Coiling Dragon_Book 1 of the Coiling Dragon Saga

by Wo Chi Xi Hong Shi

  Not just Linley. Hillman, Roger, and Lorry all turned towards the east, their expressions growing solemn. The vibrations were growing stronger and clearer. All of the youths present could clearly feel that the regular vibrations were coming from an enormous creature headed their way.

  Each of the thunderous footsteps seemed to cause a vibration powerful enough to shake Linley’s heart. What giant creature was causing this?

  Linley widened his eyes and stared east…

  5

  Magical Beast, Velocidragon!

  The giant creature that caused the earth to shake finally revealed itself. Upon seeing this enormous creature, Linley and the rest of the children were scared silly. Hillman, Roger and Lorry’s reaction speeds were very quick; they immediately stood in front of the group of kids and carefully watched the enormous creature.

  “A magical beast of the seventh rank. A Velocidragon!” Hillman’s face tightened, while Lorry and Roger, who were by his side, felt their legs grow weak.

  “So bi-bi-big! Is, is this a legendary magical beast?” Linley was totally stunned. Since Linley was born, the largest creatures which he had ever seen werewas the warhorses that sometimes passed by the town of Wushan. Those large, powerful horses were 1.8 meters tall, but in front of this giant creature they seemed like nothing more than babes in front of a giant. The difference was truly astounding. This creature was easily two stories high and at least twenty or thirty meters long.

  This was a magical beast – a Velocidragon!

  The Velocidragon’s entire body was covered by huge, fiery-red scales, each scale glittering with cold, golden light. The scales alone were stunning and frightening to behold. The Velocidragon’s four scale-covered long legs were even more terrifying in their thickness. Two fully-grown men would barely be able to surround them with their arms. The flame-red Velocidragon was entirely crimson in color, with the exception of its cold, deadly black claws.

  The Velocidragon’s long, scale-covered tail made up over half of its total body length. Like a whip, it swept across the ground. Each time it struck the ground, a deep thud could be heard emanating from below.

  “GRRR…” With a low-throated growl, white steam erupted from the nostrils of the Velocidragon, carrying with it the stench of sulfur. Those diamond-like eyes, nearly the size of a lantern, were also, strangely enough, red as well. The huge head of the Velocidragon turned towards Linley and the children. Its cold gaze terrified all of the children, freezing them in their tracks.

  “TCHHH. TCHHH.” The Velocidragon’s mouth tensed, revealing two rows of enormous, saw-like teeth. Each tooth was ivory white, and the sight of them caused everyone’s hearts to grow cold. No one dared to question their sharpness.

  Linley felt as though his heart had stopped beating. Right now, it seemed as though all sound had faded away. “This is absolutely terrifying. Is there anyone who can possibly defeat such a creature?” Linley was scared stiff.

  Just from looking at this huge magical beast, Linley felt as though its power was irresistible. Linley believed that with but a swipe of its enormous tail, it could surely disintegrate even the sturdiest stone houses of the town of Wushan.

  “Is this the town of Wushan?” Suddenly, a cold voice emanated from on top of the Velocidragon. All of the terrified children looked up, astonished. Upon the Velocidragon’s enormous, scaly back, a mysterious man wearing violet robes was sitting cross-legged. The Velocidragon was simply too huge in size, and its back was extremely broad. There was more than enough space for someone to stand, sit, or even roll around.

  “Lord Magus, this is indeed the town of Wushan. Is there anything we can help you with, Lord Magus?” Hillman’s voice rang out.

  Upon hearing Hillman’s voice, everyone seemed to find their bearings again, and recovered from the state of stunned terror. But no one present, including Roger and Lorry, dared to make a single sound. They stood behind Hillman and fearfully stared at the terrifying Velocidragon and the mysterious, violet robed magus riding it.

  “The town of Wushan. Looks like I didn’t get lost.” The violet-robed man said in a low voice. The mysterious, violet-robed man didn’t say anything else. After gazing at Linley and the rest of the group with its cold eyes the Velocidragon continued forwards, two more lines of smoke appearing from its nostrils. Seeing the Velocidragon go in the direction of the town, the look on Hillman’s face changed.

