As soon as Evan Chu spoke, both the Ice Dragon and Fire Dragon were stunned. Their eyes flashed with murderous intent as they glared at Evan, clearly itching to swallow him whole—their anger was obvious.
"Kid, you're about to die and you still dare to be this naive? You actually want us to be your little brothers? Have you lost your mind from fear?" the Fire Dragon roared angrily.
"We can't accept that demand. Since you're so determined to die, I'll grant your wish!" The Ice Dragon was furious as well.
Evan Chu didn't show a trace of fear. Instead, he laughed and said, "So this is what the Dragon Clan calls keeping their word? Well, we’ve seen it with our own eyes today. Even if you slaughter us all, you can't cover up the truth that you're oath-breakers."
"Kid, there’s no one else here. If I kill you, who would ever know? Don’t dream about surviving this—I'm ending you all right now!" The Fire Dragon’s temper flared as he shouted.
"Heh, you really think no one will find out? When we came here, we told plenty of people. It won’t be long before someone shows up—if you don’t believe me, go ahead and try." Evan Chu’s voice was firm, leaving the two dragons unsure if he was bluffing.
After a moment, the Ice Dragon finally spoke: "Kid, you do have guts. Fine—if you can withstand a single strike from me, I’ll agree to let you all go. That’s my bottom line, so don’t test the dignity of the Dragon Clan."
"Alright, you said it yourself—as long as I can take one hit from you, you’ll let us go. But I want to add one more condition!" Evan Chu said immediately. These two had finally fallen into his trap.
But to Jenny Sima and the others, Evan’s words were hard to bear. "Lin Feng, you can’t agree to this. If we die, we die together. If you die, what’s the point of me living?" Jenny said.
"Boss, don’t do it! Worst case, we’ll fight them together!" Goldwing said.
"Enough! I know what I'm doing, so stop trying to talk me out of it!" Evan Chu turned and snapped.
"Kid, if you’ve got another condition, spit it out. I don’t have the patience to waste time with you," the Ice Dragon growled impatiently.
"If I survive your attack, I want the Iceflame Crystal from that little tree," Evan Chu declared.
"Fine! I promise you that much—but kid, don’t get your hopes up. There’s no way you’ll live long enough to claim it," the Fire Dragon cut in, convinced Evan had no chance.
Jenny Sima’s face was streaked with tears, but she didn’t utter a word of complaint. She slowly closed her eyes, unwilling to watch Evan Chu be killed right in front of her.
"Lin Feng, you’ve got two ways to survive a strike from the Fire Dragon or Ice Dragon. It’s up to you." Luna’s voice echoed in his mind. "The Timewheel Bracelet can rewind you to ten seconds before your death, leaving you unscathed—but if the dragons see it, you’ll be in even deeper trouble."
"The other way is your mother’s Dragon Scale. The dragon power stored inside can block the attack, but it’ll make awakening your bloodline even harder. Think carefully—using the Dragon Scale will expose your identity, but it might be your only shot," Luna said.
Evan Chu had nearly forgotten about the Dragon Scale. It was the key to awakening his bloodline, and he wasn’t supposed to use it until he broke through to the Heaven Martial Realm. Every use drained its dragon power.
The Timewheel Bracelet could save his life, but these two dragons were from the Lord of Frostbane’s era—they’d recognize a god-tier artifact in an instant and would definitely try to seize it. That would leave him with no chance at all.
After careful thought, using the Dragon Scale was the safest bet. As long as he survived, he could always awaken his bloodline later.
"Kid, are you ready? I'm about to attack!" the Fire Dragon called out.
"Go ahead, I’ve been ready for ages! Just don’t go back on your word!" Evan Chu replied.
"Let’s see if you can take this hit first!" the Fire Dragon said.
A blast of fiery dragon flame shot toward Evan Chu. He felt a heat so intense it could incinerate everything, and knew it might only take a single second to kill him outright.
As the Fire Dragon unleashed its flame, Evan Chu had already pulled out the Dragon Scale and poured Stellar Power into it, activating its dragon force.
When the dragon flame was just a meter from Evan Chu, the Dragon Scale in his hand erupted with dazzling golden light, instantly surrounding him in an energy shield that blocked the Fire Dragon’s attack.
After about five seconds, the dragon flame vanished, and the glow from the Dragon Scale gradually faded as well.
It all happened so fast that no one reacted before it was over. The only thing left was Evan Chu calmly standing there, while the two dragons stared with wide eyes, utterly shocked.
"Hey Ice, did you see what that kid was holding?" the Fire Dragon asked, shaken.
"I saw it. That’s a Dragon Scale—no, it’s a Golden Dragon’s scale! How is this possible? How could he have a Dragon Scale? Does he have ties to the Dragon Clan?" the Ice Dragon exclaimed, astonished.
"If he really is tied to the Dragon Clan, we’d better be careful. He’s holding a Golden Dragon’s scale—and it’s brimming with dragon power. We absolutely have to get to the bottom of this," the Fire Dragon said, still shaken.
Evan Chu’s identity was now more mysterious than ever. He looked so much like the Lord of Frostbane, and now he’d produced a Dragon Scale—one that carried real dragon power.
All dragons knew there were two ways to store dragon power: inside a Dragon Bead, or within a Dragon Scale. Only a natal scale cultivated by the dragon itself could hold power. The highest-ranking Golden Dragons could form three scales, Silver Dragons two, and elemental dragons like Fire or Water could only make one.
Anyone with a powered Dragon Scale knew exactly what that meant—either the owner gave it willingly, or someone killed the owner to take it. The latter was almost impossible.
To store dragon power in a scale, you needed at least Divine Martial Fifth Rank strength. Add the natural defenses of a Divine Dragon, and even a Seventh Rank expert couldn’t kill one easily. So the only real possibility was that the scale was a gift.
Suddenly, the Fire and Ice Dragons realized how serious this was. Even if they killed the boy now, the scale’s owner would sense it—and a Golden Dragon was the uncontested overlord of the Dragon Clan, not someone they could afford to provoke.
Seeing the dragons’ shock, Evan Chu grinned. "I’ve taken your hit. You’re not planning to break your word, are you?"
The two dragons were rattled by Evan’s Dragon Scale, but neither wanted to lose face in front of everyone. The Fire Dragon said, "If you can tell us where your scale came from, we’ll honor our deal. If not, you still won’t escape death."
"You two are shameless! If you want to kill me, just do it. If I die, someone will avenge me—and you won’t stand a chance against him!" Evan Chu waved the Dragon Scale for emphasis, making his meaning perfectly clear.
"Kid, that’s not what we meant. Since you have a Dragon Scale, you must have a real connection to the Dragon Clan. Dragon Scales aren’t given to humans lightly, especially not to someone as weak as you," the Ice Dragon said, though its tone was much softer now.
"If you want answers, hand over a few Iceflame Crystals first. Otherwise, forget it!" With the Dragon Scale as his trump card, Evan Chu’s confidence soared...