Dragon King: Throne of Demons and Gods
Chapter 156: Dominium Draconis

Chapter 156: Dominium Draconis

The battle was over.

The dungeon boss lay dead—or rather, transformed.

Vauldron stood in its place, wings stretched wide, a powerful presence even among the dragons Bel had already created.

Around them, the last remaining monsters were quickly overwhelmed by the drakes.

Bel stood silently, watching the aftermath. The battlefield was littered with ash, bones, and craters. His gaze slowly shifted to his system.

[Skill Acquired: Kingdom] [Effect: Enhances the strength and coordination of all Destruction Army members when the King is present.]

[Skill Acquired: Empower Demon]

[Effect: Allows the enhancement of a soldier’s stats through Essence investment.]

[Unallocated Stat Points: 699]

[Reminder: Stat Points can be allocated or converted.]

Bel raised a brow at the last message. "Converted?" he muttered.

He had seen that word before but never paid much attention. He usually saved stat points for emergencies, to boost his strength, speed, or magic in critical moments.

But the word "convert" stirred something in him.

"What exactly can I convert them into?"

He tapped the interface and a new option appeared.

[Convert unallocated stats into Authority Points?] [Warning: Conversion will consume a considerable amount of your unallocated points.] [Convert 699 Stat Points -> 78 Authority Points?]

It was a steep price. Nearly seven hundred points, reduced to less than eighty. He frowned.

"That’s... painful."

Still, his curiosity burned brighter.

He glanced at Vauldron. The wyvern lowered its head, quiet and obedient. A beast like this could change the tide of any battle.

If Bel had more creatures like Vauldron, his plans could move faster.

He took a deep breath.

"Alright, let’s try."

[Converting Stat Points...] [Authority Points +78]

A wave of energy pulsed through him. His fingers twitched. His body didn’t feel stronger, but something inside him stirred—his presence, his aura, his Authority.

[Authority of Destruction]

[Level: 1]

[Demonic Essence: 80 / 2,000]

[Destruction Army: 6 / 25]

[Domain: Not Established]

"Still a long way to go," Bel murmured.

He stepped out of the crater.

Before him, Novaria knelt respectfully in her new draconic drake form.

She had grown taller, her body now more defined and imposing. Her smooth skin was now covered in elegant, crimson-tinted scales that shimmered faintly.

Her arms and legs had grown stronger, with claws sharper than before, and a long tail balanced her stance.

Small horns curved back from her head, and her eyes gleamed.

Behind her, the remaining drakes bowed, and behind Bel, Vauldron remained still, his head low.

Bel looked at them, his army.

"This is a good beginning," he said. "From now on, I’ll share even more of my power with you. You’ll become part of me, but with that power comes responsibility. You’ll be harder to kill, stronger than before. So I expect more from you."

As he raised his hand, the Mark of Destruction glowed once again.

He pressed it onto each of them, one by one, waiting between uses as his essence slowly replenished.

The mark branded their souls. They weren’t just followers now, they were pieces of him.

From that day, they moved from dungeon to dungeon. Each one they cleared, Bel learned more.

He experimented with his Authority. He poured Essence into his blood, into his attacks. A single bolt of lightning laced with destruction reduced monsters to ash. One touch dissolved walls of stone.

Soon stopped creating wyrms and lindworms. Now, he managed to create only drakes and above. Thanks to the bond skill, they leveled up quickly.

New Skill Acquired: [Summon - Level 1] [Effect: Summon a chosen Destruction Army member to your location instantly]

Bel blinked in surprise.

"Now that’s useful."

With this, he could move freely, set ambushes, control more ground.

He checked his army status:

[Army Size: 24 / 25]

[Composition: 11 Drakes, 9 Lindworms, 4 Wyverns]

A pattern was forming. Novaria and Vauldron stood out. Though Vauldron was more powerful now, Bel could tell, once Novaria leveled again, she’d surpass even him.

After all, she had two new traits: [Drake Dominion] and [Morphose]

Her growth was special. Bel could feel it. Maybe it was how much Essence he had used on her. Or maybe it was something more.