  “Everyone, stay here.” After he spoke, Hillman immediately chased after the departing Velocidragon.

  “Uncle Lorry, what is that? Is that a magical beast?” Linley was the first to ask.

  Lorry cleared his throat, a look of terror still in his eyes, but he still nodded. “Yes, it is, and it’s a very powerful one, a magical beast of the seventh rank. A Velocidragon!”

  “Velocidragon?” Linley memorized the word, forever etching it in his mind. The Velocidragon’s huge body, hard scales, sharp claws, and powerful tail served to create a terrifying appearance. Linley believed a single Velocidragon could most likely annihilate the entire town of Wushan.

  “The defensive power of a Velocidragon’s scales is astonishing, and its attack power is terrifying as well. In addition, it is proficient in destructive fire magic!” Lorry’s heart was filled with fear as he explained to Linley and the others. “If faced with a terrifying magical beast such as the Velocidragon, most likely even a platoon of a thousand soldiers would be wiped out, unless it had a number of sixth- or seventh-ranked warriors and magi who could unite to penetrate the Velocidragon’s scales.”

  Linley’s heart trembled. Even a platoon of a thousand soldiers would be wiped out?

  “However, the most terrifying thing is not the Velocidragon… it is the mysterious violet-robed man riding it.” Lorry took two stabilizing breaths, calming his agitated heart.

  By his side, Roger nodded as well. “Right. In order to subdue a Velocidragon, one must force the Velocidragon to willingly submit to being a servant. In other words… the violet-robed man must be significantly more powerful than the Velocidragon. Based on his clothing, he should be a magus.”

  “At least a magus of the seventh rank. Perhaps even a magus of the eighth rank!” Roger’s fists couldn’t help but tremble as well. “I never imagined such an important individual would come to our home.”

  Linley could sense the fear that was in the hearts of Roger and Lorry. A Velocidragon had come to town, as had a mysterious magus whose power dwarfed the Velocidragon’s? This was definitely enough to inspire terror in anyone.

  “The magus was even more powerful than the Velocidragon?” Linley found this somewhat hard to believe. The Velocidragon’s huge body, hard scales, sharp claws, and powerful tail… it all seemed to dwarf the small human figure of that magus.

  “GWAAAR!” Suddenly, an angry roar erupted from the middle of the town.

  “Crap!” Lorry and Roger were stunned. Linley and the other children grew worried as well. Was the Velocidragon’s angry roar caused by Uncle Hillman, or by the town of Wushan? Nobody knew. “All of you, stay here.” Lorry and Roger, although terrified, still raced towards the center of the town.

  Linley gritted his teeth. “Uncle Hillman!” Linley was also worried for Uncle Hillman as well as the citizens of the town of Wushan. He immediately chased after Lorry and Roger. At this moment, the two of them were both panic-stricken at the thought of the Velocidragon that they didn’t notice Linley following behind them.

  In but a few moments, they arrived in the middle of the town. Hillman was standing far away, watching. “Why did you come?” Hillman reprimanded in a severe tone. Upon seeing Linley follow behind Lorry and Roger, Hillman frowned even further. “Linley, it’s far too dangerous here. Go back immediately.” Only now did Lorry and Roger notice Linley had followed them.

  “Linley, why did you…” Lorry and Roger didn’t know what to say.

  “Uncle Hillman, I’m not going back.” Linley wasn’t willing to return.

  Hillman helplessly shook his head. H
e knew how stubborn Linley could be, and how hard it was to force him to change his mind. “Fine. Stay behind me, do not go too far. As long as you stay next to me, I am confident that I can protect you.”

  “Thank you, Uncle Hillman. I definitely won’t run around.” Linley was overjoyed.

  At this point in time, Hillman’s group was roughly a hundred meters away from the Velocidragon. They quietly watched the events in the center of town unfold. In front of the huge Velocidragon, a group of youngsters could be seen. Four men, three women. “Captain, what’s going on up ahead?” Lorry said in a quiet voice to Hillman.

