187: Chapter 187 Dragon Tomb

The iron door slammed shut behind Lin Mo, completely cutting off Aiken's desperate murmurs deep within the dungeon.

In the corridor, Han Xiao leaned against the wall, tapping his palm rhythmically with his metal rod. Hearing footsteps, he looked up, a sharp glint flashing in his single eye: "Did you get it out of him?"

"I did." Lin Mo shook his hand; the golden-red dragon mark on his palm had not yet fully faded, looking like a flickering flame in the dim corridor.

"Two pieces of news, one good, one bad. Which one do you want to hear first?"

"Let's hear the bad one first." Han Xiao straightened up.

"There are at least three Seeds in Ironwall City. They are puppets created by the Mimics combined with West Federation divine arts. They appear normal, but under specific conditions, they awaken and become killing machines. They could be soldiers, officers, or even in the conference room."

Han Xiao's brows instantly knitted together, and the force of his metal rod tapping his palm increased by a fraction: "... That's indeed terrible. What about the good news?"

Lin Mo looked up at him, a cold, sharp arc forming at the corner of his mouth: "Their divine arts are no longer effective against me. And—"

He paused, casting his gaze toward the window at the end of the corridor where daylight streamed in: "The purpose of Augustus's war is clear. He is after a dragon remains deep in the Northern Wasteland. He wants to borrow the power of the Dragon God to peek into the mysteries beyond the ninth rank."

Han Xiao's pupils constricted. Before he could ask for details, hurried footsteps came from the other end of the corridor.

Yan Yue approached quickly, bringing Ji Wuchen, Gu Yunting, and Shen Yi with him.

Yan Yue's face was livid, and he clutched a blood-stained military report in his hand.

Ji Wuchen and Gu Yunting had changed into new bandages, but their complexions were much better than yesterday. Shen Yi carried a medical kit. Seeing Lin Mo, her gaze immediately landed on his fully healed left hand, a flash of surprise in her eyes, followed by gravity.

"Just received an urgent report from the scouts," Yan Yue said, slapping the military report onto the wall, his voice extremely low.

"The West Federation's army has mobilized and has already advanced about one hundred miles. Augustus has assembled all the Holy Temple Knights, along with three full-strength mecha divisions, and is advancing toward Ironwall City. It is expected that... they will be at the city gates by tonight at the earliest, or tomorrow morning at the latest."

"Faster than expected." Han Xiao snorted coldly.

"It seems the news of Aiken's capture reached them, and that legion commander can't sit still anymore."

"That's not all," Yan Yue looked at Lin Mo, his eyes complex.

"What did Aiken say?"

Before Lin Mo could speak, a shrill, piercing scream erupted from deep within the dungeon, followed by the dull thud of a heavy object hitting the iron door. The sound was filled with a kind of madness born from the collapse of faith, making one's scalp tingle.

Everyone looked toward that heavy iron door.

"He saw some things—things that made him feel that the West Federation's military advantage of several centuries might just be a joke."

Lin Mo said indifferently.

Shen Yi suddenly stepped forward and placed her hand on Lin Mo's pulse, green light flickering from her fingertips. A moment later, she looked up, her eyes full of shock: "Your body has fully recovered... Are divine arts no longer effective against you..."

Lin Mo looked to the north, his gaze seemingly piercing through the heavy city walls and the thousand-mile wasteland.

"Let's not talk about that for now. The most important thing right now is that Augustus must not get that dragon remains deep in the wasteland... And I feel that thing calling to me, or rather, calling to the blood within me."

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole place fell into dead silence.

Ji Wuchen opened his mouth, and it took him a long time to squeeze out a sentence: "... So, the treasure Augustus has been searching for all this time is actually your relative?"

"You could understand it that way." Lin Mo actually nodded, his expression serious, "So this battle is not just for Ironwall City."

He turned around, his gaze sweeping across everyone's face. Deep within his profound eyes, golden-red vertical pupils slowly lit up. An ancient and majestic dragon aura spread silently, making even Yan Yue, a peak sixth-rank powerhouse, feel a trace of oppression stemming from his life's instincts.

"This battle is to tell Augustus that if he wants our Great Xia's dragon remains, he must first ask if we agree."

Lin Mo said each word clearly. His voice was not loud, but it rolled across the earth like thunder.

