Dragon Raja: Starting with acquiring Orochi, a counterattack against the gods.

He had finished photographing the patterns at the top of the sky and was about to photograph the other things in the hollows, but just as he was about to enter the passage, a shadow suddenly rose up beside him and reached out to grab his neck with incredible speed.

Almost instinctively, Caesar crouched down and kicked the dark figure hard, but he missed. The thing was incredibly fast.

He looked up and saw that it was a statue of a snake-faced man, only a few dozen centimeters tall, dressed in ancient Chinese robes, holding a Chinese-style ivory tablet, with his head slightly bowed, as polite as a nobleman.

But his head was shaped like a cobra, with a long, thin neck protruding from the collar of his robe, which looked particularly out of place.

“A sneak attack isn’t gentlemanly,” Caesar said, rubbing his wrist before delivering a powerful punch to the snake-faced man’s neck.

Just as he was about to touch the snake-faced man, a tremendous force suddenly came from behind him, and Caesar was caught off guard and was thrown to the ground.

He instinctively tried to struggle and fight back, but one hand had already grabbed his neck and lifted him up.

Caesar was unwilling to be subdued so easily. He reached for the Dictator at his waist, but before he could stab it, a sharp pain shot through his wrist, and the knife fell to the ground with a crisp sound.

"Didn't I tell you to evacuate immediately if anything unusual was detected?"

The girl's voice rang out, and Caesar snapped back to reality. He instinctively opened his eyes wide and met a pair of cold, golden eyes.

With one hand around his neck, Yuan Zhinu lifted him into the air. The lack of oxygen made his face turn red, but he could not escape the terrifying force. Caesar could even see his own reflection in those bright golden eyes.

At that moment, he even suspected that the girl really wanted to kill him.

But the next second, he was thrown heavily to the ground. The girl, who seemed like a ghost, looked down at him and tilted her head slightly: "Are you more awake now?"

Caesar coughed incessantly, clutching his neck. He paused, stunned by the girl's words, before realizing that his lifeline and data cable had broken at some point. He ran his fingers down the lifeline and found a clean, sharp break, as if it had been cut with a single stroke.

Caesar suddenly remembered... that he himself had drawn his sword and cut the lifeline!

He looked up abruptly and saw the snake-faced man standing not far away, silently watching them. His eyes were pure silver, gleaming with a solitary, fierce light on the dark bronze surface, as if he were blinking.

He had just almost run into that snake-faced man.

“It’s a self-destruct system,” Yuan Zhinv said. Caesar’s pupils contracted sharply, an indescribable fear exploded in his heart, and his whole body trembled.

The girl, who seemed to appear out of nowhere, spoke again, her voice as cold as ice: "If you try to do something stupid like this again that drags me down..."

She paused here, her eyes filled with undisguised murderous intent:

"I'll kill you first."

Chapter 97 The black dragon opened its ferocious maw toward Caesar

Caesar did not believe the girl was joking at all.

The terrifying killing intent that rushed towards me was so unrestrained. My neck was still throbbing with pain. It was hard to imagine what kind of terrifying, monstrous strength was hidden in that frail girl's body, like a wild bull.

At least when she grabbed him, Caesar had no chance to resist. Her slender wrist was like an iron clamp, and no matter how much he struggled, he could not budge it.

This clearly demonstrates that the girl in front of him possesses overwhelming strength, so obviously.

Caesar's pride was severely damaged. He found it hard to accept that he was completely powerless to resist. He had always thought that he had been too careless during the day of freedom, giving the girl an opportunity. He believed that if he had been more serious, he might not have been a match for her.

But now, with the gap between them so starkly obvious, he finally realized how ridiculous he had been. It turned out that this guy had never really meant anything with him all along.

On the day of his freedom, he'll probably just stretch his arms and legs a little.

This realization left Caesar feeling resentful yet helpless, a profound sense of powerlessness rising within him. When the gap is too large, even the will to struggle is lost.

But Yuan Zhinv didn't care what this young nobleman was thinking. In her opinion, this guy was utterly stupid. Not only could he not help, but he was also a hindrance.

Because she was worried about Caesar, Genji kept a snake with him at all times. Just now, the snake suddenly gave a warning, and Genji knew something was wrong, so she rushed back.

