Spirit of the Coiling Dragon (Part 2)

The Pouant Empire had an extremely long history. It had arisen more than eight thousand years ago and endured for nearly three thousand years before it was ultimately destroyed. Its territory at that time was equivalent to the combined lands of today’s Holy Alliance and Dark Alliance.

One could say—

The twelve kingdoms and thirty-two duchies west of the Mountain Range of Magical Beasts had once all belonged to the Pouant Empire. From that, one could imagine just how vast the empire’s territory had been.

But the Pouant Empire had been destroyed long ago!

“More than five thousand years ago?” The white-haired, white-bearded elder froze briefly, then sighed. “Within the Ring of Earth, it is impossible to sense the passage of time accurately. I never imagined that when I emerged from it, my homeland would have been gone for more than five thousand years.”

“Grandfather, what are you saying? I’m completely confused.”

Linley felt as though his head were full of paste. This grandfather had suddenly appeared and claimed to be a Saint-level Grand Magus of the Pouant Empire, which had been destroyed more than five thousand years ago. Was there anything stranger or more absurd?

Linley even wondered whether he was dreaming.

“Little fellow.” The white-haired elder looked at Linley and smiled. “The ring on your chest is the divine artifact I used in those days: the Ring of Earth.”

“Wait, wait!”

Linley immediately lifted his head. “What Ring of Earth? This ring on my chest was left to me by my clan’s ancestors. Its name is—the Coiling Dragon Ring!”

“The Coiling Dragon Ring? Was its original name the Coiling Dragon Ring?” the elder asked in surprise.

Linley froze.

“Original name? What original name?” He looked at the elder in confusion.

The elder smiled. “Oh, the name Coiling Dragon Ring must have been given by you or by one of your ancestors. When I found this ring, I searched every kind of record but could not discover its name. So I took it upon myself to call it the Ring of Earth. As for its original name, I do not know it either.”

“Oh, Grandfather, you named it yourself too. Well, it is mine now, so I call it the Coiling Dragon Ring.” Linley was stubborn about it.

“All right, all right. The Coiling Dragon Ring it is.” The elder smiled and did not argue with him.

“Grandfather, you said you came out of the Coiling Dragon Ring. What exactly is going on?” Linley continued asking.

The elder smiled. “In the year 4280 of the Yulan calendar, I...”

Hearing that, Linley was secretly shocked. “The year 4280? This year is already 9990.”

“In the year 4280 of the Yulan calendar, I encountered my old rival, the Saint-level Grand Magus Hamlin. The two of us fought, and I never expected another Saint-level expert to ambush me from the shadows. In the end, I was defeated. I did not want my soul to be captured by Hamlin and tortured without end, so I sealed my own soul inside this Ring of Earth... this Coiling Dragon Ring.” The elder recounted what had happened.

“The Coiling Dragon Ring is extraordinarily wondrous. At a glance, it seems to have no aura at all, yet its use rivals that of a divine artifact. I sealed my soul inside it, and although Hamlin and the others searched for a long time, they never discovered me. I have the Coiling Dragon Ring to thank for that.” The elder smiled.

Linley nodded to himself.

The Coiling Dragon Ring truly did look very ordinary. As heir to an ancient clan, Linley had some eye for such things.

Ordinary treasures carried an elemental aura, but the Coiling Dragon Ring was like a piece of withered wood.

“Grandfather, let me see if I understand. More than five thousand years ago, you were ambushed by a Saint-level Grand Magus and another Saint-level expert. You then sealed your soul inside the Coiling Dragon Ring. And this Coiling Dragon Ring is a treasure comparable to a divine artifact?” Linley summarized.

“Correct.” Seeing that Linley understood, the elder nodded with a smile.

“Then how did you come out of the Coiling Dragon Ring?” Linley asked in confusion.

The elder explained with a smile, “When I sealed my soul inside the Coiling Dragon Ring, I became a ring spirit within it. My existence is bound to the Coiling Dragon Ring. Unless someone becomes its owner again, I can never emerge from it.”

“Become the Coiling Dragon Ring’s owner?”

“Yes. By dripping blood onto the Coiling Dragon Ring,” the elder said with a smile.

Linley furrowed his brow and muttered, “Blood dripping onto the Coiling Dragon Ring?” After thinking for a moment, he suddenly remembered. When his head had been cut by a stone, his blood had stained his clothes and neck. It had probably stained the Coiling Dragon Ring as well.

“Oh, then I am the Coiling Dragon Ring’s owner.” Linley nodded.

“Yes. Only after you became the owner of the Coiling Dragon Ring could I come out and sense the air of the Yulan Continent once more.” A smile appeared on the elder’s face. “By the way, little fellow, I just told you my name. What is yours?”

Linley smiled brightly. “My name is Linley. Linley Baruch!”

“Linley. A fine name.” The elder smiled.

“Grandfather, must you always remain bound to the Coiling Dragon Ring, never able to regain your freedom?” Linley asked with some pity.

The elder nodded with a smile. “Linley, you should know that when ordinary people die, their souls enter the Netherworld. When I died, however, I was a Saint-level Grand Magus. My Spiritual Force had already become tangible, so I could resist the Netherworld’s summons for a short time and seal myself inside the Coiling Dragon Ring. Now there is only one way for me to leave the Coiling Dragon Ring: to exhaust all of my Spiritual Force.”

“Exhaust all of your Spiritual Force?” Linley did not understand.

“Spiritual Force is what humans call it. The undead call it soul power. When all Spiritual Force is exhausted, the soul disperses naturally. In other words... when my soul disperses, I will be free of the Coiling Dragon Ring’s restraint.” The elder spoke calmly. “But it is fine as it is. Though the Coiling Dragon Ring binds me and I cannot leave it by more than three meters, this is still quite good.”

Linley’s heart trembled.

Suddenly, he felt sorry for the old man.

“Heh, Linley, I am already very satisfied. You do not know... if my soul had been captured by Hamlin back then, I would have been worse off than dead.” The elder sighed.

“Grandfather, your name is Doehring Cowart. May I call you Grandpa Doehring?” Linley suddenly asked.

Doehring Cowart had been a great Saint-level magus of the Pouant Empire. His standing in the entire Yulan Continent had ranked among the top five. Only because the Saint-level Grand Magus Hamlin and another Saint-level expert had ambushed him so despicably had Doehring Cowart fallen.

And yet...

Doehring Cowart had never had children or grandchildren. Hearing Linley call him Grandpa Doehring, the heart that had been lonely for thousands of years suddenly felt warm.

“Good, good.” Doehring Cowart was very happy.

A flash of delight appeared in Linley’s eyes. “Grandpa Doehring, you said you are a Saint-level Grand Magus. Can you teach me magic?” Linley’s heart pounded. The man before him was a Saint-level Grand Magus from more than five thousand years ago.

In Linley’s mind appeared the Raptor’s enormous body, the terrifying scene of Dance of the Fire Serpents, the endless boulders falling from the sky, and the proud figure standing atop a Black Dragon.

How he longed for the day when—

He too could stand on a Black Dragon’s head and soar between heaven and earth.

Doehring Cowart’s white beard lifted, and his eyes brightened. “Of course I can. Your Grandpa Doehring is the greatest Earth-element Saint-level Grand Magus. Among every type of magic, Earth-element magic... is the strongest!” Speaking of magic, old Doehring immediately became spirited.