I will eventually become a god through sheer hard work.

Serving the Dragon God? Are you kidding me!

Her mother, her grandmother... they were all swallowed up by that monster that would eat people at the drop of a hat.

Life and freedom are the two most important things for a person. If she had the chance to take them back, what other choice would she have?

Seeing the determination in her eyes, Xue Jing smiled, reached out, and shook hands with Renia:

"Rest assured, I will never let you down by abandoning your faith and making a firm decision to kill the gods."

"Believe me."

Xue Jing said softly.

……

Chapter 164 From this moment forward, I am the king of this country. Who agrees? Who disagrees? (4K)

Renia touched the simultaneous interpretation headset she was wearing; Xue Jing hadn't taken it back when they parted two days ago.

Her eyes were resolute as she asked:

So, what exactly do we need to do?

Xue Jing released his hand from Renia's and said:

"Renia, you said before that you could get close to the 'Dragon God', right?"

The girl nodded: "That's right."

“My ancestor is said to have had a secret connection with the Dragon God. She signed an equal ‘Daruka Contract’ with the Dragon God and became the first Dragon God Priestess.”

"The first priestess, according to legend, was the one who rode the dragon god to create the world and created 'Nagdoru'... which is the land beneath our feet."

Renia placed her hands on her chest, interlacing her fingers, in a prayer position.

"Although the history that records the connection between the first priestess and the Dragon God has been lost, the contract between the priestess and the Dragon God has been passed down."

"According to the contract, each generation of Dragon God Priestess has one opportunity to summon the Dragon God through a sacrificial ritual."

"If the arriving Dragon God is satisfied with this generation's priestess, she will become her 'Daruka'... But until now, apart from the first priestess, no priestess of her descendants has ever done so..."

Renia's eyes darkened.

“Witches who do not meet the Dragon God’s requirements will be taken back to the ‘Roaring Falls’ by the Dragon God in accordance with the terms of the contract, and will have to serve it there for the rest of their lives…”

"And it has a very bad temper. It often devours the priestesses who serve it. My mother and grandmother have already perished in its belly. Currently, in the Roaring Falls, only the previous priestess, my sister Dotia, is still alive... She should still be alive."

Xue Jing pondered for a moment, then said, "I see..."

"When can you hold this sacrificial ceremony to summon the Dragon God?"

Renia hesitated, then asked, "Is it in a hurry?"

Xue Jing nodded and said, "It's urgent, today or tomorrow would be best."

Renia fidgeted with the hem of her black robe and whispered:

“It’s impossible today. Holding a sacrificial ceremony requires the approval of the elders and then arranging for someone to build the altar… The altar is very complicated, and I can’t build it by myself.”

Xue Jing asked, "What about tomorrow?"

“Tomorrow is also uncertain. The Elders’ Council is rather inefficient... and I don’t know if they will approve my application.” Renia shook her head.

Upon hearing this, Xue Jing nodded and looked at the person in the mirror within the bracelet.

"Xiao Jing, what do you think?"

The person in the mirror, who looked like a handsome young boy, curled his lip and said, "Don't call me Little Mirror. I'm old enough to be your ancestor."

After a pause, it said meaningfully, "Do it your way."

Xue Jing chuckled softly, turned his gaze to Renia, placed his hand on her shoulder, and asked with a smile in his eyes:

“Renia, to be honest, I’ve been here for several days now, but I haven’t yet visited your country. As a foreigner, I’m very curious about your exotic culture.”

"Take me around, will you? And while you're at it, could you introduce me to your country's council of elders?"

Renia: "Huh?"

For some reason, Xue Jing's smile, which looked sunny and warm, sent a chill down her spine.

……

This country.

On the land called 'Nagdoru', there is one of only two countries with a total population of no more than 10,000 and only one city.

Nagdor is the land of dragons, and the absolute rulers here are creatures called 'dragons'.

Because of the existence of the Dragon God Priestess who had made a pact with the Dragon God, this country has never been attacked by dragons, and its people live in peace and prosperity.

And today, the peace that has lasted for several years... has been broken once again.

"That country, those wicked thieves from that country have attacked!"