  A hint of a smile played at Hillman’s lips. “That mysterious magus seems to be at odds with that party over there. Just stay here and watch. No need for us to interfere.” Hillman himself was only a warrior of the sixth rank. In truth, he didn’t dare to interfere either. The Velocidragon alone was something he would not be able to fight off, much less the mysterious magus.

  The strength of the seven-person party in front of the magus was not weak either. Five of them were warriors, while the other two were magi. The leader of their party was a powerfully built man with tousled red hair who rode a pitch-black iron bull. The two sharp horns of the iron bull glittered under the light, dark and deadly.

  Its blood-red eyes gave testament to the true nature of this bull – this was a “Vampiric Iron Bull”, a magical beast of the fifth rank.

  With a snort, smoke began to emit from the bull’s nostrils as well.

  Of the seven people in the party, four were men while three were women. Both of the magi were women, while the third woman was an archer. Aside from the Vampiric Iron Bull, a huge griffin floated in mid-air as well.

  “Griffins” –magical beasts of the fourth rank!

  The Griffin had the head of a lion but a pair of enormous, powerful wings. For a party to have two magical beasts and two magi… clearly, this adventuring party was no ordinary one.

  “Youngsters, it’d be better if you handed the d'Bero shadow diamond over,” the mysterious man seated on the Velocidragon said a second time, his voice cold.

  “Lord Magus, we don’t wish to be your enemy, but in order to acquire this d'Bero shadow diamond we paid an enormous price in time and effort. The value of it exceeds a hundred thousand gold coins, but you, Lord Magus, want to buy it from us for just seven hundred coins. This… this is impossible,” the red-haired leader of the group said in a solemn voice.

  Linley was listening to the conversation from far away by Hillman’s side. He now understood everything. This mysterious magus wanted to spend seven hundred gold to purchase a d'Bero shadow diamond which was worth a hundred thousand.

  “Wow, the price of that diamond…” Linley was shocked. “For it to be worth so much money, clearly this d'Bero shadow diamond must have some significance attached to it. Otherwise, it wouldn’t cause this magus to be willing to lower his status and try to take it by force.” An offer of seven hundred gold, for an item worth a hundred thousand. No wonder the small party was unwilling to accept.

  “Hmph.” The mysterious magus coldly harrumphed. “I only have seven hundred gold on me. Right now, I’m still willing to use money to buy it from you. If you lot don’t know when to step back and make the right decision… then not only will you not receive a single gold coin, you will also lose your little lives,” the magus said in a frozen voice.

  “GRRRR.” The Velocidragon, taller than most of the houses in the town, let out a deep growl, causing all the houses nearby to shudder.

  “Captain, we risked our lives to obtain this d'Bero shadow diamond. We can’t just cower in front of this guy and give it away!” a woman in black said coldly. As an experienced adventuring party, these seven people had experienced many battles and wouldn’t easily submit.

  The red-haired captain said in a solemn voice, “Honored Lord Magus, I am of the Kingdom of Fenlai’s ‘Cayley’ clan…”

  This captain wanted to use his background to force the opponent down. But unfortunately, powerful magi usually were eccentric and didn’t give a whit about noble families. “You all have chosen death,” the mysterious magus sneered coldly.

  “Careful.” In a flash, the seven-person party raised its guard. The four warriors charged in front, the female archer in the back pulled out her strongest bow, and the two female magi began to prepare spells.

  “GWAAAR!” The huge Velocidragon opened its mouth, and an enormous plume of fire erupted from its fangs, headed directly for the party.

  Where the fire came near, the very stone road underneath the fireblast began to warp, crack, and even shatter from the intense heat as the entire road charred black.

  “Careful!” the red-haired leader said in a deep voice as his entire body became suffused with red-colored battle-qi. The other three warriors activated their battle-qi as well.

  The red-haired leader wielded an enormous claymore in his two hands. With rapid speed, he fiercely swung it against a nearby stone wall, and with a thundering sound the stone wall collapsed, sending hundreds of rocks rolling down to the floor and causing dust to explode outwards. Right at this moment the fire from the Velocidragon enveloped the four men, who used their battle-qi to resist it.

