chsdbacks Page 9
Page 9
That afternoon, as you were meditating and practicing your spiritual disciplines with complete focus, you suddenly found the space around you enveloped in a layer of gray light. You peeked out of the carriage and saw Miss Mitu confronting a group of people wearing black top hats.
"Black Hat Warlocks, you've crossed the line," Miss Mitu said coldly.
However, the group known as the Black Hat Sorcerers remained unmoved. They opened their books, and magical effects began to flash before their eyes.
"Enhanced - Group Teleportation!" With a shout from Miss Mitu, a magnificent city gate suddenly appeared before you, and the apprentices, caught off guard by the sudden change, began to scatter and shout in disarray.
You narrowed your eyes, thinking that those black-hatted sorcerers must be extremely dangerous, otherwise Miss Mitu wouldn't have teleported you directly outside the city.
A holy knight in full armor brought the situation under control and, after assessing the situation, immediately dispatched reinforcements.
However, just when you thought everything was over, the Holy Knight suddenly put shackles on you.
"I am a sorcerer..." "What sorcerer? Bearing the mark of blasphemy deserves imprisonment. If you are truly innocent, Priest Mitu will release you when he returns."
[You waited helplessly in your cell for half a day, only to receive devastating news: Priestess Mitu is dead!]
"What bad luck!" you exclaimed, then decisively activated Earthquake Spell, taking advantage of the guards' confusion to tear open the directional teleportation scroll.
A chaotic scene flashed before your eyes. You felt your body being torn apart by violent spatial tremors. You struggled to activate the effects of the Torture King title, and then your consciousness plunged into darkness...
In a hazy state, you feel a giant tongue licking your face. Instinctively, you punch the unknown creature. The tongue pauses for a few seconds, then presses down on your face.
"Where did this dog come from? I'm suffocating..." You struggle to wake up and suddenly realize that the person lying in front of you is none other than Mrs. Red Dragon.
You chuckled awkwardly, about to explain your predicament, when you noticed that Mrs. Red Dragon was covered in a layer of light. She then began to shrink rapidly, transforming into a red-haired, mature woman dressed in feathered robes.
Mrs. Red Dragon gave a rather dim-witted smile, then exclaimed in a boisterous manner, "Young man! Let's have a baby!"
"I'm in!" Latis stared at the simulator's text in disbelief once again, jumping up from the ground in shock. "I'm in!"
Chapter 15 True Name
[At night, you stand before Mrs. Red Dragon's lair, lingering for a long time, the moonlight shining on your lonely body; this expresses the author's homesickness.]
[Of course, your hesitation isn't about whether or not to have a child with Mrs. Red Dragon, but rather because the legendary bald mage wants you to come to his room before your dragon knight training session, just before dinner.]
[You recalled the legendary mage's striking resemblance to Brother Jie, and your heart pounded with reluctance. Gritting your teeth, you ran straight out of the valley.]
However, just then, the bald-headed monk returned from outside the valley. Seeing you stumbling towards him, he couldn't help but smile warmly, telling you not to rush, to take a bath first, and that he would be right there.
"Take a bath?" You were pale and dazed as you soaked in the hot spring in the valley for the first time in a long while. Not long after, the bald sorcerer, carrying his weathered staff, also entered the hot spring.
You were trembling and almost ran away, but the bald-headed mage didn't do anything rash. His face showed signs of age, and he said to you, "Young man, our meeting is fate. I'd like to give you a gift; I wonder if you'd like it?"
The bald-headed monk is waiting for your response. What do you choose?
[A. Shout "Brother Jie, no!" and then refuse; B. Use the Magic Network Key to find out his online name and then reveal it to surprise him; C. Tell him affectionately, "You are my best gift"; D. Ask him what the gift is and what benefits he received.]
"Huh? What a sudden choice."
Latis paused for a moment, hesitated for a moment while looking at the four options, and then chose the most normal one.
"What kind of gift is it?" you asked, but the bald-headed monk didn't explain in detail. He reached behind him and pulled out a contract, asking you to sign your name on it.
[Unfortunately, you can't understand the contract written in dragon language. You recall that when you signed the contract with the bone spirit girl, you were also completely illiterate, and you deeply feel the urgent need for compulsory education in this other world.]
Fortunately, it was just a simulation, so you weren't afraid at all. You readily signed the contract, and then were surprised to see the bald man grab his staff and roar loudly. A few seconds later, with a ripple in the hot spring water, the bald man's aura instantly weakened.
You stared, bewildered, as a line of small, golden characters emerged from the bald man's staff and entered your body.
"Congratulations, you've avoided thirty years of detours!" The bald man laughed three times, then leaped naked from the hot spring and began running wildly through the canyon, a sight too beautiful to behold.
