflage offered it a skewer of meat. The little creature stretched out its mouth and began to slurp it up, its tail and wings swaying behind it, clearly very happy.

Besides this, there are also dragons that obey human commands.

【Dragon Flame】

Then, the dragon spewed out red and green flames from its mouth, cooking the skewer of meat...

When Elena saw this, the arrogant expression on her face froze instantly, then cracked inch by inch.

She leaned forward abruptly, her eyes fixed on the screen, her breath catching in her throat.

"This...this is impossible! Absolutely impossible!!!"

Her voice was sharp and distorted, filled with incomprehensible horror.

In her memory, in her heritage, and in all the epic records, the dragons were synonymous with unruly, terrifying, and cunning, and were ferocious beasts of slaughter that were highly bound to evil dragon descendants and blood gods!
But what is this thing in front of me... this thing being fed like a pet dog?!

Tang Huanzhu admired her devastated expression and slowly spoke, her tone carrying a hint of genuine distress.

“Ms. Ellen, you see, we don’t have much experience.”

"If your elven race were to control a dragon, how would you typically raise such a young? At this stage, is it better for it to drink milk or eat the nutritional paste we prepare?"

"Also, will it go through a so-called 'rebellious phase' when it grows up?"

"How should we train it to prevent it from breathing fire and hurting people in the future? Should we... consider spaying or neutering it? I heard that it will be more docile?"

"Who am I? Where am I? What do I want to do?"

"Fake! It's all fake!"

"I can't tell the difference!"

All that remained in Elena's mind was a jumble of confused words.

Then, she suddenly thought of something.

Sterilization surgery?

Sterilize a dragon?!
What an insane idea!

Dragons are hermaphroditic and can reproduce whenever they want. Do you think sterilization can prevent dragons from having baby dragons?
dark magic?
"What did you do to it? What evil dark magic did you use?!" she screamed uncontrollably. "No! Dragons have the highest magic resistance; even a cub cannot be controlled by mental magic! What about its soul? What about its pact with the Blood God? Why..."

Why do you act like a dog?!

The more she thought about it, the more confused she became. Her worldview, built up over hundreds of years, and the sense of superiority that elves possessed were shattered at that moment by the video.

Her mental state completely collapsed!

Late at night, the office next to the prisoner-of-war camp was filled with smoke.

Gong Pengfei's figure was reflected in the glass window, the red dot on his fingertip flickering in the darkness. He silently exhaled a smoke ring, enveloping himself in white mist, as he looked at the interrogation report that Annie had just submitted.

dong dong dong.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Tang Huanzhu walked in. She immediately wrinkled her nose from the smell of smoke filling the room and waved her hand in front of her.

"Team leader! Are you planning to turn yourself into a smoky cured meat and ascend to immortality?"

"Sorry, sorry." Gong Pengfei quickly stubbed out his cigarette, got up and opened the window wide. A gust of cold night wind blew in, dispersing some of the cigarette smoke. "I was lost in thought. So, did you make any progress on your end?"

Tang Huanzhu turned on the ventilation system at the door, then pulled out the chair opposite him and sat down, his expression subtly excited.

"Not bad. Out of twenty elves, I managed to get three of them to talk. It's a pity they're just scraps, but it's still quite interesting to piece them together. We're learning more and more about elves."

Speaking of this, Tang Huanzhu curled her lips: "Sometimes we are too rule-abiding. We should just fly some supersonic drones and head straight to the deepest part of the Elf territory. I don't believe we can't send back the crucial clues."

“That would probably cause an uncontrollable war!” Gong Pengfei smiled. “My side has achieved better results. Five of them have provided some useful information. The most interesting point is that the knowledge transmission of the Elven race does not rely on the education system we imagined, but rather on the sacred tree and the mental magic of the Elven prophets.”

"The Sacred Tree Network?" Tang Huanzhu immediately chimed in, clearly having asked about something similar. "I've dug some up here too. Those elves are incredibly protective of their information, but I have a feeling that they're not just wary, but... genuinely unaware."