  “Hah!” The red-haired man kicked a large rock nearly half a meter long at the magus. The other three warriors did the same, also kicking large rocks with the speed and power of enormous slingshots. The four rocks split the air, howling as they pierced forth towards the magus seated on the huge Velocidragon.

  “Swish! Swish! Swish!” One after another, a barrage of rocks assaulted the magus. In the twinkling of an eye, all the rocks from the collapsed wall were used up.

  Seeing this battle from afar, Linley’s hands were tightly clenched. “How incredible. They actually dare to use their feet to kick such huge rocks.” Watching the four men unceasingly kick the huge rocks, he felt all the more in awe of warriors in general. “However, the Velocidragon is even more terrifying!”

  Staring at the Velocidragon, Linley watched as its whip-like tail snapped about, dancing in front of it. “Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!” One giant rock after another was smashed into smithereens. The rocks couldn’t even come close to harming the magus on the Velocidragon’s back.

  “Swoosh!” The Velocidragon’s tail seemed to be totally unimpeded. It covered an enormous area, and whenever it casually passed by a stone house it sliced through it as though the house was made of mud. The stones would be shattered without any resistance. As one house after another began to collapse, stones rolled about everywhere and the entire area was bathed in dust.

  “Roaaaar!” Even in the middle of the dust storm, the Velocidragon’s mighty roar could be heard, and it continued to vomit fire from its jaws.

  This entire time, the two female magi in the back of the party were continuously mumbling magical incantations in a light voice. The words of magic were completely different from the common tongue spoken on the Yulan continent. It was much more awkward-sounding and complex. Before too much time had passed, the two female magi finished their incantations!

  “Protective Icy Carapace!” the two female magi chanted out in a low voice. Bright light erupted from their bodies, with four rays covering the four male warriors with a translucent, crystalline armor.

  The red-haired leader was delighted. With the protective icy carapace supporting his battle-qi, he now felt more confident in this battle.

  “Attack!” The red-haired leader ordered. The four warriors shot out four more rocks at nearly the same time, attacking the mounted magus simultaneously. Immediately after that, the four warriors charged forward like arrows released from bows as they shot towards the Velocidragon.

  6

  Dance of the Fire Serpents

  “GWAAAAR!” The flames erupting from the Velocidragon’s mouth encompassed a diameter of tens of meters of the surrounding area, bathing them in a sea of fire.

  Hiss… the Velocidragon’s fire danced around the bodies of the four warriors, but
guarded by the Protective Icy Carapace and their own battle-qi, the four warriors were completely capable of resisting the heat.

  By this point the archer had already mounted the Griffin and taken to the skies, her bow nocked. As for the Vampiric Iron Bull, it stood there like an iron wall, protecting the two female magi.

  Swish! Swish! Swish! Her eyes filled with a fierce cold gleam, and her hands as steady as a rock, the Griffin-mounted archer shot out three arrows in a row. The target – the mysterious magus on the back of the Velocidragon!

  Whoosh! The Velocidragon’s whip-like tail shot out like lightning, moving even faster than the arrows. In the blink of an eye, it shattered the arrows released from the archer’s triple shot. Immediately afterwards, its tail swept back towards the four charging warriors. The howling sound generated from the tail shattering the air with its movement caused the expressions on the faces of the four warriors to change dramatically. They immediately tried to leap backwards, almost like agile monkeys.

  Unfortunately, the draconic tail didn’t move in a purely straight pattern; it oscillated and curved strangely, with no fixed pattern.

  BANG! One of the four warriors didn’t manage to dodge in time, and was directly struck by the draconic tail on the waist. Both the Protective Icy Carapace and his own battle-qi were smashed into nothingness in the blink of an eye. With a slight flick, the tail curled around him and tightly wrapped him up.

  “Luke!” The red-haired warrior by his side howled angrily, his eyes filled with pain.

  “No!” Luke was also screaming in terror.

  With but a flick, the draconic tail tossed Luke directly towards the Velocidragon’s mouth. The Velocidragon opened its jaws, revealing its bloody maw, and chomped down. With a terrifying crunching sound, the last thing escaping Luke’s throat was an anguished scream.