Chapter 576 - 456: The Persuader

At this moment, Tilian was doing the same thing as Long Yi, he was creating a stronger army for the Black Dragon Empire.

The previous battle proved one thing - Dragon Knights, might not be omnipotent. A properly configured army might be able to exert more strength than an individual Dragon Knight. Thus, Tilian began to focus his efforts on improving the Crystal Beasts.

The Crystal Beasts, formed by combining a Crystal Core with a wild beast and then supplemented with Dragon Power, allows the beast to unleash power close to that of the Dragon Clan, and that is the main purpose of this project. The power of the Crystal Core was immense, proven when the various countries purged the magical creatures. During the purging of the magical creatures, there were Dragon Knights who lost their lives. This alone proved the strength of the beasts, and the Crystal Cores were the source of their power. Theoretically, Crystal Beasts manufactured using Crystal Cores could reach this level of strength.

In the last war, the hastily deployed Crystal Wolves were nothing more than unfinished prototypes. However, that experiment provided Tilian with more data.

At this time, Emperor Yake, who always liked to stay in the laboratory, was not here.

Since the end of the last war, Emperor Yake had become much more silent. Ruosha’s shocking attack told Yake and Tilian one thing, Long Yi, that bastard, had many inexplicable hidden cards. If they couldn’t accurately guess Long Yi’s hidden cards, they would likely suffer greatly once war began.

As for this, Tilian didn’t care, because the power of this world was limited after all. If he could transform his entire army into an ultimate force, then no matter how many hidden cards the opponent had, what could they do?

However, Yake neither disagreed nor agreed with this. He had locked himself in his study for many days. Aside from Tilian replacing his potions, they hardly saw each other at all. Even the affairs of the nation had been handed over to Tilian. Using his exceptional talent, Tilian had managed the entire nation impeccably.

However, he was not the emperor after all. The privileges he initially held in his hands had already sparked great dissatisfaction among the royalty and nobility. Now, he was practically exercising the power of an emperor, which was a trigger to balloon this dissatisfaction to its peak.

Tilian decided to talk to Yake.

However, upon pushing open the door of the study, Tilian didn’t find Yake.

The emperor was gone! The guards at the door of the study room were also clueless, they had not seen anyone entering or leaving at all.

Well, wherever he went, with his strength he would definitely be able to take care of himself.

However, how could Yake, such a conspicuous figure, simply vanish?

At this time, Yake no longer had the appearance of a monster, but had transformed into a thin young man.

Returning to human form was a technique Yake had mastered long ago. Although he couldn’t maintain it for a long time, it was no problem to maintain it for a few days. Maybe due to the power of Hell, or for some other reason, Yake now looked entirely different from the ambitious crown prince, to the point where nobody could recognize him.

He walked on the street, his mind was a whirl of anger and fear, driving him almost insane.

At this time, an old man with a staff went by him, brushing him lightly. Startled, he found that his rage was gradually fading away.

He stood dazed in the middle of the road, not knowing what to do.

Then, he saw a small tavern nearby, so he went in. He ordered a large cup of the most expensive liquor in the place, and kept pouring the drink into his stomach.

Affected by the counterfeit coin incident, the liquor in the tavern was outrageously expensive, but Yake didn’t care. If he ran out of gold coins, he could always mint new ones. The resources of the whole empire belonged to him, so money was not an issue.

Since the end of the war, Yake hadn’t had a day off. The image of Ruosha’s terrifying attack was always in his mind. At that time, if one solely considered defences, the Hell Dragon Warrior was not much inferior to Yake. Yet, Ruosha’s attack obliterated the Hell Dragon Warrior! Didn’t that imply that he wouldn’t be able to withstand that attack either?

This Long Yi, where on earth did he come from? How could he have so many powerful allies that came out of nowhere!

Whenever the Black Dragon Empire gained some new military power, the White Dragon Empire would soon display a corresponding force. Long Yi was like a nemesis, opposing him at every turn.

Yake felt as if he were playing chess with an invisible hand and was about to be checkmated!

Yake felt very depressed, he wanted to vent, but at this moment, he didn’t want to do anything at all. He just wanted to sit quietly here. Alcohol had no effect on him, yet he still felt dizzy.

Long Yi!

It all came down to that Long Yi!

If it hadn’t been for Long Yi, the Black Dragon Empire would have unified the whole continent long ago!

In this quiet anger, Yake didn’t do anything else. He just picked up his cup again and drank the most expensive liquor here.

