Raise Joan of Arc to be an empress, then discard her.

His speed had really slowed down! They had an opportunity, all the swordsmen thought, and they pounced on Aaron together, but suddenly they felt a terrifying power, a dense aura of darkness erupting from in front of them...

Chapter 108 A Quiet Visit

"That's right. If this is the case between humans and human organs, let alone between dragons and humans, then we dragons have resorted to a violent method in the face of this situation."

"What method?"

"Trials? The logic of our dragon race is different from that of you humans. Since we cannot fully integrate, we choose to suppress with violence. As long as the other party completely submits, there will be no rejection reaction, and vice versa. Therefore, when you try to integrate the dragon scale into your body, the soul of the former master will awaken, and you will fight a great battle with his remaining soul."

"Because the other party is a dragon, there is only one thing you need to do: defeat the other party, suppress the other party, and make the other party completely submit. After that, you will be completely integrated into one. This is the trial, and it is also the method of forcing growth that our dragon clan came up with."

"Oh, and just a heads-up," Herbert said, "the Dragon Trials are no easy feat. Even adult male dragons have a 25% mortality rate during the trials, and for humans, it's even higher. So be careful. I'll come back to you in two days. But even if you fail, it's alright; I'll just take the dragon scales back."

*

That night, Aaron returned to the Church of Judgment with the dragon scales.

"Are you sure you want to try it tonight? Why not wait a while and prepare more?" Theo asked.

"Yes, I'm in great shape today because I thought there would be a big battle today, so I made special adjustments," Aaron said.

“Okay, let’s start here. We’ll be there and help if anything goes wrong,” Theo said.

At that moment, Elliott stepped out from the side, smiling, and said, "I brought Roland along; he's still at get off work."

Aaron turned around and, sure enough, saw the languid Roland standing lazily beside him, her arms crossed. Her expression looked like someone who had been staying up all night for several days in a row. But Aaron was used to it; Roland was just that kind of person.

"Okay, I'll begin then."

Aaron opened the box and took out the dragon scales inside.

When Aaron held it in his hands, he realized that the dragon scales were heavier than he had imagined, and the texture was strange, somewhere between a hard object and a frosted surface. The surface looked smooth, but when he put his fingers on it, it felt rough.

He placed the dragon scales on his chest, and his pupils turned the color of lava, burning like the surface of the sun. He had activated his dragon transformation.

Just in case, he summoned Bai Yue and placed him between his legs. He didn't know what Bai Yue was for, but it was always good to be prepared.

Aaron closed his eyes. At first, it was just darkness, as usual. But gradually, he felt a pair of eyes slowly open in front of him. This feeling was very strange. Most people would probably find it terrifying, but for Aaron, it was nothing. He looked into those eyes and met them without any fear.

As if triggered by instinct, the owner of those eyes seemed to feel provoked and became angry, while Aaron was already prepared to face the black dragon's fragmented consciousness.

Just as the owner of those eyes was about to launch an attack on Aaron, a dark force suddenly surged from the side. The owner of those eyes paused abruptly, cautiously stopping and circling around the dark force.

Even Aaron hadn't expected this to happen. He had originally planned to tough it out, but now it seemed that he didn't need to take action.

Since the black dragon's remaining consciousness remained still, the dark power took the initiative to entangle itself. Then Aaron witnessed a ridiculous scene: the black dragon actually surrendered to the dark energy, crawling up like a defeated animal.

"Is that all?" Aaron was taken aback, but he felt that the violent consciousness in his mind that wanted to fight against him had indeed disappeared, and was replaced by the power of submission.

In the real world outside the spiritual world, the three stood around Aaron and saw him with his eyes closed in concentration. The dragon scales he held in his hands and placed on his chest were emitting wisps of heat, making one worry that the dragon scales might burn Aaron's skin.

Unseen by them, on Aaron's wrist, black scales were emitting a terrifying light, making the vortex-like maw that devoured the world even more horrifying and lifelike, like a giant beast opening its jaws.

Time passed second by second. In the real world, Aaron's skin was already covered by fine black scales. If you look at Aaron's face again, half of his face is now covered by hideous scales, like a black helmet, while the other half reveals his original face.

The judges present were witnessing the process of nature's blessing for the first time, and they all showed great concentration in the face of this completely different situation.

However, since Aaron had only upgraded from Sequence Nine to Sequence Eight, after about half an hour of adaptation, the black scales faded from his body and disappeared back under his skin. Aaron reopened his eyes and exhaled a long breath.

"Did it work?" Theo asked.

Aaron nodded. When the upgrade was completed, he could feel the changes in his body. With just a thought, his body would be covered with a layer of hard dragon scales.

This greatly enhanced his defense. Physical defense was secondary; his defense against spiritual energy was significantly improved. He could sense that the black scales had the ability to absorb spiritual energy. With these scales, Aaron gained an unprecedented sense of security.