She paused to find a more accurate word: "They are so dependent on the Sacred Tree Network that they are practically addicted to it. I asked the elves how to identify enemies, and they said the Sacred Tree would provide the answer."

"A race that outsources its brains?" Gong Pengfei's expression became playful. "No wonder. I always find it difficult to talk to them. They've lived for hundreds or thousands of years, yet they're as innocent as blank sheets of paper, exuding a kind of... pure stupidity."

This description made Tang Huanzhu burst out laughing.

This is true.

After spending time with them, you'll find that these long-lived elves are utterly hopeless in every way except for their combat skills and their ingrained arrogance.

On an individual level, they have a sweet tooth, are prone to sleepiness, are extremely clean, and are outrageously vain. Their mind is mostly quite simple; while they may not be completely incapable of understanding complex social structures and political maneuvering, their coping strategies are remarkably naive!
Tang Huanzhu added, "Have you asked about population and child rearing?"

When they dissected the fallen elves, they discovered that the uteruses of many elderly elves had been removed, rendering them completely infertile.

When the prisoners were questioned, their reactions were so intense that it seemed as if humans had blasphemed against the gods, and the topic became taboo.

"I asked around indirectly," Tang Huanzhu said, "and it seems they have a special nursery where all newborns are cared for by dedicated staff!"

Gong Pengfei leaned against the window, letting the lingering smoke be carried away by the evening breeze. His eyes had become much deeper: "Centralized care, uterine removal... Elves' productivity is not high. Logically speaking, with such a low-level social structure, raising children by their biological parents would be more stable and reliable! I always feel that elves are not a normal social structure, but rather like... a highly efficient arsenal."

A race that exists only for war?

impossible?

“Besides this,” Gong Pengfei continued, “my biggest gain here is information about the evil god and the evil dragon empire.”

“I asked that too,” Tang Huanzhu nodded.

"What do you think?"

“A poor vocabulary.” Tang Huanzhu pondered and gave an unexpected assessment. “It seems that their language system consists of nothing but praising the Mother Goddess and the Sacred Tree, and cursing the enemy. They just repeat the same few words over and over: evil, filthy, and hateful. It’s hard to imagine that the cultural foundation of a long-lived race would be so shallow.”

Gong Pengfei flicked off non-existent cigarette ash: "The pressure to survive is too great; civilization will naturally develop abnormally. Their minds are probably only filled with magic for combat and survival; there's probably no room for anything else. By the way, is there any news about exchanging prisoners and sending envoys?"

Tang Huanzhu's expression turned somewhat strange: "I asked. Most of them hid it very well, but I could sense that they had no hope at all that they could be switched back."

"You also think they've implicitly accepted being abandoned?"

"Yes."

Gong Pengfei sighed: "I really don't understand, are the Elven high command cold-blooded, or just overconfident? Aren't they afraid of causing problems with morale and social structure?"

If the people of the Forbidden Kingdom knew that the lives of their elven warriors could have been saved in order to protect them, but the kingdom's leadership had abandoned them, it would severely damage their cohesion and morale.

“Team leader, they didn’t send a single envoy. Instead, they’re hiding in their shells like turtles. Elves are inherently abnormal.” Tang Huanzhu put a piece of chewing gum in her mouth and chewed it slowly. “They don’t feel like a normal intelligent civilization to me. They seem more like a race that’s prone to overreacting.”

"Perhaps there's some problem within the elves that we're unaware of?" Gong Pengfei speculated. "This world has magic, and who knows if those otherworldly humans in the south have mastered some means to mass-produce minds? Mind magic is far more dangerous than a nuclear bomb."

"Let's report it first and let the experts at the top have a headache."

"Ah."

The two were silent for a moment, and the only sound in the office was the faint noise from the ventilation vents.

Suddenly, Tang Huanzhu seemed to remember something happy, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.

"By the way, team leader, there's an elven noble I made a bet with, the one named Elene."

Gong Pengfei looked at Tang Huanzhu with a puzzled expression: "What's wrong with her?"

