79 There’s Only One Way to Wake the Giant
And that is—
“Red Flame Dragon King, Constantine… wasn’t he defeated a few years back in the Silver Dragon War?”
Even Yuna from the Thunder Dragon Race had heard of that battle. “How is he here now?”
At this moment, Constantine had transformed into his human form, appearing as a man in his thirties.
Even though only his head was original after the merge, transforming still fell under the category of magic. This human form allowed him to move more easily and reduced the wear and tear of his giant body.
“That’s a long story, little one.”
As Constantine spoke, his gaze slowly shifted to Noia.
He squinted slightly, examining her face. After a moment, Constantine said in a rather eerie tone, “Oh, I recognize you. You’re Casmod and the Silver Dragon King’s daughter. I remember seeing your picture in the intel Morin sent me a while back. You were quite small back then.”
Morin had been Constantine’s undercover informant in the Silver Dragon Race, but was eventually caught by General Leon during a fishing expedition.
Constantine’s tone was flat, like a distant uncle chatting with Noia about the weather.
But Noia had no desire to discuss anything with this guy. First attacking the Silver Dragon territory, then the Red Dragon Holy Temple—this crazy dragon was definitely not someone to be trifled with.
“Casmod? Your Majesty, since she’s Casmod’s daughter, why don’t we just take her out right here to avenge you?” a Red Flame Dragon guard growled through gritted teeth.
Leon and Constantine had history, and the reason Constantine had been tormented by the Empire for so long definitely involved Leon.
Now that his daughter was in their hands, as the guard suggested, taking care of Noia would not only k*ll two birds with one stone but would also be quite satisfying.
However—
“The grudges between Leon and me shouldn’t involve the next generation. Besides, do you really think I, as a Dragon King, would attack a child under ten?”
Now that’s some perspective!
Even though General Leon had elbowed him into the revival match twice, the great old Constantine still chose to judge the situation as it was.
And indeed, as he said, seeking revenge by attacking a child would be beneath his dignity as a Dragon King.
Compared to the so-called “killing to avenge,” the pure-blooded Dragon King Constantine preferred to defeat that man named Leon Casmod in a fair fight.
Constantine turned his gaze away and leisurely walked off, saying, “Keep an eye on the six of them. Don’t let them run.”
Six?
Noia abruptly looked up, finally noticing there were three others in the spacious room.
It was Helena, Diane, and Raymond.
They were also being closely guarded by several guards, restrained nearby.
“Helena!”
“Noia…”
“Pipe down!” one of the guards barked before shoving Noia and the others next to Helena.
“I saw your hair left behind on the road,” Noia whispered.
Helena first showed a tired yet relieved smile, but it was quickly replaced by disappointment. “But we’re caught now, and no one’s coming to save us.”
No one…?
Not entirely.
Her dad, the old man, and her mom, the Silver Dragon Queen, were probably close by this ruin.
Actually, Noia had been very curious about why her parents were here, but upon seeing Constantine, she began to piece things together.
While she couldn’t be sure what game her parents were playing with Constantine, their arrival in the Extreme North Land was undoubtedly related to him or the Primal Power.
The reason Noia made this deduction was that based on her understanding of her parents, that couple would never come to a place like this for a date unless it was for a serious reason.
If they really did want a romantic getaway, their excuses usually revolved around “Oh, I’m going to patrol the border with your dad” or “Adults have their own work to do, you know.”
But even though she knew her parents were nearby, Noia couldn’t just sit there and wait.
After all, she couldn’t bet her and her friends’ lives on the uncertain arrival of anyone.
Noia looked ahead and finally saw the purpose of Constantine’s visit—
In the center of the ruin stood a massive dragon statue.
The statue was the same size as a Dragon King body, wings half outstretched, striking a graceful pose.
Even though it was just a statue, everyone in the ruin could feel the authority and pressure it radiated.
Noia furrowed her brow. “Whose statue is that?”
“Primal Dragon King Noah,” Helena replied. “Just now, Constantine and the others were analyzing the ancient writings on the walls. Simply put, this is the ruin of the first Dragon King in dragon history, Noah, or it might also be called… a tomb.”
After a pause, little sea dragon girl tried to lighten the mood, looking at her friend. “What a coincidence, you share a name with this Primal Dragon King.”
Noia pondered for a moment before replying, “It’s not just coincidence; my mom named me after this dragon ancestor.”
As Noia spoke, she looked around and asked, “We fell through the stone plates under the snow; how did Constantine and the others come down?”
