Tale of the Red Dragon Without Dragon’s Might
Chapter 140 - 139 Promised Land

Chapter 140: Chapter 139 Promised Land

Leon sprawled out as usual, indulging in good food and drink every day, leaving all the messy work to Cecilia, among which the most important was gathering intelligence about Watchtower Port... She couldn’t fight at all, bringing her out was purely for such tasks.

Another reason was actually that Leon was quite capable in combat, but when it came to eloquence, even flattering could not keep pace with Cecilia who, as a Green Dragon, was not only articulate but also deceitful.

For the sake of intelligence gathering, or simply bargaining while shopping, Cecilia could seamlessly switch between identities such as weak woman, married lady, noble daughter, damsel in distress, spy, and so forth, spinning lies without pausing to think, astonishing Leon for an entire afternoon.

In short, about three days later, Leon obtained intelligence regarding Watchtower Port. It turns out that the actual controllers of the port were a business guild from the Talia Alliance, located on the Gold-plated Coast, with a forest to the north, passing through which led to the Lost Plateau. To the east was Talia Alliance, while to the south lay the endless Flash Sea...

"Do you know what’s in Flash Sea?" Cecilia had been talking non-stop when she suddenly threw out a teaser.

"What’s there?" Leon didn’t feel discouraged and played along with Cecilia’s guessing game, "Bronze dragons?"

He remembered that bronze dragons were coastal dragons, fond of watching ships come and go continuously near their nesting beaches. Sometimes they would turn into dolphins or seagulls to get close to the ships and crew, or transform into birds or mice to sneak onto the ships and check the treasures in the cargo holds...

Of course, as Metal Dragons belonging to the good alignment, they wouldn’t engage in thievery. If they found some goods worthy of being added to their treasury, they would simply find ways to trade with the Captain.

"It’s not bronze dragons," said Cecilia. "I didn’t hear about any bronze dragons here, though I guess there must be some."

"Then it must be Dragon Turtles," Leon said, thinking that Dragon Turtles are like dragon cousins. Although cousins, that did not mean they were as meek as Flying Dragons. Their Challenge Level was not much different from that of Red Dragons, and an Ancient Dragon Turtle was as massive as an island, terrifying like a natural disaster when angered, an existence not to be underestimated.

"That’s not it either," Cecilia replied, "It’s related to master."

"Related to me?" Leon crossed his arms and thought but could not figure out what here had to do with him.

"I can give master a hint," Cecilia raised a finger, "When we flew over from the Lost Plateau... didn’t we see many islands on the Flash Sea, with high mountains on those islands?"

"And then?" Leon asked, "It can’t possibly be that the high mountains on those islands are actually volcanoes, right?"

"They are volcanoes," Cecilia said excitedly. "Master didn’t think that there aren’t any volcanoes at sea, did you? There are volcanoes at sea too."

"I not only know there are volcanoes at sea, but I also know there are underwater volcanoes..." Leon recalled, "I remember those islands’ mountains were all green, and green can’t be volcanoes; nothing would survive if a volcano erupted."

"Is that so?" Cecilia gently bit her finger, "Then why have I heard that one of the volcanoes on those islands once erupted?"

"Who told you that?" asked Leon.

"An Elf." Cecilia’s mouth curved into a smile; she always ’favored’ Elves and Fairies, "There’s an Elf city in the forest to the east, so Elves often appear here."

"If it has erupted before, then it must be a dormant volcano," Leon thought about the difference between an extinct and a dormant volcano; an extinct one completely loses its activity, while a dormant is relatively static over a long time, still with the chance to reawaken.

"I noticed you’re quite excited... but volcanoes aren’t that related to you, are they?" Leon dined on traveler’s stew with Los Beast meat, carrots, potatoes, and onions, a delicious delicacy, while keenly noting that Cecilia’s cheeks were a bit flushed.

Cecilia stood up, slammed her hands on the table, and then pointed towards the window, saying: "I’m excited because... don’t you think this place is super suitable for us?"

"North is the forest... I don’t care what kind of forest it is, whether swampy jungle, polar coniferous forest, or tropical rainforest, it doesn’t matter as long as there are trees," Cecilia continued, "Besides that, there are the volcanoes you like, with molten lava allowing you to bathe, and then the view is great..."

Looking out the window, Leon said, "Even if it’s a volcano, it’s a dormant one, without lava."

"Efreeti, you could ask the Efreeti for help... no, command, he’s your servant, right?" Cecilia said, "The Efreeti is the Lord of Blazing Flames and can create fires at will. He can transform the Steam Lake into the Molten Lava Lake, and surely he can turn a dormant volcano into an active volcano."

"That seems to be the case," Leon nodded thoughtfully.

