Tale of the Red Dragon Without Dragon’s Might
Chapter 132: The Master of the Eyes

Chapter 132: Chapter 132: The Master of the Eyes

Leon incinerated the teleportation portal with a puff of Samadhi True Fire. Though he spoke with bravado, there was still a slight trepidation in his heart.

Having depleted most of his mana, and startled by the five pairs of eyes on the other side of the portal, Leon dared not linger. He quickly made a round in the hall, grabbing everything of value and stowing it within the space of Sleeve of the Universe, without the slightest delay. He didn’t dare waste time rummaging for treasures, hurriedly turning to leave the hall.

As he left, Leon didn’t forget to use Gathering Form and Scattering Energy - after all, it’s better safe than sorry. Only after distancing himself from the battlefield beneath the volcano did he reveal his form. Looking back, he saw no smoke rising from the volcano and wondered if the smoke was related to the Prison Fire Villain’s attempt to open a portal to the Nine Prisons.

Leon had no time to ponder over many things. He found Cecilia, circled above her head, and the moment she noticed him, he immediately turned away without looking back.

Having grabbed the loot, of course it was time to run. They would count their spoils at a safe distance. Besides, Leon remembered there was still a Hunting Demon he hadn’t killed. Though he believed it was highly unlikely the Hunting Demon would dare to trouble him again, it was better to be prepared for the unexpected.

Noticing Leon’s departure, Cecilia promptly transformed into her Dragon Form and chased after him, following as they flew back, increasingly recognizing the area they had left when the volcano was smoking.

"Master seems injured," Cecilia noticed the scab on Leon’s leg.

As a Red Dragon, Leon’s neck wasn’t particularly long, certainly not as long as a Green Dragon’s but longer than a Blue Dragon’s. He could easily see the wound by turning his head.

Despite scales as hard as steel, Leon still couldn’t defend himself from the Hunting Demon’s attacks. It had to be said, he had plenty of offensive methods, but his defenses were still lacking.

"You egged me on to steal, saying how the intense battle outside meant surely no one would be inside..." Leon glanced sideways at the Green Dragon, "I went in, only to face an elite Hunting Demon and a powerful Prison Fire Villain... Had I not been strong enough, I would have been finished today."

"Did Master forget..." Cecilia started feeling aggrieved, "I didn’t encourage Master to enter the Fire Giant Fortress, I just advised Master to wait until they were both weakened from fighting."

Hearing this, Leon momentarily fell silent.

Cecilia pursed her lips and after a while, she said, "So brother went in, encountered two enemies, had a fight, and then... strategically retreated? Neither the Hunting Demon nor the Prison Fire Villain could kill brother. Brother is really incredible."

The Green Dragon could always find a way to frame it as a victory.

"As if they could defeat me; they’re still too green." Leon did indeed win and didn’t need to find an angle to claim victory. He considered for a moment then spoke of what he discovered in the Iron-forged Hall.

"A portal to the Nine Prisons?" Cecilia was a bit stunned.

She had only wanted to fish in troubled waters, not to get involved in such grave matters... She hadn’t done anything; from the beginning to the end, it was all Leon causing trouble, nothing to do with her. She couldn’t take responsibility for such significant matters; a common Hunting Demon was already enough to claim her life.

"It’s alright, it’s alright." After some thought, Cecilia comforted him, "The world is full of cultists summoning Demons and Devils every day. Successful ones are few, while most fail... And what do you have to fear from those Devils? It’s they who should be afraid of you."

Leon huffed, as long as he didn’t venture into the Lower Plane, he didn’t need to fear any Demon or Devil.

It took Leon a long time to decide, but he still revealed what he had seen beyond the portal: the five pairs of eyes. The owner of those eyes was truly terrifying; even separated by the portal, he could feel an immense pressure.

"Five pairs of eyes, five Great Devils?" Cecilia mumbled to herself.

"I haven’t seen a Pit Fiend, so I don’t know how strong one is, but I’m certain the owner of those five eyes is stronger than a Pit Fiend, so powerful that I would stand no chance against him." Speaking thoughtfully and nodding his head, Leon realized who the owner of those eyes might be.

"Tiamat," said Leon, "I remember that Tiamat is imprisoned in the Nine Prisons, specifically in the first layer, Aphnas."

The creator of the Colorful Dragons, the Evil Dragon Queen Tiamat, Leon was sure of his knowledge, though it was not extensive.

All he knew was that Tiamat represented the collective greed of all Evil Dragons, a giant dragon with a massive body and five heads, reflecting the Colorful Dragons who worship her - Black Dragon, Blue Dragon, Green Dragon, Red Dragon, and White Dragon. Thus, she wielded five types of Breath Weapons and detested her greatest enemy, the Platinum Dragon Bahamut.