Tang Huanzhu laughed like a fox who had stolen a chicken. "I used rhetoric to get her to talk! Then she made a bet with me, agreeing that if we could subdue the demon dragon, she would answer some harmless questions for us. Now she's a bit mentally broken! When I left, she was muttering 'It's all fake, it's all fake,' and her mental state was very unstable."

"and then?"

"I request to bring the Gluttonous Dragon along! Let's intimidate them again!"

"Very good." Gong Pengfei grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. "The application later... never mind, Little Dragon is our pioneering team's top-tier pet, let's just bring the elf over! Take her over to see Little Dragon, but why are you called Gluttonous Dragon?"

"Don't you think it's interesting? It devours several of its own meat at every meal, and then sleeps after it's full! The nickname 'Gluttonous Dragon' is quite fitting!"

"Don't call it that in front of it. That little dragon can understand what we're saying, it's amazing! We're clearly speaking Chinese, but it can understand us!" Gong Pengfei thought about what he had seen about Ming Yufei and the others encountering the little dragon, and then said, "A mentally broken elven noble, hehe... if she can utter some harmless information, it might be a gold mine for us!"

"Also, draft a list of questions! Make a list of sensitivities and try to find out exactly what the Sacred Tree Network is, the factions within the Elf Kingdom, and her noble Mother Goddess... well, I guess their Elf Mother Goddess is very sensitive, so it's not good to ask her."

"Ok!"

……

New Arigian, a prison where prisoners are interrogated.

Grace looked at the elf Tiffany Isaac returning from the human settlement, his voice devoid of warmth in the empty stone chamber: "And then?"

"...Then, the human who drew the lot released me! Your Excellency, I really didn't lie!" Tiffany's voice trembled with tears as she desperately grasped at the last straw. "Humans...humans want peace! So many of our sisters have been captured by them! We must rescue them!"

Grace lowered his eyelids, reached out, and gently stroked Tiffany's hair, which was trembling with excitement, as if soothing a frightened little animal.

“Tiffany, you are an excellent warrior of the Wood Clan.” His voice was calm and even. “You should know what those evil humans did to our people hundreds of years ago, shouldn’t you?”

"I remember!"

Tiffany's body stiffened abruptly.

That history is an indelible mark etched into the soul of every elf. In order to capture elven slaves, humans secretly unleashed bizarre magic, colluding with their fallen brethren, the Cloud Clan, to launch a coordinated attack and breach a great elven city overnight.

Tens of thousands of compatriots were captured, countless people were taken to a distant world amidst tears, blood was stained red in the city, and countless sacred trees were toppled.

The wailing sound seemed to have pierced through hundreds of years, and it still echoes in our ears to this day.

The elves paid an extremely heavy price to completely wipe out that evil human force.

That was a past that, whenever I think of it, causes my soul to ache.

“Very good.” Grice withdrew his hand, his tone still calm. “Stay here and don’t let your guard down. They can lie dormant for decades for an evil plan. Humans cannot be trusted.”

He turned and, before leaving, added, "Of course, I will report the news you brought to the priests and prophets as soon as possible. We all hope to save our people as soon as possible."

The heavy iron gate slowly closed in front of Tiffany, finally severing her hopes with a loud crash.

In the prison, only the elven warrior, who had been released not long before being imprisoned again by his own people, remained, silently sliding to the ground.

As Grice walked out of the prison, the blinding sunlight made him squint.

The newly appointed priest Boyd was already waiting in the shadows.

"How is it?" Boyd's voice was dry and sharp.

“Unable to tell.” Grice exhaled, his expression complex. “Her mind showed no signs of being altered by magic, and her soul fluctuations were very stable. Those humans from another world might really be different from the group in the Green Lands to the south.” “Hmph, different?” Boyd let out a cold laugh, as if mocking Grice’s naiveté. “They’ve just used a more cunning method! Human greed is rooted in their souls and will never change!”

He stepped forward, his eyes burning with fervor and determination: "Grace! Don't forget, in order to deal with threats from all sides, our clan's operations have been pushed to the limit! The entire society is like a taut string, unable to withstand any more deception and betrayal!"

Grice remained silent, saying that Boyd was telling the truth.