Helena indicated upward.
Noia looked up in confusion, then her mouth dropped open in shock.
Right above the ruin was a gigantic gap, stretching all the way up to the surface, at least a hundred meters high.
Inside the gap’s wall, melting snow and searing hot rubble continuously fell and splattered on the ground.
Cold wind rushed down from the gap. Noia swallowed hard, still a bit incredulous.
“Constantine… burned through the ice layer in the Extreme North Land?”
Helena nodded. “Yes, he did. I thought that was just an exaggerated rumor to describe the harsh environment of the Extreme North.”
It seems the “Little Dragon Enlightenment Stories” weren’t entirely fictional; old Constantine really had some skills.
“So what’s his goal here?” Noia asked.
“I didn’t catch all of it, but it seems he’s after some sort of power… and that power is sealed within the statue of the Primal Dragon King.”
“Quiet, little brat! His Majesty only said your lives are safe, but he didn’t say you wouldn’t get hurt,” the Red Flame Dragon guard threatened again.
The little ones stopped talking.
Noia continued to silently observe the statue in the center of the ruin and Constantine.
She saw Constantine slowly approach the Primal Dragon King’s statue, open his arms, and close his eyes, seemingly feeling that invisible but powerful ancient energy.
“I can sense… the wave of Primal Power.”
Constantine’s body was stitched together by Primal Power, which was fundamentally different from the Primal Power that Roswiser accumulated, so he could clearly sense its presence.
Moreover, he was so close.
“Let’s begin, elder. This supreme power will soon belong to you.”
Iron Wing Dragon King Fair stepped back, leaving enough space beside Constantine.
And thus, Constantine began this “ritual.”
He slowly gathered power, condensing the Primal Power in his chest. Suddenly, a beam of white light connected from his chest to the statue of Noah in front of him.
The beam connected Constantine to the statue, and with a sharp crack, chunks of the statue began to fall.
Next, the purest, oldest, and most powerful Primal Power within started to flow gradually into Constantine’s body through that beam.
In that instant when he felt the surge of power, Constantine’s eyes shot open, his red dragon pupils inexplicably glowing pure white as scales began to emerge around his eyes.
“This is… Noah’s power… the oldest power of the Dragon Race! It’s mine!”
Light flooded the ruins, and the enormous energy wave caused the ground to tremble.
Noia stared at the scene before her, forcing herself to think calmly, just like her dad; no matter the emergency, he could always come up with a plan.
Since Constantine came to Noah’s ruins to acquire Primal Power, logically speaking, if her parents were here, they surely weren’t here for a starlit date but to stop Constantine.
Not to mention, her dad had a grudge against Constantine. This crazy dragon was eager to become stronger now; what would come after?—Revenge.
Revenge on Leon.
But her parents still didn’t know where they were, and the only one who could stop Constantine—or at least buy some time… was her.
However, Noia was acutely aware of the gap in strength between herself and Constantine.
While she was great at sneaking up on Dragon Kings, confronting him head-on… even the greatest sneak couldn’t leap over the chasm of power and age.
Noia bit her lip, scanning the surroundings for anything she could use.
After a moment, she noticed a Stone Giant statue standing on the side of Noah’s statue, just like the one she had encountered when she first fell.
But the Stone Giant didn’t seem to be activated; there was no white crystal on its forehead.
“Crystal…!”
Noia’s mind sparked.
She remembered that after defeating the first Stone Giant, she had pocketed the crystal from its forehead.
It was initially intended for redeeming grades when she returned to school—yes, our genius sneaky girl, while searching for her friends, was still fixated on her scores; who else would take first if she didn’t?
“If I place the crystal on the giant’s forehead… it’ll activate, right?”
Noia glanced back at the Red Flame Dragon guard, who was momentarily distracted by Constantine absorbing the Primal Power.
What a perfect opportunity!
Noia suddenly unleashed a thunder spell.
The sharp pain from the explosive magic shocked the guard behind her, causing him to release her hold.
Seizing the moment, Noia dashed toward the Stone Giant.
“d*mn it! Stop that little brat! Don’t let her mess things up!”
The guards rushed to intercept Noia.
Using her agility and her “height disadvantage” as an advantage, she barely weaved through a few guards.
But more were closing in, and they were almost on her.
Just then, Helena also took the chance to break free from the guard behind her and sent a burst of Dragon Flame flying toward Noia’s pursuers.