Yan Yue took a deep breath and turned abruptly: "Pass the order! Martial law throughout the city! All officers and soldiers, regardless of rank, must assemble at the Central Square immediately! Han Xiao, activate the Cleansing Perception Array. No matter how deeply those Seeds are hiding, screen them for me inch by inch!"

"It's useless. The divine art runes have merged with their brainwaves; conventional arrays cannot detect them." Lin Mo suddenly interrupted him.

"Then what do we do? Just wait for them to bloom inside the city?" Gu Yunting frowned.

Lin Mo looked at Shen Yi, then looked at the dragon mark on his palm that had not yet faded, and suddenly smiled: "Since we can't detect them, let them jump out themselves."

He raised his hand and opened his five fingers. A drop of golden-red blood seeped from his fingertip, hovering in mid-air and emitting a faint golden halo.

"Dragon blood as the lure, dragon aura as the cage," Lin Mo looked at the crowd, dangerous light flickering in his eyes.

"Tonight, I will stand on the city wall. Under the suppression of the dragon aura, the divine art runes of anyone harboring ulterior motives will backfire on their own. At that time, it will be clear at a glance who the Seeds are."

"You want to use yourself as bait?" Shen Yi immediately objected, her voice raised.

"Your injuries haven't fully healed. If you force the dragon aura to spread, your meridians will tear again!"

"If they tear, they will grow back. That's still better than waiting for them to stab us in the back."

Lin Mo put away the blood drop and turned his gaze to the sky outside the window, which was gradually darkening.

Han Xiao stared at Lin Mo for a long time, then suddenly slammed his metal rod down heavily, grinned, and revealed a mouthful of yellow teeth: "Good! You've got guts! I'll stand on the city wall with you! Let's see if Augustus's divine arts are stronger, or if your dragon blood is more domineering!"

"I'm going too." Ji Wuchen immediately raised his hand. Although his face was pale, his eyes were bright: "How can such a lively event go on without me, Ji Wuchen?"

"Count me in." Gu Yunting said coldly, his hand resting on his sword hilt.

Shen Yi watched these lunatics, her chest heaving with anger, but in the end, she just sighed.

Yan Yue looked at the group of young people before him, then at the iron door that isolated Aiken's desperate roars, and suddenly felt that Ironwall City might really be saved.

Not because of him, the city lord, nor because of the sturdy city walls.

But because of this youth before him, who could make a Temple Knight's faith collapse and could make dragon blood resonate with an ancient dragon remains.

"Go, do what you must do. Ironwall City... will go crazy with you this once."

Yan Yue waved his hand, his voice somewhat hoarse.

The afterglow of the setting sun was completely swallowed by dark clouds. The first raindrop hit the iron flag on the walls of Ironwall City, making a crisp "pop" sound.

In the distance, at the end of the wasteland, the teeth-grinding metallic roar of a mecha cluster moving could be faintly heard.

...

The rain fell for a full three hours, from dusk to late night. The walls of Ironwall City were washed until they were pitch black and shiny, like the spine of a giant beast crouching on the wasteland.

On the city wall, the wind was as sharp as a knife.

Lin Mo stood at the very front of the crenelations, without an umbrella, letting the cold rain slide down his brow bone.

Han Xiao stood leaning on his rod three steps to the left, his single eye narrowed into a slit in the curtain of rain. Ji Wuchen and Gu Yunting guarded the staircase leading down from the city wall on the left and right, their swords unsheathed by three inches.

"It's starting." Lin Mo said softly.

He raised his right hand, palm upward. A drop of golden-red blood slowly seeped out. It was not ordinary blood, but essence blood containing the divinity of a dragon. The blood drop hovered in the rain, not only un-diluted but becoming increasingly radiant, like a miniature sun.

Boom—!

Dragon aura, erupted!

No flashy moves, no earth-shattering explosions, just an invisible wave centered on Lin Mo, instantly sweeping across the entire Ironwall City.

Wherever the wave passed, raindrops froze, lamps flickered, and all living beings felt a trembling from the depths of their souls, as if an ancient god had opened its eyes to overlook all living things.

"Kneel..."

I don't know who shouted first, but the garrison on the city wall knelt down in unison. It was not out of fear, but because of the absolute suppression at the level of life.