Boyd looked at her and said, slowly and deliberately, "Let's do it the old way! I will perform another complete mental memory reconstruction on her."

"Another memory reconstruction..."

Grace sighed.

He knew what that meant; he knew the pain the patients suffered when he helped Lani and others with their reconstruction.

Mind magic can modify an individual's memories, but it has significant side effects, such as loss of memories, loss of much knowledge, and severe aftereffects.

Furthermore, it can easily lead to dementia.

Boyd stopped looking at him and gazed into the depths of the prison: "Any noise that could shake morale or pollute the Sacred Tree Network must be eliminated. This is for the survival of the race."

“Boyd, you and I both know that reshaping Tiffany and the others’ memories won’t solve the current problem!”

"What can we do? In the end, we've been consuming countless amounts of energy. The Mother Goddess is restricted, and a large number of troops are deployed in a war where we see no hope! Right now, the northern humans are cutting down forests and leveling mines. Perhaps it won't be long before they establish human outposts and then invade our kingdom on a large scale!"

"Are we just going to wait to die like this?"

“We can only carry out the prophet’s orders and delay the northern humans as much as possible!” Priest Boyd sighed.

“Those humans… are different! Perhaps… I mean perhaps, we should try to make contact with them. At least we need to know what they're thinking. Boyd, you know our Sealed Lands have recently expended too much of their strength! The humans in the south have been constantly sending troops to attack our half-human allies next door, and we've suffered heavy losses in our recent wars. If the humans in the north…”

Boyd Hughes sighed heavily: "The heritage of the Elven race cannot be corrupted; we must ensure the purity of our bloodline! Humans may be kind and reliable in the beginning, but later they become greedy and cruel. Humans are untrustworthy. This is a lesson we learned with our blood! Never forget!"

Seeing these same old arguments again, Grice was powerless to refute them.

He was powerless to refute the priest, and even more powerless to address the current predicament of his people.

The feeling of watching one's territory being gradually carved up and their range of activity shrinking is incredibly distressing.

“What about our allies?” Grice asked. “What about the half-humans? Surely they won’t cower like us? Those hot-tempered guys, perhaps we can urge them on and make them fight the humans to the death!”

"News has come from the dwarves; they intend to send an envoy to have some talks." Boyd's face showed a strange expression. "You know, half-humans have a high resistance to mind magic, and they use their familiar methods of diplomacy. We can't control them!"

Grace's taut cheeks twitched slightly, a rare occurrence.

Should we send the dwarves to negotiate?

I just hope the other side will fight each other.

Moreover, it is a deadly feud that can never be stopped.

"Since the dwarves are willing to wade into these troubled waters, let them go. Our current forces can only seal off the lower border!"

He spoke these words with extraordinary difficulty, as if each word was mixed with sand.

“Hmm!” Boyd’s expression softened slightly upon seeing his obedience, but the dark clouds that had once again enveloped the city made him irritable. “New Erigian has suffered too many losses. Perhaps the next human attack will see New Erigian fall. Grice, you must be prepared!”

He turned and walked toward the prison: "I will purify Tiffany. You are in charge of the city's defenses, Grace. Don't let any dissent shake the morale of the army."

The heavy iron gate slammed shut behind them with a clang.

Gris stood alone in the open space. The glaring sunlight had somehow disappeared behind the clouds, leaving the world shrouded in gray.

Purify?
What beautiful words.

He pictured Tiffany's hopeful yet anxious face.

Even though he was numb and cruel, at this moment it felt like something was ripping his heart out.

Today I am an elven ranger warrior, but what about tomorrow?

After they are defeated, will they be captured and treated well by humans?

He looked up at the gloomy north, then looked back at the tightly closed iron gate. After thinking for a while, he saw magical fluctuations inside the prison before leaving.

The elves have been facing too many challenges lately.

If they can no longer stop the enemy's invasion, the Forest Kingdom will lose vast swathes of territory. At that point, the elves' living space will drastically decrease.

Without a place to stand, the Elven race will have no future.

If their mountain elf kingdom collapses, then the once glorious elves may very well disappear completely from the God-Forsaken Continent.