After Leon finished speaking, he noticed Cecilia looking at him in shock. Shrugging his shoulders, he said, "Did I say something wrong?"

"That’s Lord Tiamat," Cecilia spoke, "You dare to address her by name directly?"

Finally, Leon realized where the problem lay.

Despite dragons naturally being uninterested in religion, since they can grow into the most powerful creatures in the Multiverse without depending on any external force, learning self-sufficiency and self-interest from the moment they hatch, with no need for divine assistance, nor seeking their mercy, he still went overboard in his disregard.

Leon bared his teeth slightly, thinking that his soul came from another world, where from a young age he was taught not to be superstitious, a complete atheist... Bowing to Buddha, also to Guan Yu, Confucius, bowing when there’s benefit, and never looking back when there’s not, that’s also a form of atheism.

"I forgot for a moment." It’s true Leon is an atheist, but that doesn’t prevent him from keeping his distance from all that divinely babbling stuff and not believing in ghosts. This attitude does not conflict with his absolute refusal to visit a graveyard at night, "I’m sorry Lord Tiamat. My bad. Sorry."

Cecilia could tell from Leon’s giggling that he didn’t have an ounce of respect, and she asked, "Aren’t you afraid that Lord Tiamat will punish you?"

"If she dares to punish, I dare to switch allegiance to Bahamut... Lord Bahamut." This time, Leon remembered to be respectful, but that was about it, "Lord Bahamut surely won’t mind having a Red Dragon worship him. Lord Bahamut is a good dragon, easy to talk to. That’s the kind of leader to look for."

Leon’s idea was simple, whoever benefitted him he would work for, much like working for a boss in the past. Now, there’s not much difference which God’s shelter to seek. If the offer is good, stay until retirement, if not, pack up and switch employers on the fly. With strength, one can even set up their own venture, no need to treat Gods as frightening floods or fierce beasts.

Cecilia hesitated, she really didn’t dare to speak now, the Red Dragon in front of her had no faith at all.

Cecilia fell silent, Leon found it boring to talk by himself, and coupled with having been active in Dragon Form for a while, he was now extremely hungry. He checked his loot and then went off to find food.

Leon caught a giant elk, he couldn’t use his Samadhi True Fire to cook food, but he could use magic items to ignite a tree to roast the giant elk, finally sprinkling some salt and spices before eating.

A single giant elk wasn’t enough to fill Leon up, not to mention sharing some with Cecilia, so he caught a few highland goats and a Saber-toothed Tiger, just about making a satisfying meal.

Full stomach leads to drowsiness, Leon found a cave on a mountain to sleep in. Before sleeping, he kept thinking about the five pairs of eyes he saw through the teleportation gate and wondered if Tiamat might come to chat in his dreams.

For some reason, Leon did not meet Tiamat in his dreams, but Cecilia, curled up next to him, found herself in a vast, dark world.

Cecilia didn’t know why her dream was so vivid, she felt as if she could feel her heartbeat.

Something was about to appear.

Cecilia instinctively looked up at the sky, only to see the dark expanse solidify with flashes of lightning, and a large clump of black clouds suddenly brightened with spotlights, revealing the silhouette of a monstrous creature, gradually taking the form of a giant dragon with five heads.

Cecilia felt pressure, almost stopping her heart, and bowed her head respectfully, "Lord Tiamat."

"My poor child, why are you so frail?" Among the five heads of the Evil Dragon Queen, the one representing the Green Dragon extended forward, the other heads merely a backdrop.

As a Green Dragon, Cecilia was usually eloquent, capable of arguing black as white, of turning defeats into wins, but at this moment she was particularly sincere: "I don’t know."

"I can help you become stronger." The enormous Green Dragon head descended from the sky, sizing up the curled Green Dragon, "Just need to slightly stimulate the Green Dragon blood within you, it won’t take much effort."

Cecilia kept her head down.

Her strength was quite weak, so weak that she needed to team up with the Green Hag and Evil Ghost to handle an Elf Village, but her mind was clear, clear enough to put aside arrogance and team up with the Green Hag and Evil Ghost, clear enough to serve a Red Dragon as a maid, because there might be a great benefit, "What would Lord Tiamat require of me?"

"A lost child needs guidance." The head representing the Red Dragon spoke.

"Are you talking about Leon?" Cecilia quickly reacted.

"I just saw him, I actually have such an interesting child, though he seems a bit rebellious."

Cecilia suddenly opened her eyes, looking at the Red Dragon sleeping by her side, clearly feeling the boiling blood inside her, very hungry and eager to find food.

Cecilia carefully left, looking everywhere for food, she ate the giant goat they had ridden out on and also caught a bear, feeling that no matter how much she ate, it was never enough.

After finally satisfying her appetite, Cecilia returned to where they were sleeping. Seeing the Red Dragon still fast asleep, a flicker passed through her heart.