Teacher by day, Farmer by passion
Chapter 281 - 281: Tharz Kingdom [1]

"I—am done—holding back."

Angie's voice thundered like a drumbeat in the bones of the earth.

Her back arched, arms flared wide, and flames surged from her skin like molten rivers.

Her eyes blazed molten gold, feral and ancient.

Flesh split. Light consumed.

Her human form exploded upward in a column of crimson fire, devouring sky and sound.

Wings of flame unfurled. Her body stretched, coiled and expanded.

In the blink of a breath, Angie no longer stood as a woman. She had become a dragon.

A true dragon.

Her form stretched across the heavens: long, sinuous like a celestial river, every crimson scale shimmering like burning rubies.

A mane of living fire whipped through the sky, trailing behind a face crowned with regal, curved horns.

Her eyes glowed like twin suns, and heat pulsed from her body in visible waves that bent the air.

The forest withered. Trees wilted and cracked. Ash scattered in the breeze.

Shan Yifeng stood motionless, eyes narrow, breath steady. Bryan, at his side, lowered himself instinctively, fur bristling with ice-born energy.

Then, the dragon spoke

"Power. Passion. Unyielding spirit. That is what makes our clan supreme. Prove yourself."

And then she moved.

She didn't take flight, she charged, like a meteor wrapped in flame. Coils twisted with blinding grace, a blur of fury and heat.

Her roar shattered the Golden Turtle Back formation in a single blow.

Shan Yifeng clicked his tongue.

"Tch. She still won't use Dragon Dominance..."

Bryan lunged with a growl, his body a streak of silver and soul flame, and headbutted the dragon mid-charge.

But Angie's mass overwhelmed him and Bryan was thrown back like a comet, crashing into a distant cliff.

Shan Yifeng's eyes closed.

"Void Walk."

Space folded.

He vanished.

Angie's eyes widened. "How?! I only showed him once—!"

And then she heard it. The word that made her gut twist in disbelief:

"Dragon Dominance."

"I KNEW IT!" she roared.

Reality fractured.

Light and color collapsed.

They both vanished dragged into a deeper dimension.

The Void Realm.

Floating rocks. Collapsing time. Black skies streaked with dying stars.

Shan Yifeng floated mid-air, calm.

Angie, in dragon form, hovered above him, fire dimmed but presence overwhelming.

A voice echoed, ancient and angry:

"Human... do you realize what you've done?"

Shan didn't reply. He only steadied his breath.

The space rippled.

Angie shrank, her form condensing, flames withdrawing as she returned to her human shape.

She hovered gently onto a floating rock. "You dragged us into a sealed space while using Void Walk?" Her voice was cold now, but no longer furious, only disturbed.

"You don't even have your soul bond here. What exactly are you planning?"

Shan hopped from one rock to another, hands in his sleeves, perfectly composed.

"I've been wondering," he said casually, "what would happen if I used Void Walk... And then triggered Dragon Dominance."

Angie narrowed her eyes, taking another slow step forward. The air around her pulsed with subtle heat.

"And you know Dragon Dominance pulls your target into a secluded space... altering the rules of that space entirely."

She stopped, gaze sharpening. "But I never told you that."

"You didn't," Shan replied, landing on another rock with a soft tap. "Same with Void Walk. I figured it out myself, really."

She scowled. "Get to the point."

Shan Yifeng sighed lightly, then said it all in a single breath:

"When I used Dragon Dominance inside Void Walk, it severed our tether to the outside world. No space-time anchor. No coordinates. Now the pocket dimension created by my Dragon Dominance has no exit. Which means, we're stuck here until we find a crack. Which is also very unlikely."

Angie stared at him, eyes twitching.

"If you knew that, why the hell did you do it?"

Shan Yifeng shrugged, all calm and serenity.

"I didn't. I just figured it out... after the fact."

"You just—WHAT?!"

Her voice cracked like thunder and pure disbelief.

Shan Yifeng scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Judging by your reaction, I was pretty sure that's how it worked."

Then his expression shifted, sly and amused.

"Now, my turn, why haven't you killed me yet?"

Angie threw up her hands, fire crackling from her fingertips in frustration.

"Because I never intended to, you absolute maniac! I just wanted to wound you and run away! Just enough to make it look like you were tricked and then come back later once I find the way back!"

Shan blinked.

"Oh."

A long, awkward silence stretched.

Then—

"ARRRGHHH! I'M NEVER GOING HOME!"

Angie screamed, flopping backwards onto a floating rock like a sulking child, her dragon-scaled boots kicking in the air.

Shan Yifeng tilted his head, smirking faintly.

"...On the bright side, you don't have to spar with Grand Elder Lily anymore."

"SHUT. UP."

* * *

High above the ruined hillside, Lily hovered in the air like a specter, robes billowing, eyes cold and distant.

"So... this is where he was last seen?" Her voice cut through the wind like glass.

"Y-Yes, Grand Elder," a disciple answered, bowing low, not daring to meet her eyes.

She floated forward, gaze sweeping over the charred earth, shattered stones, and traces of scorched energy still lingering in the air.

"Hmmph." Her arms folded, expression unimpressed.

"He even had the audacity to steal your ring. Did you not notice? Mati."

Elder Mati blinked.

"What—?" She looked down at the ring on her finger.

Her breath caught.

She touched the dragon ring and then it hissed burning away in a wisp of silver smoke.

She stared at her hand in horror, face draining of color.

"It was... a fake?" Her voice cracked. "He replaced it? That little—!"

She nearly choked on her own fury and betrayal.

Lily didn't even look her way.

"It's fine," she said coolly. "Master won't care about a missing child or two."

She turned, one hand flicking casually toward Bryan, the Spirit Sovereign Wolf.

"Take care of that mutt."

There was a moment of silence in the hill following that.

And then—

"A child or two?"

The disciples stiffened, thinking in panicked unison.

That's the Sect Master's direct disciple!

Eyes widened. Mouths sealed. One poor soul even fainted.

Mati clenched her fists, cheeks burning red, not from shame, but murderous rage.

"I nursed that little snake!"

Lily raised a brow but said nothing.

Elder Mati turned her eyes toward the great Spirit Sovereign Wolf.

Her voice was calm. Too calm.

"Grand Elder… if you don't mind…"

She cracked her knuckles with unsettling serenity.

"I'll take full responsibility for this mutt."

Bryan, the ancient spirit sovereign wolf gulped.