Then she saw Caesar throw a punch into the air, about to smash the snake-faced man.

At that moment, Yuan Zhinv broke out in a cold sweat. She remembered that in the original work, Ye Sheng and Aki died because of this self-destruct program.

Fortunately, she made it in time and stopped the idiot from doing something foolish at the last minute.

Caesar quickly realized what was happening, picked up Dicket, and asked with a grim expression, "What is this? An illusion?"

“Because of those dragon runes.” Yuan Zhinu pointed to the dome: “You’ve been taking pictures, which is equivalent to reading those dragon runes. This will give you ‘spiritual vision’ and make your mind uncontrollable.”

Caesar frowned: "I still feel a little dizzy, but I've stopped watching."

“That’s normal, because we’re close to the Dragon King’s palace. Even if they’re in cocoon form, they can still affect the mixed-race people around us. You can’t stay here any longer. I can’t keep an eye on you all the time.”

Seeing her extremely unpleasant expression, Yuan Zhinv said, word by word, "You must leave immediately."

Caesar almost instinctively retorted, "And what about you? Aren't you also a half-blood? Aren't you affected?"

Yuan Zhinu frowned. Because of her talent for dispelling illusions, this kind of illusion had no effect on her at all, but this was hard to explain.

So she said, "Maybe it's because my bloodline is higher than yours, I'm not affected."

“I can complete the mission by myself. You get out of here right now… oh no, retreat immediately. That’s the team’s order.”

This is absurd! Caesar was too lazy to even bother with this rebellious order. He was full of confusion and asked in bewilderment, "Even if your bloodline is superior, you shouldn't be able to escape the illusion created by the Dragon King."

Is it possible that my bloodline is far superior to yours?

Caesar: "?"

"Alright, enough talk, don't waste time, retreat immediately." Yuan Zhinv hooked her lifeline directly onto Caesar.

“What if I don’t? Now that communication with the principal is cut off, we should follow the team leader’s orders.” Caesar’s blue eyes were filled with complex emotions. The signal bus had been cut off to him, and they could not contact the research vessel.

“Then don’t force me to throw you out.” Yuan Zhinu smiled, but there was no smile in her dark eyes: “Walk out yourself or be thrown out by me, you choose one.”

……

Ten minutes ago, on the research vessel on the Yangtze River, the piercing sound of the machine alarm rang out one after another.

The girl in charge of monitoring the screen was named Selma. She was a very beautiful girl, about twenty-three or twenty-four years old, with black hair and a typical Latina beauty. She was wearing a combat uniform specially made by Kassel College and was Professor Mans's favorite student.

At this moment, the beautiful woman's eyes widened, and she exclaimed in surprise: "Signal interrupted! Data transmission between us and the underwater team has been interrupted!"

Angers paused for a moment, then the handsome old man frowned deeply: "Hang up immediately!"

“There’s no tension in the engine.” Selma looked up, her face drained of color. “Caesar’s lifeline has snapped!”

“What about Kazama Ruri?” Angers asked.

Selma rushed to start the engine and was immediately overjoyed: "Ruri Kazama's lifeline hasn't broken!"

"Reel in immediately," Angers said. "Prepare to lower the life pod. Exploration team, be ready to dive and rescue at any time."

Selma did as instructed, but just two minutes after the engine started, the taut rope snapped back, and the engine lost power again.

Selma's eyes widened, her voice trembling with excitement, and the beautiful girl's teeth chattered: "Ruri Kazama's lifeline... is broken too!"

……

Hundreds of meters underwater, in the pitch-black ancient bronze city, the only source of light came from the two men's searchlights.

Caesar did not want to leave immediately, not only because his authority as group leader had been challenged, but also because he had a very bad feeling.

His premonitions were always accurate; he could sense something terrifying approaching, as if a calamity was silently descending.

If we stay any longer, something terrible might happen.

Caesar had indeed considered leaving. He was not a rigid person, and knowing that hallucinations would occur here and that his consciousness would be out of control, he would not force himself to complete the mission before leaving.

However, he could not accept that he, as the team leader, was retreating while his team members continued to carry out the mission.