Perhaps in the markets of other races, some of the Elven treasures and historical artifacts would be sold at high prices as collectibles.

The existence of the elves will be recorded on a few thin pages, documenting their past.
-

In this other world, the outside of the steel mill is freezing cold, but the inside of the factory is as hot as a furnace.

Here, a fence made of welded stainless steel pillars has been erected, transforming the area into a scene resembling a tourist area.

A group of soldiers and researchers on leave were standing on tiptoe, craning their necks to look inside. Many of the burly men had smiles on their faces as if they were seeing their own children.

"Goodness gracious! I used to think that only the dragons of the East were majestic and powerful, while those winged lizards of the West were just ugly and deformed. But seeing them with my own eyes today, I finally understand what the beauty of magical creatures really means!"

Sun Dezhu stared, his eyes practically popping out of his head, as if his soul had been sucked away.

Human beings share a common yearning for beautiful things in some ways.

They were looking at the little dragon.

The little dragon not far away, although only thirty centimeters long, had already begun to take the shape of a sky overlord just a few days after hatching.

Its scales grew increasingly emerald green, like the finest jade, and the light green wings and milky white scales on its abdomen also began to show a faint green tinge.

Most remarkably, under the intense light, its scales reflect a cold, hard metallic luster, as if each scale had been forged through countless trials.

It's foreseeable that when this little guy grows up, his dragon scales will be harder than alloy armor.

Zhao Dezhu couldn't help but exclaim, "Captain, how big do you think this guy will grow to be?...Captain?"

He called out twice before realizing that Zhao Chong next to him hadn't heard him at all, his eyes fixed on Xiao Zhou, the lucky one in their group.

Xiao Zhou was carefully tossing a sizzling piece of mutton into the air.

A green shadow flashed by!
The little dragon, which had just been perched on the shelf, flapped its wings and instantly transformed into a streak of light, precisely snatching the piece of meat in mid-air. Then, with a graceful tail flick, it landed steadily back on the spot, and with a flick of its throat, the entire piece of meat was gone.

The whole process was so smooth and fast that it was dazzling.

Zhao Chong's Adam's apple bobbed up and down, his eyes conveying the message: He wanted to be fed.

"Damn it, another one gone mad!" Zhao Dezhu cursed inwardly, glancing down at the "No. 251" sign in his hand, then at Xiao Zhou, who was being envied by everyone. He felt his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys were all twisted together in frustration.

This little green dragon has now become the top celebrity and a one-of-a-kind treasure of the entire pioneering team.

The pioneering team obtained a magical creature, and the dragon was intelligent, not uncontrollable by its beastly nature, but like a pet. After the news spread, everyone on vacation here went crazy, and huge groups of people came to see it.

At first, it was manageable, but as more and more people came, the little dragon's routine was disrupted.

The troops had no choice but to issue a strict order to allow visits at fixed times.

You can watch them, but only at the fixed feeding and outdoor times each day.

Want to hand-feed them?

Okay, let's draw lots. There are only three spots available each day.

"Damn it, those bastards are incredibly lucky! How come I didn't win!" a burly man who didn't win complained angrily.

"Be content. I heard that some of the senior experts at the research institute almost plucked their beards off in order to get a chance to watch up close."

Listening to the surrounding chatter and looking at his captain's longing expression, Zhao Dezhu nudged him impatiently: "Captain, snap out of it! You're practically drooling."

Zhao Chong then came to his senses, wiped his mouth, and coughed to cover his embarrassment: "This little thing is really fast. Does it only like to eat mutton? Doesn't it eat beef?"

Before he could finish speaking, he shook his head.

The dragon probably eats everything, but it just has a particular fondness for mutton!
If no one feeds the dragon, how can it be hunted given its small size?

If it were to appear on the grassland, would it become a sheep thief stealing sheep from the herders?

"I reckon it won't be afraid of anything!" Zhao Dezhu said, barely suppressing his excitement. "When this little guy grows up, he'll just lie down at the entrance of our base, and who would dare to cause trouble? Just looking at him is enough to inspire confidence!"