At this moment, an old man slowly walked into the tavern. The old man was hunchbacked, his face covered in wrinkles and his white beard hovered over the grey robe on his chest. He held a crude staff which looked like a randomly picked tree branch. He first looked around the room, and when he saw Yake, he smiled faintly and then walked over.

"May I sit here, young man?" The old man asked shakily.

Yake was too lazy to look up or speak, he didn’t care who this person was.

Seeing that Yake remained silent, the old man took a seat directly across from him and ordered a large pint of rye beer.

Yake remained silent with his head lowered, his long hair masking his face. The old man didn’t speak either. He placed his walking stick aside, picked up his beer, and gently took a sip.

"This taste, really good." The old man remarked with a sigh of contentment.

The old man then said nothing else, simply sitting there quietly drinking his beer and watching the patrons around the tavern. After some time, the old man suddenly turned to look at Yake.

"Young man, you look so youthful. Why are you moping about here instead of working?" The old man asked.

Yake heard the old man’s words but did not raise his head. What could this old man, who was on the verge of death, possibly help him with?

"I can see that you’ve been having a tough time lately. Would you like to talk about it? Perhaps some of my old experiences may be able to help you."

The old man spoke again.

Yake began to feel annoyed. He was the emperor of the most powerful empire on land. The resentment and anger towards Long Yi were unbearable, but had he really reached a point where he needed advice from a mysterious old man?

Yake lifted his head to cast a glance at the old man, intending to dismiss him. But the glance he made him unable to look away. The old man’s eyes were as profound and tranquil as a starry sky, looking as if they carried the wisdom of the ages!

As if compelled by a supernatural force, Yake did not dismiss the old man but instead found himself uttering subconsciously: "I... am very angry."

Even he was taken aback by his admission. But he felt no resistance, because that was exactly what he wanted to say.

"I don’t sense your anger, child. Instead, I sense your desolation, and a touch of fear." The old man said.

"I..." Yake instinctively wanted to deny it, but the words wouldn’t come out. In the end, he could only helplessly nod his head and admit, "Yes, you’re right."

"Tell me about it, child." The old man prodded.

Looking at the old man in front of him, Yake inexplicably felt a sense of closeness and warmth, an instinctive desire to lean on him. This was a feeling he had never received from his father Kaniel, who had never given him any paternal affection - they were more like master and slave.

But this old man was different; he was gentle and kind, unknowingly drawing the trust of others.

"I am powerful," Yake began, "No, I should say, I am the most powerful. My enemies are strong too, but far weaker in comparison. Yet no matter what, I can’t seem to overcome him. As for the people around me, they fear my power but do not respect me. I have no choice but to feel angry."

The old man just listened, nodding slowly. So Yake continued.

"My enemy and I have crossed paths many times. I lost to him the first time around, possibly due to my complacency. Although I have been trying to dominate our confrontations since then, I have never managed to truly win against him. Every time we meet on the battlefield, he’s able to instill even greater fear in me... Yes, fear... I’m afraid of him. My anger, coupled with this fear, leaves me in despair, despair..."

Yake’s voice was faint, almost like a murmur in his sleep. If anybody could see his eyes at the moment, they would find them utterly black, twinkling with little stars!

The old man smiled and asked, "Then why must you insist on confronting him? Can’t you just avoid him?"

"No, we... we are at war. I must win. I must reign over this world." Yake murmured.

"Isn’t ending this war and bringing everlasting peace to the world a better option? Then you wouldn’t have to face the one who instills fear in you anymore." The old man’s eyes sparkled as he spoke, and as if echoing his words, Yake’s eyes also sparkled.

"End... the war?" Yake was bewildered.

"Yes, end the war. Stop trying to wage war against your enemy. If you’re already the most powerful being, then perhaps your enemy might be extinct in a hundred years. Why confront this fear directly?" The old man reasoned.

"Because... because... because..." Yake’s reply got stuck in his throat. And the light in the old man’s eyes burned even brighter.

Suddenly, a strong aura of death sprung from Yake’s eyes, darting straight into the old man’s eyes! Along with it came a roar straight from the depths of Hell!

"Because they need war!"

The moment the aura of death touched the old man, he disappeared into thin air. And the once drowsy Yake abruptly returned to his monstrous form! A massive wave of energy exploded from him and blasted everything around!

But where was the tavern? He was clearly at the top of the clock tower in the Imperial Palace!

"How did I end up here?" Yake was puzzled. He was sure he was in a study, pondering ways to defeat Long Yi, so how had he suddenly ended up here?

He checked his body and found nothing out of the ordinary. If it was an assassination attempt, it was certainly a failed one. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support means the world to me. If you’re reading from your phone, please switch to m.qidian.com.)