"If we're going to retreat, we'll retreat together." The blond, blue-eyed man said through gritted teeth, "I can't leave you behind."

"Why are you talking so much nonsense?" Yuan Zhinv was genuinely annoyed. "Are you trying to force me to take action?"

She was so annoyed she almost rolled up her sleeves, ready to just knock this stubborn guy unconscious and throw him out. She didn't care whether he lived or died, as long as he didn't get in her way.

Seeing that she seemed genuinely prepared to make a move, Caesar instinctively took two steps back. At this moment, he had to confront the fact that what he said might not actually count.

Although frustrated and annoyed, Caesar had no choice but to compromise: "Fine, I'll retreat, but!"

Yuan Zhinv paused in her act of rolling up her sleeves, then glanced at him.

“I command you to return safely.” Caesar’s icy blue eyes were filled with seriousness as he enunciated each word clearly: “I will be waiting for you outside the Bronze City.”

"If you don't come out within an hour, I'll come in and find you immediately."

Yuan Zhinv felt that an hour would be enough to resolve the issue, and as long as Caesar didn't cause trouble in the Bronze City, it didn't matter where he went. So she nodded indifferently: "Whatever you want."

Seeing the girl's relaxed expression, as if she had finally gotten rid of a burden, Caesar gritted his teeth, forcibly suppressing the resentment and frustration in his heart, and turned to leave.

Yuan Zhinu kept her eyes on his back and sent snakes to follow him until she was sure he had completely left the passage and walked out of the Bronze Ancient City before she felt at ease.

She rushed back to save the day, but her mission wasn't finished. She hadn't had time to find Norton's bedroom or get what she wanted.

Now that there was no one holding her back, Genjiro dived into the deep water without hesitation.

Meanwhile, Caesar, who had just left the Bronze City, was experiencing a complex mix of emotions. This was the first time in his life that he had been seen as a burden by his companions.

The girl's disdain was undisguised, which dealt a blow to the young nobleman's pride. However, his aristocratic dignity prevented him from throwing a tantrum, as that would only prove his incompetence.

Caesar made a silent vow in his heart that one day he would definitely defeat the guy who looked down on him, just like when he was young he fiercely fought back against the butler who always controlled him and wouldn't let him play games.

But whether it was because the girl was too direct and thus seemed straightforward, or for some other reason, Caesar didn't actually dislike her. At least compared to Chu Zihang, who always ignored him, this S-class freshman was much more adorable.

At most, he would rank behind Chu Zihang among the people Caesar hated most.

And when he recalled how she had unhesitatingly swapped her lifeline with his, Caesar felt a slight stirring in his heart.

He didn't believe that anyone in this world was unafraid of death, yet she so casually left him with the hope of life. It seems that no matter how sharp and assertive her appearance, she always had a gentle heart hidden beneath.

With this thought, Caesar's anxieties dissipated somewhat, until he swam out of the ancient bronze city and saw the lifeline broken outside the city, the other end nowhere to be found.

Caesar was stunned. He picked up the rope from the ground and saw that the cut was very clean, as if someone had cut their rope from behind when they entered the Bronze City.

This means that there are other living things in this ancient bronze city!

The thought sent chills down Caesar's spine; an indescribable fear exploded in his heart, and a coldness spread from his spine to his limbs, making his scalp tingle.

Caesar suddenly remembered the crying he had heard when he used the bomb. He still didn't know what it was, whether it was a person, a ghost, or... the awakened Dragon King?

Caesar released the Kamaitachi almost without hesitation. The little creatures scattered for a moment, then shrank back. Caesar could feel the fear of the Kamaitachi herd, and the direction of their fear was behind him.

Caesar slowly turned around and saw an enormous, colossal creature floating silently behind him.

It was an ancient, pitch-black dragon that stretched as far as the eye could see. Its entire body was covered in enormous, jet-black scales, and its lantern-like eyes burned with a fiery golden light as it silently stared at Caesar before it, seemingly for an unknown amount of time.

Their eyes met, and the terrifying, enormous monster slowly opened its mouth, revealing a mouthful of sharp, dagger-like teeth. Instantly, a shrill cry of a newborn baby filled the air, but Caesar detected...excitement in the sound of the cry.

That was the joy of seeing fresh blood food.