[After a few minutes, the bald man finally remembered your existence and explained that that thing was your true name, both the sharpest blade and your most vulnerable weakness.]
[It turns out that the True Name is a mysterious resonant power found in the starry sky or demiplane after all professions reach the Legendary level. It grants the holder a power that is almost essential, and even the weakest Legendary can instantly turn their fortunes around through the True Name.]
However, their true names are also a kind of shackle, the deepest secret of the legends. If someone discovers their true name, not only will they share their power and location with that person, but they will also be controlled by that person and will never be able to harm the person who knows their true name again.
"So this is his real name. It sounds a bit like a curse..." Latis felt a slight, phantom throbbing in his head, and silently vowed, "If I ever have a real name, I'll never give it to anyone! It's terrifying..."
"So why did you give me your real name?" you asked, puzzled. After all, in your perception, that name, pronounced "Cheniti," carried immense power. You didn't even dare to explore its specific effects, and could only tremble in fear under its oppressive influence.
"It's rare for Serfal to encounter a human she feels close to. To dragons, humans are an inferior race, utterly devoid of any human morality," the bald mage replied with a wicked smile, avoiding the real issue.
"The red dragon's real name is 'Smit.' Although your level is still low and knowing its true name won't pose a threat, it at least ensures you won't die an unexpected death. May you live a long life, young man."
Then, he took a deep breath, gathered powerful magic, and cast a solidification spell on you.
[Solidation Spell - Dragon Knight's Heart: Suppresses the magic power surging into the body, converting it into life force and physique until the Legendary rank is unlocked. Note from Lekmor: Communication with higher beings can accelerate the acquisition of magic power. Good luck!]
"Try to live a few more days, lest the red dragon come after me again!" The words had barely left his lips when he shot straight into the sky with a bang. You were soaked to the bone by the hot spring water, and could only faintly hear the bald-headed sorcerer's voice drifting down from the horizon.
"I—Lekmore—am no longer—Starfury! I—have returned!"
[However, no sooner had the words left his mouth than you heard an angry roar. The Red Dragon Lady soared into the air, her crimson dragon magic obscuring the sky. But the next second, the bald mage let out a loud laugh, a laugh that even you found utterly despicable.]
"The art of making people think too much!"
[The name Lakemore finally came to mind, and your pupils dilated instantly! Oh, it's because the red dragon crashed down from ten thousand meters in the sky right in front of you; the shockwave swept through your fragile body, and you instantly lost consciousness.]
When you wake up again, you find that the grinning red dragon Serfal has taken you for a horse. She's cursing Lekmor with a silly expression while constantly poking at your true name in your consciousness. Every time that name vibrates, your drum-like body resonates wildly, as if it's been set on fire.
[The red dragon's massive magical power surged into your body, nearly bursting you. At this critical moment, the Dragon Knight's Heart spell, solidified within you by Lekmor, began to take effect. The surging magical power was suppressed, with only a few fragments flowing into your level, raising you to the peak of the Apprentice realm. The remaining magical power transformed into energy to strengthen your body, and you can feel your life force rapidly transforming!]
[Level 1, Level 2, Level 3... You instantly broke through the limits of a beginner warrior and became a glorious intermediate warrior!]
The leap in level fills you with immense joy, but the heightened sensitivity of your now-stronger body leaves you feeling both ecstatic and tormented. Your expression is resolute, and your thirty years of single life in your previous existence make you shout it out with unwavering conviction.
"Don't underestimate me, Kora! I can last at least two timeouts!"
"Aaaaaah!" Latis frantically piled straw on his face. "This isn't me! This isn't me! Simulator, I'm a real person!"
Two minutes later, soaking in the hot spring, you begin to reflect: "I must have been unprepared. Things happened too suddenly, and with my physical level suddenly enhanced, I wasn't used to it and couldn't control myself."
"Is it ready?" Serfar sniffed the sulfurous smell in the air, crouching on the bank of the hot spring like a puppy, showing no trace of the majesty befitting a dragon.
"What's done?" you asked in alarm. "Didn't I say we'd fight again tomorrow?"
"That's right!" Serfal said matter-of-factly, pulling you out of the hot spring. "A day has already passed in Atlantis; time just moves slower in the Dragon Realm."
"Help! Someone help me!" you screamed, your face deathly pale.
"You can scream your lungs out, but no one will come to save you!" Serfar chuckled as he dragged you back to his lair.
Chapter 16 The 21-Year-Old Programmer
A year later, a hero from another dimension, accompanied by her party, passed through the Dragon Dimension and was surprised to see you, now with white hair, soaking in a hot spring and lost in thought.
"His hair turned completely white in an instant!" Latis exclaimed in shock. "Are women poison?!"
"Old man, is this the former residence of Demon King Lekmor? The mage in our party wants to search his belongings in order to divine his location."