On the watchtower of this country's city wall, a middle-aged soldier wearing leather armor cried out in panic.

Immediately, he picked up a horn made from the large horn of some kind of creature, which was hanging on a rope nearby.

"Woooo——"

The melodious and deep sound of the horn resounded throughout the city, the long, uninterrupted syllables symbolizing the highest level of alert, causing everyone in the city to involuntarily stop what they were doing.

Immediately afterwards, some people saw a dozen or so shadows flying towards this country with their backs to the sun in the sky.

"That's... a dragon!?"

"There's someone on the dragon's back!"

"Is it the priestess? No, this generation's priestess is useless... she hasn't even managed to tame a single dragon!"

"It is that country, those despicable people from that country! How dare they offend the Dragon God and capture and tame a dragon!"

"What should we do now?"

"First, notify the council of elders and the shaman. Also, immediately send someone to recall the 'patrol team.' Right now, there are only guards in the city, which are not enough to stop these despicable scoundrels from that country!"

……

"Hmm? That's the country?"

Xue Jing and Renia rode a giant lion formed from Shadow Flame to a high hillside, where they looked down.

Below the hillside lies a small, circular city enclosed by stone walls, resembling a medieval town commonly seen in isekai anime.

A river runs through the city from the very middle, dividing it in two. The city's buildings are arranged in a staggered and orderly manner, making them quite beautiful.

Meanwhile, the area near the city gate was quite lively.

On the city walls, at the city gates, and even in the nearby sky, people and all sorts of 'Daruka' were engaged in fierce battles.

Flames, water, poisonous mist, lightning... a chaotic barrage of attacks erupted from various Darukas, crackling and popping, leaving Xue Jing momentarily stunned.

"What, did I arrive at the wrong time? Are you conducting military exercises?"

Renia covered her mouth, saying uncomfortably, "Wait...don't talk to me yet."

She wasn't used to the speed and jolting of the Shadow Lion's run, and she felt unwell, dizzy, and almost vomiting.

After a while, she patted her face, forcibly suppressed the urge to vomit, took a few deep breaths, and barely regained her composure before looking towards the city gate.

"Hey, what's going on?"

Renia was completely bewildered.

Xue Jing shrugged: "You're asking me?"

"I was perfectly fine when I left home this morning..."

Renia blinked, but quickly realized what she meant and frowned.

"They are from that country!"

"That country has invaded again."

Xue Jing casually asked, "What, do your two countries have a grudge?"

Renia nodded: "Yes."

"This country and that country were originally one country, founded by the Dragon God Priestess, and its name was 'Dorama'."

Xue Jing's eyes flickered.

【Doramar】in the language of the local inhabitants of the border region, it means 'country'. The country founded by the Dragon God Priestess is called 【Country】...

That makes sense... If there's only one country in the world, then there's no need for multiple names to distinguish it; simply calling it "country" is perfectly reasonable.

"That country is a group of people in the original 'Doramar' who do not accept the 'Dragon God Creation Theory'..."

Just as Renia was about to explain in detail, Xue Jing immediately waved his hand.

"Let's not talk about these old stories now. I was just asking casually. I'll listen to you tell me about them another time."

Time is of the essence, and he doesn't want to waste it listening to trivial stories between the two countries.

Once he has killed the pure-blooded dragon, if White Raven is interested in the indigenous culture of this border region, let them form their own exploration team to come in and ask.

The important thing now is to get down to business.

Xue Jing stood up from the head of the Shadow Flame Lion, crossed his arms, narrowed his eyes, and looked at the dozen or so dragons flying above the city gate of this kingdom.

"I didn't expect there to be these escapees... That's right, the leader of the dragon-hunting gang who gave me the map said that they make a living by capturing dragons and selling them to the upper class of that country."

"I almost missed out; there are still a few deals I haven't managed to snag."

Renia paused, about to speak.

But at that moment, Xue Jing took a step forward and dashed towards the city gate down the hillside like an arrow, his speed was unbelievable.

……

"No, we can't stop them. The other country has brought too many dragons!"

"All my Daruka are dead... What do I do now?"

"Damn it, if our generation's priestess hadn't been such a useless person... how could we have ended up like this!"