Ashen Dragon

——At this moment, Ed still retained the dwarf's form, but his entire body, flesh, and skin had been replaced by hardened stone.

Having just endured Misha's bombardment, the surface of his body flowed with sluggish lava, adorned with gemstones and precious metal ore. From the cracks in the stone, scalding white smoke billowed out, resembling a mutated Stone Golem.

Compared to those monsters born of the earth, Ed now seemed more like the master of the mountains and the land, possessing the greatness of a demigod.

Seeing this, Misha softly reminded, "Be careful; his body has completely undergone earth elementalization. We must stay airborne and avoid contact with the ground."

She added, "Furthermore... take caution. Against such monstrosities, only by completely shattering his elemental core can we kill him. Severing limbs won't suffice."

"Understood, Miss Misha," Stieg hurriedly responded, flapping his wings to distance himself from the land while warily observing the terrifying spectacle the dwarf had created. Even the Bipedal Wyvern felt a trace of trepidation in its heart.

Misha continued to give commands, "Relax. You only need to stall for time. He cannot maintain this state for long. Without divine essence to sustain him, his will shall soon be devoured by the laws of the earth."

"Fine, then we'll simply wait for this dwarf to dig his own grave!"

"Boom!"

"Boom! Boom!"

Sandstorms spread ever more widely, enormous boulders crashing down from the sky, creating chaotic craters on the ground.

Misha and Stieg darted back and forth in the sky, narrowly evading the barrage of falling stones. Amidst the raging sandstorm, a thunderous roar erupted once again.

"I offer my flesh, my soul, my everything to this mountain. Shield Dwarves have been its eternal masters for thousands of years past and shall remain so for thousands of years to come!

Get out of my land!"

"Boom!"

The ground abruptly fissured, and from beneath it, a giant stone hand extended skyward, clawing at the airborne Bipedal Wyvern.

Stieg flapped his wings frantically, narrowly dodging the attack, only to be swept into the swirling sandstorm. Struggling among the debris-laden winds, it howled in anguish.

"Aaargh—!"

Countless falling boulders hurtled toward the Bipedal Wyvern, which evaded desperately but could not escape unscathed. Its wing membrane was punctured, leaving several gaping holes.

Meanwhile, Ed stood atop a jagged outcropping of rock, raising an enormous stone warhammer dozens of meters long. He swung it furiously at the Wyvern's head.

"Damn dwarf!" Stieg clawed and bit, struggling wildly. Dragon Blood surged within him, unlocking unthinkable power in this life-or-death moment.

Suddenly, flames ignited in the Wyvern's chest, pulsing like a miniature sun. Torrid fire burst forth from its throat, blazing hotter than ever before.

"Boom!"

The fire scorched the stone until it blackened, exposing cracks and holes. Flames spewed from the edges of these expanding apertures, consuming a large portion of the rock, which groaned under the strain.

Seeing this, Stieg roared fiercely, "I will burn you alive! Witness the strength my master has bestowed upon me!"

More flames erupted, but Ed, infuriated, roared back, "Ignorant beast, you know nothing of the power of the earth and the mountains!"

"Boom!"

The ground cracked open once again, stones surging upward and twisting high into the sky, aiming for Stieg's relatively vulnerable underbelly.

At that moment, Stieg had no time to breathe fire, focusing all his energy on flapping his wings to evade. His actions, however, were not without merit—at least he bought precious time for Misha.

Ancient and lengthy Draconic chants reverberated in the skies, drawing Ed's gaze upwards instinctively.

"You are the sole master of the Anzeta Great Wilderness, the supreme Emperor of the Ashen Empire, ruler of thunder and flame, the Heavenly Disaster Monarch..."

High above, hundreds of meters in the sky, Misha stood with her eyes closed, chanting prayers. Her long scarlet hair danced wildly, resembling swirling tongues of fire.

"Shwaa—!"

Suddenly, Misha's eyes snapped open, their pale golden pupils shimmering with an awe-inspiring radiance.

At that moment, nearly tangible Dragon's Might emanated outward, weighing heavily upon every living being within a thousand meters.

Scorching winds swept through, endless seas of fire surged forth, painting half the sky with brilliant hues of orange and crimson.

"What is that?"

"Moradin's grace..."

"Gods above!"

The dwarves turned pale with terror, their hearts raced uncontrollably, and their gazes fixed upon the storm's epicenter—the young Dragonborn girl, whose back seemed to frame the apparition of an enormous Red Dragon. Its wings stretched across the heavens, striking awe and fear in all things.

Meanwhile, the Empire's soldiers were bolstered with fervor, their spirits ablaze as they launched more ferocious assaults. Officers and soldiers alike shouted in unison, "For the Ashen Empire! For His Majesty Cassius!"

"Hurry! Full-scale assault! His Majesty watches us!"

Soldiers broke into spontaneous song, and the melody of "Cassius's Hymn" echoed across Aivendel's walls.

On the battlefield amidst the wilderness, under searing winds, Ed's sandstorm dissipated entirely. Countless fragments of stone and dust fell to the earth below.

With newfound freedom, Stieg spread his wings wide, having escaped the stone's grip, and exclaimed smugly, "Dwarf, are you terrified? Behold your emperor's might!"

Ed raised his head, undaunted, meeting the gaze of the gigantic dragon apparition in the sky. With a solemn expression, he muttered, "So this is our enemy, the Ashen Emperor himself..."

Misha gazed down at the dwarf, the glow of fire flickering in her golden reptilian eyes. The Red Dragon phantom behind her also glared at Ed from a distance.

"Submit to the Empire, or face death—this is your final chance," a cold, crisp female voice echoed across the heavens.

By now, Misha's body was no longer her own, controlled instead by the Emperor from thousands of miles away.

Cassius knew that it was unlikely he could truly subjugate the Master of High Mountains. Yet he reckoned there was no harm in trying, perhaps even uncovering the secrets of the dwarves in the process.

"Never!" The Dwarf King's voice was resolute, rejecting her outright.

Misha—or rather, Cassius—chuckled coldly, "Ed, why bother? Look around you. Because of your stubbornness, Aivendel has crumbled to ruins. Your people have been slaughtered till almost none remain..."

Guided by that mocking tone, Ed could not help but glance around, seeing only devastation: the once-grand city of Aivendel reduced to rubble, smoke and ruin staining its former glory.

Dwarven corpses lay strewn across the walls of their citadel; of an army of ten thousand, fewer than five hundred dwarves remained.

"Dream on!"

Ed's expression remained steadfast. He raised his warhammer skyward and bellowed his familiar battle cry: "Evil dragon! Shield Dwarves will never bow! The High Mountain Kingdom shall never yield!"

"Good. Then take your royal palace—"