"Old man? Who? What did you say? Magic?" A hint of youthful light flickered in your eyes, then dimmed again. Because of the Dragon Knight's Heart within you, even though your acquired magic power far exceeds the legendary level, you are still at the beginner level, though your physical strength is already comparable to a high-level monster.
The initial infusion of magic power during your union with the dragon was indeed enormous; however, subsequent infusions have become increasingly scarce. With your true name now known, you are unable to escape Serfal to seek out other higher life forms, thus your cultivation has stagnated.
[You did try to resist, but the sixth-circle spell of the Eye of Herod was like a tickle to a legendary dragon. You also tried to exchange for so-called special attack buffs from the magic network, only to find that the magic network, like cruel reality, indicated that your magic network asset balance was zero, meaning you couldn't exchange a single point. So, over time, you gave up resisting and slowly learned to enjoy it.]
[With enough effort, even an iron rod can be ground into a needle. You've learned many methods for maintaining needles and thread; in your past life, you could easily be considered a sewing master.]
[“I heard that the Elven Mother Goddess recently guided Queen Herod back to the World Tree Plane. How about our next destination is the World Tree Plane? I heard that the elves open the Fountain of Life every time they guide their people back…”]
[Herold? The familiar name evokes a mix of emotions, and you can't help but wonder what has become of the hooded man from back then. You look at the young and handsome hero, thinking that you shouldn't let your life pass by like this.]
"Please take me away, Miss Hero!" you said to the hero. They were all taken aback, hesitated for a long time, but still took you away from the Dragon Plane.
That night, you and the hero team were warming yourself by the campfire when you suddenly felt your true name being touched, and your body began to tremble.
"Baka, don't underestimate me!" You flashed a strong, masculine smile, enduring Serfal's control over your true name. However, perhaps because she couldn't find you, the control intensified. Finally, you couldn't hold on any longer, suddenly jumping up and shouting, "I'm so awesome!..."
"Oh my god!..." Latis covered her eyes in despair, "Help me..."
After a long while, you weakly opened your eyes, only to be met with the horrified gazes of the hero's party.
"Uh, I can explain..." Before you could finish speaking, you saw the heroine jump up, blushing, draw her longsword, and stammer, "How dare you!"
[You're dead. The hero is indeed a hero. Although you're shameless, her sword was just too fast! You feel very sorry for not being able to satisfy the heroine...]
[This simulation has ended. Proceeding to the settlement screen...]
[Comment: Just like sunbathing is actually being sunbathed, a dragon knight is actually being ridden by a dragon. Although you've been away for half your life and returned still a novice, it doesn't stop you from learning a lot of advanced knowledge! You are highly favored by the dragon race; perhaps you could consider becoming a bloodline warrior in the future?]
You have obtained 340 drops of Goddess's Water, current balance: 340
You can redeem your currency from the following options:
1. Items obtained by myself in this simulation (none at the moment).
2. Skills learned in this simulation (Value: 300).
3. All memories from this simulation (Value: 40).
"Pat your head and forget all the abstract things!" Latis rubbed his head blankly, as if he had been under a spell to make people stupid, trying to calm his chaotic mind.
"Simulator, exchange for skills! As for memories... maybe I should just forget about them and save some points for dimensional travel."
[You have obtained the Heart of the Dragon Knight! You have learned the true names "Cheniti" and "Smit"!]
[Solidation Spell - Dragon Knight's Heart: Suppresses the magic power surging into the body, converting it into life force and physique until the Legendary rank is unlocked. Hidden effect: Engaging in life communication with high-level creatures will significantly increase magic power infusion.]
[True Name - Cherniti: One of the true names of the legendary mage Lekmoru, containing the ultimate secret of the unity of magic, soul power, and physical strength. However, Lekmoru spent his entire life trying to fully understand it, so for now it only has the effect of doubling the physical strength effect.]
[True Name - Smit: One of the true names of the legendary red dragon Serfal, representing desire, oppression, and enslavement. Serfal has honed this true name to perfection, making its use exceptionally effective.]
[When facing someone whose real name you know, touching upon their real name in your mind will have a powerful influence on them.]
Latis looked at the simulator's text with a subtle gaze, and couldn't help but murmur:
"I feel like I've narrowed down my path..."
"How did things get so crooked? Am I not a righteous person?" Latis scratched his head, puzzled, sighed, and opened the simulation panel to check his situation.
[Name: Latis]
[Occupations: Magic Apprentice 18%, Prospective Warrior 98%]
[Equipment: Magic Key (already synchronized), Eye of Herod]
[Skills: Solidification Spells - Dragon Knight's Heart, Torment King's Cellar]
[Title: King of Torture (Weared), The Soul's Abode]
[Known real names: Chernictie, Smit]