Chapter 526
Chapter 526
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 526
Chapter Title: Solidifying Foundations (5)
The effects of the special reward "Yellow Dragon's Jewel" weren't limited to just hatching a Yellow Dragon through the Yeouiju.
'It's grown.'
Horus took a deep breath as he sensed the new bond connecting to his inner world.
The foundation of the power he could wield fell into two main categories.
The Dragon Heart, innately possessed as a dragon of Outerica, brimming with near-infinite energy.
And the Yeouiju, bestowed upon him after being acknowledged as the Yellow Dragon of the Qianghuan Realm, which elevated a dragon's abilities to their utmost limits.
'In a way, it's the perfect combination. Amplifying the energy drawn from the Dragon Heart through the Yeouiju could produce power beyond my original capabilities.'
The time he'd obliterated all of Beijing with a single breath attack had been possible thanks to that synergy.
Of course, skills like "Limit Break" and various other traits had played a role, but no one could deny that the Yeouiju had been the core element.
'Normally, the best Yeouiju is one that the dragon itself crafts over long years of cultivation, tailored perfectly...'
But he wasn't a true dragon, and he didn't have the time, so there was no need to go that far.
Thanks to "Resistor of Providence", he could sufficiently overcome any efficiency loss from poor compatibility anyway.
'And now, I have three of those Yeouiju.'
Horus chuckled softly to himself as he once again turned his gaze inward.
One was the massive Yeouiju he'd carried constantly since receiving it as a gift, now completely familiar to him.
Another was still immature but growing at an astonishing rate compared to its early days, and the last was the newest, emanating only a faint presence since it had just been born.
The latter two weren't true Yeouiju, but their practical effects were hardly different.
The dragon's symbol and ultimate weapon, which could normally only be used once unless defying the heavens, had tripled without any penalties.
'And looking at Huiryeong's case, the growth speed is nothing to scoff at.'
In just a few months by Qianghuan Realm time, they would likely reach a highly usable level.
Considering that the amplification effect of "Yellow Dragon's Jewel" used multiplication rather than addition, even modest increases would yield significant gains.
Horus looked down at the child who had granted him this gift, his eyes filled with satisfaction.
[Kyaaang! Kyaang—!]
[Kiiing...]
A timid little baby dragon huddled within the coiled body of the now quite sizable Huiryeong, peeking around nervously.
The newly hatched baby Yellow Dragon, Hwiseol, blinked its large eyes up at the adults surrounding it.
"Here, here. Want to try some of this? It's fairy fruit from Seongwon Farm. Super tasty!"
"Calm down, Black Dragon. It seems scared. We should take more time to approach it."
"It's a boy, and his personality is the complete opposite of Huiryeong's. His big sis was curious and sociable right from birth, gobbling up whatever we offered."
The Five Dragons, who had gathered immediately after the hatching ceremony, murmured among themselves.
Having experienced it once with Huiryeong, they came fully prepared, each carrying image storage orbs and bags full of treats.
The problem was that Hwiseol, fresh from hatching, ignored everything they offered.
"Being that shy isn't good. He's at the age where he needs to eat well, and if this affects his growth..."
The Red Dragon, focused intently on recording, clicked her tongue softly, her voice laced with worry despite her words.
She let out a small sigh and tentatively extended a small fruit with a glimmer of hope.
Chomp—
"Huh?"
In that moment, the fruit in her hand vanished.
Unfortunately, it wasn't because Hwiseol had finally warmed up to her.
[Kyurrr—!]
The culprit was another baby dragon who had been watching quietly.
Huiryeong snatched the fruit and carefully brought her snout close to her sibling's head.
Her tail tip gently stroked Hwiseol's still-huddled body.
[Kiiing...]
[Kyuaang—!]
Emboldened by the encouragement, perhaps, Hwiseol hesitated while glancing around, then slowly opened its mouth and took a bite of the fruit its sister offered.
"Ooh! He's eating! He's eating!"
"Shh! Quiet!"
"A touching moment. This footage is definitely worth preserving for when these kids grow up."
Apparently hungry after all, Hwiseol's eating show continued for a while.
Though it only ate what came through Huiryeong, it was still huge progress from the start.
Shyness would fade naturally with time anyway.
"Now he's eating well. Aww~ Good boy, good boy."
Horus crouched down beside the baby dragons and gently stroked their small heads with both hands.
The lively Huiryeong and the timid Hwiseol.
Though they shared the traits of being Yellow Dragons born from Yeouiju, their personalities were so different that even he found it amusing.
[Cuung!]
Huiryeong closed her eyes blissfully, enjoying Horus's touch, then wriggled her body.
In a familiar motion, she launched herself and coiled around his body.
[Kiiing.]
Stimulated by her big sister's actions, Hwiseol joined in this time.
The little dragon climbed up Horus's arm, burrowed into his golden hair, and poked its head out.
True to its shy nature, it seemed to like the hiding spot among the hair strands.
Of course, that wouldn't be possible once it grew a bit larger.
"Tch, as expected of Horus. Even Hwiseol loves him. So jealous."
"...Hmm, no need to worry about the shyness after all. He'd eat anything Horus gave him from the start anyway."
"What's wrong with that? We got great footage thanks to it."
"If we try harder, we can get close too. We have plenty of time, after all."
The Five Dragons exchanged glances at the sight of Horus surrounded by the baby Yellow Dragons and chuckled softly.
In truth, the current situation was far from bad for them—it was exactly the moment they'd desperately hoped for, so there were no complaints.
"Not sure how many more Yellow Dragon Yeouiju we'll get... but even if we can't acquire more, it won't be a big issue."