"Is this what it feels like to be a dragon?" Aaron asked.

Of course, the boost from the sequence wasn't limited to that. He felt that both his strength and speed had improved significantly. Aaron was now very confident that if he were to return to the Giant's Tower for another trial, he could easily defeat the enemies there.

“There will be an adjustment period after the upgrade sequence. You’d better rest for a while and get used to your power,” Elliott said.

Feeling the changes in his body, Aaron nodded.

*

At the same time, outside Birmingham.

The fortune teller and magician stood suspended in mid-air above the demon's blood, their faces contorted with extreme excitement.

"Finally, it's a success..." The fortune teller knelt down in mid-air, his whole body trembling with excitement.

The magician, his face flushed, exclaimed, "We...we've finally managed to awaken the demon blood..."

"Is Birmingham's doom coming?" the fortune teller asked excitedly.

The magician shook his head: "The destruction of Birmingham is just a side effect. The most important thing is that the Church of Judgment and Claire's doom are coming."

"Moreover, once the demon blood is awakened, Little Book will also awaken, and our goal will be achieved. This is truly a plan that kills two birds with one stone."

“Don’t rush,” the fortune teller said. “We should proceed according to plan until things truly succeed. Then we will give the whole of Birmingham a surprise.”

*

Aaron was suddenly granted several days of vacation, a benefit he hadn't expected.

He learned after asking that each judge would receive a leave of varying duration after receiving a sequence advancement, and would only return to work after the judge had adapted well. This was considered a benefit given to judges by the Church of Judgment.

Aaron joked at the time, "With such good benefits for judges, if someone can keep breaking through to new heights, wouldn't they be able to stop working?"

Elliott replied, "If you can really keep breaking through, then you really don't need to work anymore. After all, when you break through to Sequence One, even the angels of the Judgment Church will give you a place. At that time, you will be one of the highest-ranking members of the entire Judgment Church. You can take a break as long as you want, and no one will have the right to interfere with you."

Although the holiday was unexpected, Aaron decided to keep it for about seven days.

In fact, this sequence advancement didn't have a significant impact on him, not even as much as the impact of a monster transformation, but Aaron also felt that it was time for him to take a break.

And most importantly, he also had things to do during those seven days; he needed to go to Lodoren because of Freya.

It is conceivable that since becoming the judge, he has devoted all his time to his work, and thus naturally neglected to spend time with Freya. Therefore, Aaron's return to Lodoron this time is to atone for his sins.

Well, after all, she was his fiancée, so Aaron had no complaints. He had already packed his bags and was preparing to head to the train station early the next morning.

He didn't expect things to develop in such an unexpected way the next day.

The next day, at Birmingham train station, two young girls stepped off the train. One of them had long flaxen hair, wore an elegant long dress, and had a pretty and charming appearance. She was clearly a young lady from a noble family.

Along the way, many confident and brave young men from wealthy families tried to strike up a conversation with this young lady, but whenever they approached, the girl would raise her delicate fingers, whether intentionally or unintentionally, revealing a silver ring on her ring finger.

These wealthy young men were all perceptive; they knew that a ring on the left ring finger signified engagement. So they would retreat dejectedly, wondering to themselves what kind of fiancé this young noblewoman would have, and who that fiancé was.

The girl was Freya, who had returned to Birmingham from Lodoren. She had received news a day earlier that Aaron was going on vacation and that he had already bought train tickets for this afternoon to go to Lodoren.

Therefore, the moment she received the news, she packed her bags and boarded the train to Birmingham. She didn't tell Aaron about it, but hoped to give him a surprise.

She devised the plan herself, and it was originally going to go perfectly. She had figured out how to spend quality time with Aaron and enjoy a short vacation, but something unexpected happened along the way.

Because of the girl standing next to her.

Standing next to her was a blue-haired girl who was affectionately holding Freya's arm. They seemed to have a very good relationship, but at the same time, her attire was much more mysterious than Freya's.

The girl wore large sunglasses that covered half of her face and a brown trench coat that covered most of her body. Even with so much of her body covered, her youthful energy was still undiminished. Only occasionally, when her sunglasses fell off her face, revealing her beautiful, jewel-like eyes, did people feel a sense of awe at her beauty.

The person who got off the train with Freya turned out to be Miss Nadine, a big star in the entire Kingdom of Dok. Upon learning that Freya was going back to Birmingley, Miss Nadine immediately offered to go with Freya.

"Nadine, don't you have a performance to participate in?" Freya asked somewhat helplessly.

“I actually had a rehearsal scheduled for today, but I sneaked out,” Nadine said.

Is this alright?

“I’m human too, and I also want a vacation. Besides, how can I not do something as fun as sneaking back to Birmingham with my best friend?” Nadine took off her sunglasses, winked at Freya, and looked charming and cute.