"If we build a theme park in the future, the tickets will definitely sell out!"

"Ah, I feel like the panda's status as a national treasure is in jeopardy!"

"It can still be saved. What do you think about the little dragon growing up and eating pandas? Will it eat them one by one?"

How could you be so cruel?

"Well, what can I do? It's a demonic dragon!"

"Do you think this dragon can be ridden?"

"If elephants are okay, this should work too, right? Doesn't the magical world have a class called Dragon Knight?"

"Aren't you afraid of being killed by a mouthful of dragon fire?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the little dragon, having eaten and drunk its fill, let out a burp.

Ming Yufei pointed to the target.

“Saga…”

The little dragon cried out and reluctantly spat out a small amount of red and green dragon flame.

Long Yan set the paper target that Ming Yufei had specially set up for training on a burning fire.

The surrounding area suddenly became quiet.

Everyone, including Zhao Chong and Zhao Dezhu, stared wide-eyed.

This thing... seems even more powerful than they thought!

As everyone was engrossed in watching, a series of rapid and heavy military boot sounds suddenly came from the workshop entrance.

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Several heavily armed soldiers with serious expressions strode in. The leader glanced around and immediately ordered in a deep voice, "Urgent notice! All visitors, please evacuate! Go to the monitoring room next door to watch the footage. This area needs to be cleared temporarily!"

"Huh? What's wrong?" Zhao Dezhu asked instinctively. "What happened?"

"Execute the order!" The soldier offered no further explanation, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"Damn, I just got here! I haven't even checked in or taken a picture yet!" a soldier who had finally managed to get a number complained.

"Alright, stop complaining. Didn't you see it's the combat troops? They must have something important to discuss."

Although the soldiers and researchers who came to check in during their leave were extremely reluctant, military orders were paramount, and they quickly and orderly headed out.

The complaining soldier kept turning back, clearly reluctant to leave.

Zhao Dezhu and Zhao Chong were also pushed along by the crowd. They also looked back and saw the leading soldier walk straight to Ming Yufei, another zookeeper next to Xiao Zhou, and whisper something in his ear.

Ming Yufei listened with a strange smile on his face, nodded repeatedly, then turned around and said a few words to the little dragon that was scratching its neck with its wings, and also made a few hand gestures.

The little guy seemed to understand, tilting his head and making a "squeak" sound as well.

Ever since the little dragon was handed over to them by that mysterious giant, Ming Yufei and the others have been taking care of it.

This little thing is incredibly clever, practically a genius in disguise. While it's not always obedient to its owners, it's very cooperative.

They can understand each other perfectly with just a few simple exchanges.

Zhao Chong's eyes followed the soldier closely, trying to discern something from their lip movements and actions, but to no avail.

These guys are acting all mysterious; I wonder what they're up to!
The group went to the monitoring room next door, stood still, and enjoyed the view through the monitor screens.

A moment later, a door was opened.

A series of soft, scraping metallic sounds rang out.

Several figures entered under the escort of armed soldiers. The one in the lead had long green hair that spread out behind her like seaweed. Even though she was wearing prison clothes and heavy magic-suppressing collars and shackles, her breathtaking beauty could not be concealed.

In the entire monitoring room, anyone who had never seen a Pokémon before gasped in shock.

"Wow... this is an elf?"

"It's even more exaggerated than what you see in the videos..."

"Recruiting them as movie stars would be far better than those young actresses!"

Xiao Zhou, who was following Zhao Chong, stared wide-eyed, but after looking at that face, he suddenly felt that the face looked familiar and bumped Zhao Chong next to him with his shoulder.

"Captain, look at that one, the second one from the side!"

Zhao Chong followed his gaze and his eyebrows suddenly twitched.

That female elf, isn't she Annis, the female prisoner they captured alive after going through great lengths?
Just then, Annies in the workshop seemed to sense something. Her gaze passed over the crowd, through the scorching air, and finally settled on the little green thing that was scratching itself with its paws.

In an instant, all the emotions in her emerald green eyes vanished, replaced by an unprecedented and intense tremor.

(End of this chapter)