Han Xiao let out a muffled groan, his metal staff driven deep into the brickwork, barely managing to remain standing, while Ji Wuchen and Gu Yunting supported each other back-to-back, veins bulging on their foreheads.

Meanwhile, inside the city, a sudden anomaly occurred!

"Ah——!!!"

In the barracks in the east of the city, an old soldier cleaning his rifle suddenly dropped it, clutching his head and letting out a shrill, miserable scream.

Dense, black runes emerged beneath his skin, slithering around like living snakes, clashing violently with the invading dragon's might.

The old soldier's body began to swell, his bones emitting a teeth-grinding sound of dislocation. In the blink of an eye, he transformed from a hunched old man into a two-meter-tall monster covered in bone spurs!

"A Seed!" someone screamed.

The monster roared to the heavens, its eyes devoid of reason, filled only with a pure desire to kill. It smashed through the barracks and charged wildly toward Lin Mo on the city walls; it was the divine runes driving it to kill the source of the dragon's might!

Almost simultaneously, similar screams and sounds of bursting came from the medical clinic in the west, the granary in the south, and even the kitchen of the officers' residence in the inner city.

Three Seeds, three monsters, revealed their true forms under the pressure of the dragon's might. They charged toward the city wall regardless of their own lives, knocking over everything in their path and leaving behind trails of foul-smelling black blood.

"Stop them!" Han Xiao roared.

The defenders of Ironwall City were well-trained after all; after the initial panic, the roar of heavy machine guns instantly tore through the rainy night.

Large-caliber bullets struck the monsters, blooming like flowers of blood, but the monsters seemed to feel no pain. Even with their legs blown off, they crawled with their hands toward the city wall.

"A combination of divine arts and biology... truly a disgusting creation."

Lin Mo's complexion was pale to the point of being translucent, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, yet he stood straight, without even a tremor.

"The second drop."

He whispered to himself, and another drop of golden-red dragon blood seeped from his fingertip.

The dragon's might surged again!

This time, it wasn't just the Seeds; even certain people in the city with ulterior motives could no longer hold on.

A thin man wearing a garrison uniform, hidden among the crowd, suddenly began bleeding from his seven orifices. He tried to flee, but his legs refused to obey, and he fell to his knees with a thud.

He was not a Seed, but a divine monitoring rune had been planted inside him, and it was now being forced out by the dragon's might.

"There is one more..." Lin Mo cast his gaze toward a certain place in the city—the direction of the armory.

There, a dark shadow was silently creeping toward the control console of the psionic cannon.

It was a woman, the mute girl who usually delivered meals to the officers. No one had expected that she was also a Seed, and the one hidden the deepest at that.

The moment the dragon's might swept over, the mute girl's movements froze.

She slowly turned her head to look at the city wall. Her ordinary, simple face suddenly split open, revealing dense compound eyes and mouthparts beneath.

"Found you." Lin Mo said coldly.

He pressed his fingers together to form a sword and slashed through the air!

From the city wall to the armory, separated by a thousand zhang, a thin golden-red line suddenly lit up in the curtain of rain; it was the edge of the dragon's might, condensed to its peak.

The thin line swept past the mute girl's neck, and her hideous head shot into the air. Black blood sprayed onto the psionic cannon barrel, making a sizzling, corrosive sound.

Three Seeds, completely wiped out.

Lin Mo's figure swayed, and he finally couldn't help but cough up a mouthful of blood. The blood landed on the brickwork, actually scorching the green bricks and emitting wisps of white smoke.

At the edge of the curtain of rain, above the wasteland, a silver ocean was approaching.

It was the West Federation's mecha cluster, numbering three thousand units. Each one emitted a cold metallic luster, appearing like silent reapers in the reflection of the lightning.

At the very front of the mecha cluster, a figure floated in mid-air, standing there out of thin air without the aid of any aircraft.

Augustus.

He wore a pure white robe, his golden hair motionless in the wind and rain. In his hand, he gripped a scepter, the tip of which was inlaid with a massive golden crystal.

When he appeared, the rain in the entire world seemed to freeze. The dragon's might belonging to Lin Mo above Ironwall City was actually slowly forced back by an equally vast power.

That was the domain of a Tier 7 powerhouse.

