The location Leilin had chosen was rather deliberate.
This was where he had first encountered the one-eyed owl—believed to be a clone of the Nightmare King—and been gifted the Feather of Dreams, which had transported his entire laboratory into the Dream World.
It was also in this area that he had found
With this spot as a reference point, the north was where the terrifying Calamity Lords' territories roamed, blanketed by the ever-drifting Snow of Destruction.
By Leilin's conservative estimate, at least five or six Dream Wicked
Under normal circumstances, even the passive radiation from those Dream Wicked Gods and Calamity Lords was a catastrophe for all Dream Natives—a strictly forbidden zone. But now, things were different!
Compared to the decay of the rest of the Dream World, the Calamity Lords' domain in the north had ironically become the only viable refuge.
After all, if so many powerful Calamity Lords had chosen the same location, it could only mean one thing: the area offered extraordinary benefits in resisting the decay of Dream Power, attracting the strong in droves.
Compared to the extinction of their race, the Snow of Destruction, the high-energy radiation, and the violent beasts were all laughable concerns.
That was why Gillian's tribe, at their most desperate moment, had collectively migrated north toward the Calamity Lords' domain. There was logic to it.
After all, those Evil Gods lost in their sealed slumber would hardly deign to step on the ants scurrying at their feet.
"Is this the miracle of life?" Leilin mused. Through his perception, the vitality to the north was the densest of all.
Beneath the unconscious resistance of the Calamity Lords, a shelter had formed for the Dream Natives clinging to their last breath, creating an odd symbiotic relationship.
The surrounding Dream Natives—beyond Gillian's tribe alone—must have included many more who had sought sanctuary there.
"Not a bad research project, actually! Hmm?"
Leilin's figure, suspended in midair, suddenly froze as the Chip's scan revealed a massive dark silhouette and a familiar soul signature.
"Running into an old acquaintance?"
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Then let's say hello!"
BOOM!
Leilin had already fully crossed into the domain of a Seventh-level Rule
"Open!"
The ground trembled under Leilin's will, splitting open a bottomless fissure—and this was Leilin restraining his power, without drawing on the world's Primordial Force. Otherwise, obliterating half a continent with a single blow would have been child's play.
"Turn mud to stone! Forge earth into steel!!!"
The magic of a Rule Wizard approached the fundamental nature of reality itself. The traces of craftsmanship vanished entirely, and Leilin, with his experience of "further study" in the
Under his control, Bloodline Power and Dream Power blended seamlessly into one, and light that was part divine miracle, part wizardry—deploying the divine ability to alter reality by sheer decree—transformed the severed geological layer into a massive steel plate.
CRASH!!!
Deep underground, a fast-moving dark shape slammed headlong into it, producing an earth-shaking impact that even left a colossal dent in Leilin's hastily forged steel plate.
"Ugh! Damn it! Why is there an iron plate down here—no, an entire iron geological layer?"
The surface burst open under two enormous dragon claws, and a gigantic dragon poked its head out, looking for all the world like a dejected groundhog.
Unlike the dragons of the World of Gods, this creature had only a single enormous yellow eye. Its back was covered in mountainous bramble-like spikes, and two vast wings—large enough to blot out the sky—were folded tight against its streamlined, teardrop-shaped body, perfectly adapted for burrowing underground.
What was even more terrifying was that this One-eyed Dragon radiated energy fluctuations that only a Rule Wizard possessed, marking it as a being of formidable power!
In the World of Gods, perhaps only the legendary Primordial Dragons could rival it.
"Long time no see, Mr. One-eyed Dragon from the World of Aochuang!"
Watching the One-eyed Dragon who had apparently taken up excavation as a full-time profession, Leilin had to exert considerable effort to suppress his laughter before offering a polite greeting.
"Hmm? Who dares mock the great Jijikeer Dragon Clan?"
The One-eyed Dragon slapped its head with a massive claw, seemingly recovering from the dizziness. "I was saying—with my skills, how could I possibly miss the anomaly ahead? So it's you... that Wizard from before!"
Grumbling complaints under its breath, the One-eyed Dragon hauled its enormous body out of the earth. "It's only been a few thousand years since we last met, and you've already fully stepped across the Seventh-level threshold. That talent is truly enviable... though I suppose this is the Dream World—who knows how much time has passed outside. Tens of thousands of years could have slipped through my claws without me noticing..."
"Then Your Excellency has been staying in the Dream World all this time?" Leilin asked, somewhat surprised.