The fireball created by the Dragon Flame temporarily stalled the guards chasing after Noia.
“Although I don’t know what you’re up to, just give it your all!” Helena shouted.
The next moment, she was pinned down by two guards.
But she still yelled at Noia, “Go! Noia, you can do it! You definitely can!”
Seeing this, Yuna joined in to create more chaos.
She managed to free one hand, firing Dragon Flame to add to the overall commotion.
“Junior, run! Don’t let them catch you! Go!”
Raymond and Diane did their best to buy time for Noia.
Even Anton, who had initially been too scared to react, tried to do what he could.
“Hey, kid! If I get my leg broken, it’s totally your fault! Ouch! Easy on my handsome face!”
He didn’t break any legs, just got pressed down by the guards with his cheek against the ground.
Noia’s friends had bought her enough time.
She took off running, her small figure carrying the only hope.
The Red Flame Dragon guards were getting closer behind her.
In the final moment, Noia leaped high, embedding the white crystal into the Stone Giant’s forehead.
The next second, the giant’s eyes blazed with sharp light as it began to move, bypassing Noia and heading straight for the absorbing Constantine.
The guards immediately shifted their focus to the Stone Giant, casting spells at it, but all their efforts were in vain.
Fair also stepped in to assist.
However, the Stone Giant had a clear target: Constantine.
It was the guardian of the ruins, and once activated, it would only attack those who touched the statue of Noah.
The Stone Giant forcefully broke through Fair’s obstruction and charged toward Constantine.
At that moment, Constantine couldn’t stop; otherwise, all would be in vain.
Reluctantly, he lifted one hand, intending to use his best fire magic against the giant.
But remembering that all the guards’ spells had been ineffective, Constantine realized that only physical techniques and… Primal Magic could harm the Stone Giant.
Resolving this, Constantine quickly gathered Primal Power—after all, it was the one thing he wasn’t short of—and threw an attack at the giant.
Sure enough, the real damage from the Primal Power shattered the giant’s body.
Constantine snorted, “Is that all?”
But the next moment, amid the dust kicked up by the broken rocks, a black figure shot out.
Using the statue as cover, she grasped a bolt of lightning and charged straight for Constantine.
The sound of birds singing echoed throughout the ruins.
Noia’s specialty was indeed ambushing Dragon Kings—that much was true.
Having just condensed the Primal Power, Constantine hadn’t had the chance to pull back, but Noia had already dashed in front of him.
“I really hate this move!”
That man’s signature move, Constantine recalled vividly.
Now even his daughter had learned it! Can’t you teach your daughter some refined and elegant things instead?!
Killing and fighting every day, what a disgrace!
“Constantine!!”
Noia shouted angrily, aiming her lightning at the Red Flame Dragon King before her.
In an instant, the Primal Power collided with the thunder magic, creating a blinding white light that engulfed both Noia and Constantine.
The violent impact knocked Noia back, briefly rendering her unconscious.
Everything turned black in her vision, but the next moment, images flashed in her mind without warning—
Ancient borderlands, war raging, corpses scattered, swords and knives plunged into desolate earth, stretching across miles; the sky covered in dust while enormous dragon bodies fell from the sky, shaking the ground.
Mountains crumbled, rivers flowed backward, dragons fought, and fierce dragon bl**d dyed the ice fields red.
This was the war of the most ferocious species on the Samel Continent, where life was the most dispensable and omnipresent element in this conflict.
Without a doubt, this was the darkest history of the Dragon Race: bloody, brutal, and primal.
Standing against this war was the towering white dragon.
It lay on the ice mountain, wings covering the sun, roaring with a might that shook the heavens.
That was the Dragon King, the first Dragon King in the history of dragons—Noah.
……
Like waking from a dream, Noia felt utterly exhausted.
But she seemed to faintly hear Constantine’s voice calling out.
“Why won’t you just stay down?!”
Stay down…?
Is he talking about me?
Or…
Suddenly, a warm force wrapped around Noia, and a familiar, pleasant scent wafted into her nostrils.
She slowly opened her eyes, catching sight of silvery hair.
“Mom…”
Roswiser hugged her brave daughter, tears mingling with a smile. “You can rest now, darling. The next part… is up to me and your dad.”
“Dad?…”
Noia turned her head to see the imposing figure standing between her and Constantine.
Blue lightning glinted in Noia’s eyes as she listened to that man’s cool and stylish opening line,
“I’m sending you to hell for the third time, Constantine.”