"An interesting kid."

Augustus spoke. His voice was not loud, yet it clearly spread throughout the entire Ironwall City, carrying a compassionate majesty, as if a god were evaluating ants.

"The dragon remains blood I have been searching for for ten years has actually been snatched by someone else and refined into a human elixir."

He looked at Lin Mo on the city wall, his gaze piercing through the thousand-zhang curtain of rain and landing on the blood-stained youth in black armor, the corners of his mouth curling into a meaningful arc.

"Lin Mo, I've changed my mind."

"I no longer need that dead dragon remains."

"I want a live one."

"Edmond, help me capture him!"

As the words fell, Augustus raised his right hand. He did not activate the scepter, but simply snapped his fingers lightly.

"Click."

The crisp sound spread through the rainy night. The next instant, the West Federation's mecha cluster split to the sides like waves, and ten streams of light soared into the sky!

These were ten knights clad in pure white power armor with gold patterns. Each suit of armor was heavier and more ornate than those of Aiken and Munro, and the wings of light unfurled behind them drew long trails of light through the curtain of rain.

They hovered in front of Augustus, forming a perfect cross battle formation. Ten auras at the peak of Tier 6 intertwined and merged, actually condensing in the void into a pure gold spear light a hundred zhang long.

Holy Temple Knights, assemble!

"Because of the existence of the agreement, Tier 7s cannot act lightly; this battle is up to you all!"

Augustus's voice remained compassionate, yet it carried a chilling indifference. He withdrew his hand and placed it behind his back, as if he were watching a play that had nothing to do with him.

"Capture him, I want him alive."

Boom——!!!

The ten knights struck simultaneously, and the hundred-zhang holy spear descended from the sky. It did not strike the city wall, but precisely covered Lin Mo! Before the spear tip arrived, the terrifying pressure had already crushed the bricks on the city wall to pieces. Han Xiao and the others felt as if a mountain were crashing down on their heads; even breathing became difficult.

That was the combined strength of ten Tier 6 peaks, a lethal formation capable of killing any Tier 6 powerhouse instantly!

"Don't even think about it!"

Han Xiao shouted furiously, his metal staff flying from his hand and turning into a black light that crashed toward the holy spear. Ji Wuchen and Gu Yunting combined their swords, slashing out two stunning arcs.

But those attacks landed on the hundred-zhang holy spear without even stirring a ripple, and were crushed into powder by that terrifying sacred power.

Lin Mo looked up, watching the world-ending light rushing toward him, and feeling the tangible killing intent of the ten Temple Knights, he suddenly smiled.

"You want my blood?"

He violently tore open the light armor on his chest, revealing the golden-red dragon mark over his heart. It was not a tattoo, but the reverse dragon scale mark that formed naturally after his bloodline awakened.

"Then come and take it!"

Lin Mo formed hand seals with both hands, making a gesture so ancient that even Augustus could not understand it; it was the Dragon Language, the memory from the deepest part of his bloodline.

"Dragon Tomb... open!"

Rumble——!!!

The entire Ironwall City suddenly shook violently. It was not from an attack, but rather something deep underground was responding to Lin Mo's call.

An aura more ancient and wild than the ten knights combined soared into the sky from the wasteland north of the city. The aura carried endless sorrow and anger, as if an ancient existence that had been sleeping for ten thousand years had been awakened by the blood of its descendant.

Augustus's expression changed for the first time.

"This is... Dragon Tomb resonance?! You can actually awaken..."

The hundred-zhang holy spear was forcibly held in mid-air by that wild aura, the spear body emitting a groan of unbearable strain. The ten knights let out muffled groans simultaneously, and large sparks burst from the surface of their armor as they were actually repelled by the backlash force for dozens of zhang!

Lin Mo stood at the center of the clash between the dragon aura and the sacred light, bleeding from his seven orifices, yet he laughed wildly and arrogantly.

He pointed at Augustus, then swept his gaze across the ten startled and uncertain Temple Knights, his voice hoarse yet clearly spreading throughout the battlefield.

"Augustus, come over and fight me!"

Under the rainy night, Lin Mo stood alone on the city wall, behind him the awakened aura of the Dragon Tomb, and before him the ten Temple Knights and the watching Augustus.

The great battle was on the verge of breaking out.