"Of course! Don't you know how rich the treasures of the Dream World are? Especially deep in the earth's core... the glow of those pure Suoluo Gems... oh, it's ten thousand times more beautiful than a dragoness's eyes... If that damned Calamity Lord hadn't stopped me last time, I would have... ptoo ptoo..."
The One-eyed Dragon seemed to realize it had let something slip and hastily covered its mouth with a claw.
"So that's how it is!" Leilin nodded, though inwardly he was吐槽 the avarice of dragons—something not even the vast Astral Plane could change. Whether in the World of Gods or the Wizard World, dragons seemed to share certain universal traits.
"However... forgive my bluntness, but Your Excellency appears to be in need of help..."
Leilin studied the other's mountain-sized body. Covering its thick horned plates and scales were numerous purple eyes—clustered in tangled, overlapping patterns that looked absolutely revolting.
Beside each purple eye, deep gashes appeared and reappeared, healing only to tear open again. Just looking at them was enough to feel the agony radiating from within.
"Combining this with what he said earlier... he probably coveted some Calamity Lord's treasure, got caught, ended up like this, and had to flee for his life?"
Leilin surmised, though his hands didn't idle. A layer of pale green mist drifted over the One-eyed Dragon, and fine droplets of rain began to fall.
When the pale green mist approached, the One-eyed Dragon first fixed Leilin with a wary stare from its yellow eye. Then it sniffed with its broad, elongated nose, revealed a satisfied expression, and made no move to refuse.
Hiss, hiss!
The green rain contacted the wounds, producing billows of corrosive white vapor. But once healed, the lacerations finally stopped tearing open, prompting the One-eyed Dragon to let out a contented snort.
"You have two types of injuries. The most dangerous is the curse of the purple eyes—something I cannot currently remove. But the lacerations with their Eternal Rending effect can be treated..."
Leilin's face held a look of satisfaction as well.
Treating injuries caused by Dream Power was a rare and valuable experience for someone planning to journey through the Dream World.
Moreover, a test subject of Seventh-level Wizard strength and a close-up opportunity to sense the power of a Calamity Lord—those weren't easily obtained.
"Plagues, Calamities, Curses..."
Just by closely sensing the Calamity Force emanating from the purple eyes, Leilin's expression shifted.
That concentrated malice—perhaps the most wicked凝聚 of rule-level power—gave even him pause.
"As expected of a Calamity Lord! This level of power... probably already exceeds the Seventh-level boundary..."
Leilin assessed the One-eyed Dragon before him. Putting everything else aside, the mere fact that it had escaped from such a terrifying existence with its life was enough for Leilin to hold it in higher regard.
"Haha... thank you! Wizard with the healing power, I'm feeling much better already!"
The One-eyed Dragon happily stretched its body, Leilin's reflection shimmering in its yellow eye.
"You are a good Wizard. You may earn the friendship of our Jijikeer Dragon Clan!"
The massive One-eyed Dragon sniffed Leilin with its nose. "My true name is Bodak Ofdikseluoke Aochuang! By my true name, I swear a pact with you! Should you or your bloodline ever call upon this name for aid, the power of my One-eyed Dragon Clan shall descend! Of course, a fitting price and equivalent payment must be rendered afterward..."
A vow sworn by a being of the Rule-level carried no question of truth or falsehood.
However, looking at the crafty gleam in the One-eyed Dragon's eye, Leilin couldn't help but feel somewhat speechless.
"Counting on the fact that I've never been to the World of Gods and don't know about the Dragon Alliance?"
Leilin silently groused. In the World of Gods, the Dragon Alliance was infamous as the most exploitative pact in existence—as long as you could pay enough Jinkelo, even a Semi-Divine Dragon could be summoned in droves. Of course, the price was enough to bankrupt even the Church of Wuojin, Goddess of Wealth.
This One-eyed Dragon Bodak's contract was similar in spirit. Though it appeared to be a gesture of gratitude—a pact allowing Leilin to summon the dragon at will—the final clause about payment was enough to make anyone cough blood.
Leilin strongly suspected that this One-eyed Dragon had signed the same agreement with every one of its friends, all to accumulate wealth.
"Whatever—I'm never planning to use it anyway..."
Leilin mentally rolled his eyes, then turned his attention back to Bodak.
"I appreciate the offer, but I think we should discuss the curse on your body first..."
Given Leilin's experience, his ability to shift gears was nothing short of jaw-dropping to the One-eyed Dragon. "If it's not the caster, an outsider can barely remove it. And as time passes, the effects will likely become truly horrifying..."
Though Leilin could have gained the confidence to remove it after a few more years of research—he still had the Nightmare Energy Absorber as his trump card—he deliberately kept that to himself.