Freya sighed helplessly and looked back at the train station. Although there had been some unexpected events along the way, leaving the damp and gloomy environment of Lodoren, the fresh air of Birmingham still made her feel refreshed. Thinking about seeing Aaron later, her heart was filled with anticipation.

“By the way, I heard that Mr. Aaron resigned from his civil service job after that and became a judge. That’s amazing,” Nadine said.

“Yes, even I was startled,” Freya said.

In fact, Freya was no less surprised than Nadine about this, but as Nadine's fiancée, she had to pretend that she already knew about it in front of others.

“Now that Mr. Aaron is a judge, he must be very different from before. I really look forward to meeting him,” Nadine said.

"Is that so? I don't think it's any different from before," Freya thought, unsure whether she truly believed it or hoped it was true.

Ever since the incident at the government building, Freya had a vague feeling that Aaron had changed, but she didn't know where the change lay.

She felt she had known Aaron for a long time, from university to work, they had spent five years together, which was basically a quarter of Freya's life. And how many five-year periods does one have in a lifetime? Therefore, Freya felt that she knew Aaron no less than anyone else, which is why she felt that Aaron had changed.

But none of that matters. When she sees Aaron again, everything will be the same as before, and their relationship will be the same as before.

“I remember it was Garden Street…” Nadine followed Freya to the address Aaron had given her. They looked around, their expressions somewhat excited.

Inside the house, Aaron brewed himself some tea and sat on a white chair by the terrace, his packed luggage beside him. He was just waiting for the afternoon to arrive so he could head straight to the train station.

Today was a rare good day. Aaron gazed at the scenery outside the window, slowly sipping his black tea. The sunlight shone on him, casting a clear line of light and shadow on his skin.

Chapter 109, the ending, will be available for purchase for a month. I'm hoping for a first-time subscription.

It was as if a demon from mythology had reappeared in the world. Bronze scales rapidly covered its body, bone spikes protruded from its joints like sharp swords, and human hands transformed into claws. In an instant, a massive shadow enveloped the five swordsmen; they had never seen such a terrifying scene in their lives. They saw molten gold pupils, like the sun, flashing deep within the eye sockets. Those pupils were majestic and awe-inspiring, like the eyes of a demon king from hell opening.

Aside from his body, the biggest change was in the weapons in his hands. One weapon's shape became angry and twisted, while the other blade extended to ten meters.

"Dark Awakening! It's Dark Awakening! And it's a perfect Dark Awakening!" the Sword of Conquest shouted, his expression more terrified than if he had seen a demon.

The other four swordsmen also sensed the intense dark aura emanating from him, which was even denser than that of a thousand demons in hell. So this was the kind of monster their enemy was?

Before they could even react, Aaron, having completed his demonization, saw his speed and strength increase exponentially. As he wielded his twisted twin swords, dancing among the five swords, the blades were imbued with unparalleled violence. The so-called Sword of Victory, Sword of Conquest, Sword of the Lowlands, Sword of the Sea God, and Sword of Light were nothing more than lambs to the slaughter before him.

No one was fortunate enough to witness this magnificent scene. The demon wielded two long swords, first severing their weapons with one strike, then shattering their armor with the second, and finally severing their arms with the third strike, sending them crashing down behind him.

The Sword of Conquest wanted to become demonic in a desperate gamble; this was his last trump card, one he wouldn't use unless absolutely necessary, because using it might turn him into a mindless monster. But at this moment, he couldn't care less about that.

But he didn't give him a chance at all. The moment he made a move, Aaron's black longsword came down with a devastating howl. Just like when he destroyed the Griffin Legion, Aaron swung a decisive blow. The Sword of Conquest was cleaved in two and knelt on the ground!

The remaining three knew they were no match for Aaron, but none of them chose to turn and run. With two already kneeling, the Sword of the Sea God, the Sword of Light, and the Sword of Victory charged towards the demon in their final moments.

The scene freezes on the moment when three knights and a demon roar as they collide in mid-air. A massive explosion engulfs their bodies, and a terrifying storm of spiritual energy sweeps across the entire battlefield. As the spiritual energy swirls in the air, countless grains of sand are kicked up. The grandeur of the central battlefield is like the rising sun. This is the pinnacle of superhuman power. There has never been such a magnificent battle in the world. Everyone on the battlefield instinctively looks at this scene to witness the final outcome of the battle.

"Did we...win?"

After a long while, the smoke and dust dissipated, and a Lucerne knight opened his eyes and looked in the direction where the smoke and dust had risen.

Almost everyone who was still alive looked in that direction, waiting for the final outcome of the battle. The soldiers of Lusset and the soldiers of the Seven Nations were the same. Their hearts were pounding, wondering what kind of figure would emerge from the thick fog.

Heavy footsteps echoed through the thick fog, shattering the battlefield's tranquility. Emerging from the fog was a human figure, but the soldiers of the Seven Kingdoms Alliance did not cheer. He was tattered, the hem of his black robe charred, but his signature twin swords still proved his identity.