"We've at least prevented the Yellow Dragon bloodline from dying out completely. Huiryeong alone was a blessing, and now Hwiseol too—no more worries."
Though they distinguished them as male and female for convenience, dragons—beings of mystery—didn't strictly need sexes to produce offspring.
Still, with only Huiryeong before, there had been some unease.
Now that they could finally set aside that burden, they raised their image storage orbs with lighter hearts.
"Eek! Hwiseol! Hair isn't food! Spit it out quick!"
[Kiiing?]
"Huiryeong, why are you smacking your lips... Ugh! Don't do it!"
[Cuung cuung cuung!]
For now, capturing these adorable moments forever in records was more important.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A woman lounging in a plush armchair took a deep breath and stretched languidly.
"Haa~ It's been forever since I breathed this air."
Even her casual words carried a seductive lilt, and the sweet fragrance mingling with her exhale instantly filled the room.
If anyone else had been there, that alone would have stripped them of their sanity, turning them into her slave.
Fortunately, this was her private space, strictly off-limits to others, so there was no risk of that.
"Mmm, coming back here really changes how everything feels. I wish I could always be in this state."
Her beauty shone through even the alien features: tall horns rising from her loosely tied long black hair, black wings on her back, and crimson-black reverse pupils.
Hela, the 16th Demon King of the Demon Realm, had finally returned home to the Demon Realm after a long journey.
'Strictly speaking, I haven't been completely absent this whole time.'
No matter how unified the Demon Realm was, the reign was still new, so she had to make periodic appearances to keep things in check.
The demons of this realm were untrustworthy scum who betrayed at the slightest opportunity, so leaving for too long raised the chance of plots brewing.
'It's just entering the stabilization phase—I can't let chaos erupt again.'
Even if trouble arose, she wouldn't lose, but from a ruler's perspective, the mere occurrence was a major loss.
Besides, in any crisis, the biggest victim would be the thriving Hubert Merchant Guild's Demon Realm branch.
Considering the daily revenue from there, she couldn't tolerate any business disruptions.
"From now on, I can focus more here. As long as no other urgent matters crop up needing me."
She had no more business in Savaten, her last assignment.
The shadowy Unknown who spread bewitchment and chaos had become her complete slave after repeated intense "education," and naturally, she'd swallowed up all the infrastructure it had built.
'I'll need to check occasionally... but I can make time when I can.'
After savoring the Demon Realm's air while sprawled in the chair for a bit, Hela slowly rose and left the room.
She planned to inspect whether things had run smoothly in her absence.
"Siana."
"You called, Demon King?"
The succubus Siana appeared at the quiet summons and prostrated herself on the floor.
As her close aide since the Dream Walker days, Hela had signaled her immediately upon arriving in the Demon Realm.
A Demon King couldn't wander without attendants, after all.
"How's Cromwell? Handling the tasks I assigned well?"
"Hubert Merchant Guild's head of the Demon Realm branch, Cromwell, is fully dedicated to establishing branches across the Demon Realm. After opening the 58th branch in Gamire's territory recently, reports say he's touring the realm to select the site for the 59th."
Attended by Siana, Hela toured various parts of the Demon Realm.
As its absolute ruler, she ignored transit restrictions at key checkpoints, quickly meeting high nobles at strategic points.
'...Looks like immediate tasks are mostly wrapped up.'
After the surprise inspection, she returned to her residence.
A few had engaged in pointless mischief due to the demons' ingrained sadistic nature and received "punishment," but as Demon King, she didn't need to handle such trivia personally.
Siana, who'd accompanied her all day, would sort it out on her own initiative.
'Good call using the Hubert Merchant Guild. It's strengthening my grip on the Demon Realm as a bonus.'
Hela glanced at her palm and smiled faintly.
The more her influence as Demon King expanded, the greater the power she could wield here.
She had already conquered the entire realm and ascended as Demon King, but the guild's expansion—deeply intertwined with demons' daily lives—exerted influence in another sphere.
'Of course, more power here alone doesn't mean much...'
She wasn't planning to fight her whole life on this home turf; her main enemies were in another dimension, Earth.
To perform as needed in critical moments, she had to resolve this issue.
"Hmm, at this point... it's about time to start."
Hela murmured drowsily, closing her eyes.
All materials needed for the solution were prepared.
Her senses, repeatedly expanded, began merging with the Demon Realm's dimension, blending into its flow.
Hela was quasi-divine, but due to racial traits, she couldn't fully use her power in other dimensions.
It was unavoidable—designed that way when the Demon God created the Demon Realm and demons.
'Limited power sufficed until now... but not anymore. I need to maximize output using every means available.'
To wield true power in other dimensions, a fitting price was required.
To shatter the inherent limits, she needed karma from a being of similar level and disposition.
'For example...'
Like the Eternal Archdemon Executioner or the Infinite Archdemon.
Hela lightly extended her hand, and an accessory appeared in her grasp.
A pendant with a grotesque eye-shaped ornament at the end of a thin chain made of rare metal.
It was an item crafted by Immortal King Hans—after obtaining a demon's true body in the Devour dimension—using necromancy, demon contracts, and magical artifact creation.
An object imbued with the Infinite Archdemon.
Wuuung—
Activating the "Domination" of "Seven-Colored Demon Eye", she stared at the eyeball wriggling thickly in the pendant's center.
Even Hans had struggled to handle this high-tier sealed being, but in her home ground of the Demon Realm, Hela's power was on another level.
'Plus, I have experience subjugating the Eternal Archdemon Executioner—who was on par with the Infinite one—and stealing part of its karma.'
For exalted beings, experience equated to inheritance and directly tied to causality.
Hela's blazing crimson dominating eyes began slowly encroaching on the eyeball embedded in the pendant's center.