"With the forest I love, the volcanoes you like... there’s plenty of food in the forest, and the sea is full of food too. As for the merchant ships that come and go, we could either rob them or tax them, definitely earning more than we do in the desert," Cecilia said. "Isn’t this our promised land?"

"Even, even—" Cecilia took a deep breath, "we can also call Tassera over. I remember that aside from deserts, arid steppes, scorching wastelands, and rocky coastlines are all to Blue Dragon’s liking."

Leon nodded.

"If we want to expand and become powerful in the future, we can strike towards the east. It’s not far from the Talia Alliance." Cecilia licked her lips, "Talia is an alliance without a core, and it is easy to divide and conquer."

Leon looked at Cecilia slantwise and said, "It seems you’ve done your research."

Cecilia chuckled.

"The final question—if we want to establish ourselves here, with the ocean and the harbor, we can’t avoid naval battles. I’m a Red Dragon, Tassera is a Blue Dragon, and you’re a Green Dragon. None of us are particularly adept at water warfare." Leon thought about his Water Walking Technique, which only allowed walking on water and not breathing underwater, thereby being completely useless.

"I can handle the water warfare." Cecilia puffed out her chest, "I am a Green Dragon. Green Dragons are amphibious and capable of underwater breathing."

Upon hearing Cecilia’s words, Leon suddenly fell silent, cradling his cheek and gazing out at the sea through the window, muttering to himself: "Underwater breathing, I want that too. With underwater breathing, I could play in the sea which would definitely be fun."

He already possessed the Vajra Body, which filled his long-standing defensive void; he had always coveted, yet never obtained, Frightening Majesty. And now, he added underwater breathing to the list, which made Leon involuntarily lament how insatiable human desires could be.

"Master wants underwater breathing? Isn’t that easy?" Cecilia looked at Leon with some puzzlement, "The wonders that enable underwater breathing aren’t easy to acquire, but Underwater Breathing Potions are quite accessible. We should be able to buy them here. And there are many spells that can allow one to breathe underwater too."

Without Cecilia’s reminder, Leon might not have thought of it—underwater breathing is easily obtainable in this world. Hope instantly filled his heart as he said, "If I could breathe underwater... then there wouldn’t really be a problem."

"But, Master, can you swim?" Cecilia asked, "Also, your Flame Breath is your trump card, isn’t it? What will you do if you can’t use that underwater?"

"You don’t need to worry about that," Leon replied, thinking how he grew up without parents, relying solely on catching fish in the river for sustenance. Samadhi True Fire is not an ordinary flame, and common water cannot extinguish it, though it might diminish in power somewhat.

"So, you agree?" Cecilia’s eyebrows danced playfully.

"If we can’t find a better place... then this one is not bad either." Leon leaned back in his chair, contemplating how he had to hide in secluded corners as a child. Once grown, he definitely could not rest on his laurels; he had to do something, make a name for himself. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to get many Golden Finger rewards.

In Leon’s memory, normal Dragons would sever ties with tutors and parents upon reaching adolescence, establishing their own lairs and territories.

It wasn’t necessary to strive excessively; laying back a bit was fine too, but when it was time to work, one must work. Not wanting to compete in a big city, one should still make an effort to become a civil servant in a small city, living a life of tea-drinking and newspaper-reading, above all being officially employed. Then, marrying and having children also entailed a few hurdles that must be crossed.

"When do we start?" Cecilia was already eager.

"There’s no rush for the moment," Leon said, "Let’s talk again when I enter the teenage phase. It’s only a matter of five or six years; it will pass before you know it."

Leon smiled, somehow coming to feel that five or six years were no big deal.

And so, Leon spent several days having fun in Watchtower Port. He wandered around the neighboring area, checked out the volcano Cecilia mentioned, and then returned to the desert, determined to make his move once he reached his teenage phase. By then, he would certainly have grown much larger, and his mana would also be much more abundant than now.

Although he had not lost against the Hunting Demon, the Cloud Giant, or Angmog, if luck had been a bit worse, a flip of the situation was not impossible. It had all depended on timely rewards from the Golden Finger, not to mention Tiamat, a being before whom he must currently bow... The experiences at the Lost Plateau gave Leon some pressure, which made him train a bit harder during his stay at Molten Lava Lake.

Even if he could never learn magic, he could read books to understand various methods to counteract magic.

The design documents he had read before were just for reference. He hadn’t seen much of them, and he needed to catch up in this area, not always relying on that knowledge.

Breathing the spiritual energy of nature every day, drawing the essence of the sun and the moon at the beginning and middle of each month, he must not forget. He must persevere with the Inner Core Dual Cultivation Method as well, ensuring the perfection of the cultivated core of spirit, energy, and essence.

It was about time, and the five or six years passed by quickly indeed.

Leon was now a teenage dragon.