Still, there was one problem: Essence recovery was too slow. Each use of the mark drained him. He needed to be smart.

He began investing small bursts of Essence after creating soldiers, boosting their potential growth.

Now, it was their ninth dungeon of the day.

The battlefield was dark and smoky. From the shadows, a massive beast emerged, a monster shaped like a giant baboon, but dozens times the size.

Its eyes burned red, and its fists cracked the ground like thunder.

It roared.

The wyverns descended like thunderbolts, diving from the sky in synchronized formation.

Explosive gusts followed their paths, battering the ground beneath them.

The giant baboon roared, overwhelmed, trying to strike back, but each blow it threw barely fended them off.

One wyvern was knocked aside by a wild fist, but the rest pressed the attack.

The ground quaked under the pressure. Vauldron roared from above.

He inhaled deeply, then released a deafening shockwave from his jaws, shattering rocks and flattening smaller beasts nearby.

The impact sent tremors that cracked the battlefield. The baboon flinched, trying to escape, stumbling under the relentless force.

A horizontal red slash burst across its ankle, flames exploding on contact.

The monster fell to one knee with a cry. From the smoke, Novaria appeared.

She dashed forward with impossible grace, each step bursting with fire. She moved like a streak of light, slicing through the beast’s back, cutting open its shoulder, leaping and spinning around its defenses.

A massive hand lunged to grab her, but Novaria twisted mid-air.

In a flash, her blazing sword sliced through the wrist until the entire hand broke apart into dozens of burning chunks, flesh and bone scattered like fiery embers.

The beast shrieked in pain, its red eyes burned brighter, filled with rage, but Novaria was already at its neck.

One clean slash, measured, cut deep. Not enough to kill, but more than enough to drop it.

The beast groaned and collapsed, its strength draining.

Above, the wyverns flew in formation, circling like vultures. On the ground, the drakes moved into position.

Novaria landed beside the beast’s massive head, one knee on the ground, and bowed.

Bel watched her in silence for a moment, then smiled.

"Good," he said quietly. "You’re getting better at this."

The monster was beaten.

The giant baboon lay on the ground, twitching weakly, half-buried in broken stone and scorched earth.

Its red eyes dimmed with every shallow breath.

Bel floated above the battlefield, watching the beast with a quiet gaze.

The smoke, the embers, the ashes, all were motionless now.

He slowly descended, landing a few steps away from the broken monster. Above, the wyverns circled the sky, and at the bottom, the drakes stood still, their eyes locked on him.

Bel glanced at the boss, still alive but barely. It wouldn’t last long.

He narrowed his eyes, then looked at Novaria.

Everyone around him stood in silence, waiting. This was always the moment when Bel would turn the defeated boss into a dragon, adding another soldier to his army.

But this time, he remained still.

Then...

"Novaria."

She rose her head quickly, answering with a respectful.

"Yes, my lord?"

He pointed toward the dying beast.

"Finish it."

Novaria blinked.

"You’re not turning it?"

He shook his head.

"No. Not this time. I was hoping something would change. But... nothing happened."

He looked down at the beast, then back to her.

"With only one spot left in my army, I can’t afford to be careless. I need to be picky."

Novaria’s expression was a little bit surprised, but then she gave a slow, firm nod.

"Understood."

She stood, stepped forward, raising her sword.

"With your permission, then."

Bel said nothing. Just watched.

One clean stroke. A flash of flame. The beast’s head rolled on the ground.

[Level Up]

[Drake: Smog has reached Level 5]

[Wyvern: Vulcan has reached Level 4]

[Drake: Grougar has reached Level 6]

Notifications rolled in, each for a single dragon.

Bel scanned them absently, until one caught his eye.

[Novaria has reached Level 10]

[Bond Level Increased: Level 2]

[Due to Bond effects, Novaria is now eligible for Promotion to General Rank]

[Promote Soldier?]

Bel blinked.

"What...?"