2038 Dragon Pool Island In the middle of the sea, a green leaf was afloat on the water. It bobbed gently as the ocean swells moved beneath it. A Dragon man and woman were riding the leaf like a boat. The man sat comfortably, appreciating the sea. The woman stood on the front of the leaf, holding a paddle. Every time she pulled the paddle through the water, the leaf would move about a hundred meters forward. It was going against the tide. “Fifteen, I do not know why you are spending more time in Return Ruin Sea. This is a small matter of business that your subordinates can deal with,” the female Dragon said as she paddled. Dragon Fifteen casually responded, “Something strange has happened in Return Ruin Sea. Since we’re already here, this might be a worthwhile diversion for us.” After that, Dragon Fifteen looked over to the large host of Spiky Turtles and said, “With its abundance of western gold air, Turtle Island is an ideal breeding spot for the Spiky Turtles. But this season, none of the turtles are headed there. They are traveling south instead. Something must have occurred.” “But we could not find anything amiss on Turtle Island,” the Dragon lady said. “Maybe it is not the Turtle Island that has a problem. Perhaps there is something else that is more enticing for them than Turtle Island,” Dragon Fifteen said. “Fifteen? What could draw them away?” the Dragon lady asked. “Just go and take a look.” Dragon Fifteen smiled. The Dragon lady kept paddling, bringing them towards the turtle swarm. “The Spiky Turtles are headed for an island called Dragon Pool.” “It is just an island that uses a dragon pool? What’s so special about it?” Dragon Fifteen sounded surprised. “The island has a deep pool in which a King class Dragon creature resides. Every few years, it emerges to feed. In doing so, it kills many nearby xenogeneics. Some Dragon Kings came here to look for the creature, but they never found it,” the Dragon lady said. Dragon Fifteen saw the island, and with a look of surprise, he said, “Our people are on Dragon Pool Island.” The Dragon lady followed his gaze, noticing Long Shan and his family. “Fifteen, these are just a small subset of those in Return Ruin Sea. They seem weak. There is no way they can survive the coming of the Spiky Turtles. Should we help them?” “There is no rush. Let us observe for now. After all these years, we aren’t getting many useful Dragons from this planet anymore. Now we have a chance to see how strong they are,” Dragon Fifteen said, his voice unconcerned. “Yes,” the Dragon lady answered. She put down her paddle and let the giant leaf drift. The sea was rough, but it wasn’t bad enough to drag them too far off course. Because Long Shan’s family wasn’t prepared for the arrival of the Spiky Turtles, fleeing wasn’t an option. Long Shan could escape by himself, but his family would never make it. Sadly, because they had no pure blood, they did not possess dragon wings. If Long Yan could fly, they could all easily avoid the Spiky Turtles. “Get ready to fight. Long Lan, protect Little Rock and the others,” Long Shan commanded. The Spiky Turtles found Long Shan, and they made strange squeals as their eyes turned red. Their black spikes glistened, and their legs moved rapidly as they sprinted toward him. An adult Dragon roared. He released a draconic presence as he moved to strike one of the Spiky Turtles. The draconic presence struck the turtle across its back. The blow hadn’t killed the turtle, but it had sent a web of cracks across the turtle’s shell. Han Sen was surprised to see that an Earl Dragon’s attack could not kill a Viscount Spiky Turtle outright. Dragon Thirteen had been the same race as these people, but Long Shan and his family were all considerably weaker than she was. Also, they did not seem to possess Evilbreaker powers. Their powers were those of an average Earl. Furthermore, the Spiky Turtles had surprisingly sturdy shells. The Dragon Earl had to punch the shell three times to kill the Viscount Spiky Turtle. More Spiky Turtles came towards Dragon Pool Island. Long Shan and the others fought hard. Han Sen used his Jadeskin to fight alongside them and slay the turtles. Han Sen used a strip of leather to wrap up his Blood Feather Knife. The weapon was too famous, and it’d be easily recognized. The sight of it could expose Han Sen’s true identity. There were too many Spiky Turtles, though, and killing them proved impossible. In the time it took them to kill a single turtle, four more would arrive on the shore. At first, there were only Viscounts spear-heading the beach assault^ ^ the Earls soon appeared. That increased the pressure on the defenders, and they soon had to fall back to the mountains. When the first Marquise Spiky Turtle appeared, everyone looked utterly terrified. Long Shan had to step forward to fight it. Other than Long Shan, their strongest fighters were all Earls. Given the strength of their attackers, the battle was becoming increasingly dire. Long Yan and the other young Dragons were being protected by their mother Long Lan as they retreated back into the mountains. Han Sen punched any turtle that came within range; the light of Jadeskin could break their bodies fairly easily. In his head, announcements played over and over. He was keeping a low profile, though, so he made sure not to kill too many. He only stepped forward to help the Dragons when one of them was in danger, and so far, none of them had been seriously injured. Those mixed Dragons were far too weak. They could not kill a Marquise Spiky Turtle—not even in a one-on-one. The Dragon lady stood atop the leaf and watched. Dragon Fifteen was watching the fight, too, but he did not focus on Long Shan. He was observing Han Sen. “How many outsiders are there in Return Ruin Sea?” Dragon Fifteen asked unexpectedly. “I do not know. There can be a lot of outsiders, and they often interbreed with the Dragon. Hence their heavily mixed blood,” the Dragon lady answered. “Are there any higher races?” Dragon Fifteen asked. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚 “There are some of the higher races, such as the Gana and Feather,” the Dragon lady said after a moment of thought. “Any powerful crystallizers?” Dragon Fifteen asked. “The crystallizers have been wiped from history. There aren’t many of them left. I have never heard of a powerful one residing here, at least.” The Dragon lady shook her head. “That is interesting. Why has a crystallizer appeared here, of all places?” Dragon Fifteen watched as Han Sen continued to fight.