Reincarnated as a Dragon – The path of the Dragon God

Henry chased down the Green Dragon as it turned tail and ran. Henry would not have entertained his foe’s cowardice but since his foe held the key to their return, he couldn’t just let the Green Dragon be as much as he wanted to. He wasn’t looking forward to chasing the damn snake down but he had to if he wished to return home.

The Green Dragon might be inferior to Henry in combat but it was more knowledgeable about the area and the terrains. The Green Dragon made a sharp turn ahead and when Henry followed suit, he was surprised to find it gone from his sight. He looked around but found only thick vine bushes dangling on the sides of the floating isles. Small flying creatures roamed in the distance but no sign of a serpent in green.

Snarky bastard… but unfortunately, your opponent is me. You ain’t getting away that easy.

Henry used one of his recently acquired skills that he had dubbed, Bio Sonar. It pinpoints everything with a heartbeat in the vicinity. With that skill, he immediately found the Green Snake’s location.

To my right!?

Henry turned around just in time as the Green Dragon sprang from his hiding spot. It took Henry by surprise. He couldn’t smell it nor sense its presence. If it wasn’t for his Bio Sonar, he wouldn’t have known it was there. The Green Dragon lunged with its teeth bared but Henry uppercut it away. But before he could deal the finishing blow, the Green Dragon slithered away once more, blending into the environment. Henry tried to catch it but it was fast in its retreat.

Oh… this is going to be so tedious.

Henry used his Bio Sonar again but the Green Dragon had even blended in well with the heartbeats of other creatures in the vicinity. The closest heartbeat he could detect from a creature of the right size was on an isle nearby. The isle was covered in vines with the flowers in full bloom. Henry approached that isle carefully and peeked at the land while latching onto the edge.

In the centre of that isle was a next and within it was a lion with reptilian skin and a pair of leather wings. The strange creature was fast asleep and it didn’t seem to notice Henry’s presence.

Huh… a Ruguth-like creature… but it has wings. This is so surreal. Anyway, this ain’t it.

Henry then moved on to the next heartbeat. He flapped his wings as slowly and quietly as possible as he travelled to the next location. It was also an isle but this one resembled a tiny forest. There were a lot of small creatures living on this isle but there was a big one in the midst. Henry trod deeper into the forest, in hopes of finding the Green Dragon. To his disappointment, it was just a large hawk that didn’t seem capable of flight.

Wrong one again… Great, just where the hell did it go? How am I going to find it at this rate?

In his deep contemplation, he accidentally lightly bumped into a tree. The birds resting atop the branches took flight into the skies out of fright. Seeing the bird fluttering away, an idea struck Henry.

Yes… I can do that.

Henry brandished his wings in all of their glory and flew high up to the sky. He stared at the isles below him and drew in a deep breath. He didn’t know if this was a good idea but it was the only one he got. As he unleashed his breath, he also let out a loud roar. His voice reverberated across the lands and isles. He used his Bio Sonar to detect the heartbeats of all the creatures caught in his roar. All of the creatures’ heartbeats quickened, except for one which remained steady and calm.

Gotcha!

Henry dove towards that calm heartbeat. It came from an isle with a pond in the middle. As he flew closer, he realised the heartbeat had come from inside the pond. He summoned bolts of lightning and sent them to the pond. The moment the water lit up with the crackling of lightning, the Green Dragon burst out of the pond.

You can run but you can’t hide, bitch!

Henry unleashed his Fire Breath but the Green Dragon nimbly twisted its body to avoid the flames. Besides, the Green Dragon’s entire body was damp and there was a relatively large body of water just under it, so Henry’s Fire Breath wasn't as effective as always.

It’s all good. I have many tricks up my sleeves.

Henry snarled at the serpent in glee, knowing full well this was a checkmate for the Green Dragon. The body of water staved his flames off but fire was not his sole ally any longer. There was also lightning. Henry launched a few more bolts of lightning into the pond.

Just as the Green Dragon was about to fly away, Henry cast his Gravity Manipulation magic. In an instant, the Green Dragon plunged right back into the water while the lightning was still coursing through it. The Green Dragon could only screech and flail around in agony as the lightning roasted its skin black and its flesh charred.

Henry only dispelled his magic once the Green Dragon had stopped moving and ceased its writhing. The pond was still mildly affected by the lightning bolts but since Henry had some resistance against lightning, it didn’t harm him much. He only felt a tingle as he reached his limb into the water and pulled out the Green Dragon.

To make sure the Green Dragon was truly dead, Henry slit its throat with his claws and it gave one last jitter before it completely shuffled off its mortal coil. Henry then proceeded to cut open the Green Dragon’s body. After doing this for so many times, the sight of the innards and blood hardly any longer fazed him. Ironically, his lack of reaction towards something gruesome was the one unnerving him. He didn’t know if it was good to be absolutely indifferent to violence. He was afraid this would affect how he would be treating Yula in the future.

No, don’t think about that, Henry. This is this and that is that. It’s two different ballparks. I shouldn't be too bothered by this. After all, this is for my survival. Yes, that’s it.

After his grim thoughts waned, he resumed his dissection, though it was more of a butchering than a dissection. He found the Green Dragon’s Murux Heart where he expected he would. He tossed the clump of crystal into his mouth and resumed digging through the serpent’s insides. It wasn’t long before he pulled out fragments of what seemed to be a stone slate out of the Green Dragon’s guts.

“Splendid! You found the Consecrated Pieces, Henry!” Nadea’s cheer resounded in Henry’s head.

“And what did I find exactly?” Henry asked as he brought the slate fragments closer to his eyes. “It’s a slate?”

“Yes, it’s a slate. Well, it was a slate.”

“Hmm… I can’t read the writing on these fragments. What’s written?”

“It’s basically something like a commandment but the Divine himself wrote these commandments.”

“Alright, what do I do with these?”

“Hold on to them for now. Next, you’ll need to find the spot where the fabric of reality is the weakest. There are multiple spots where reality’s fabric is weak. Fortunately, there’s one not far from here.”

“I’m sensing a but.”

“But it won't be easy.”

Henry sighed. “Of course. May I know why it won’t be easy?”

“There’s a Titan from Ulrum there.”

“A Titan? Why would there be a Titan there?”

“Same as why would you be here. It was inadvertently dragged into this world by the rift.”

“Hmm… Say, what happens after we return? Wouldn’t something like this just happen again?”

“It won’t. The Divines have come to a concession. They would make sure the reality’s fabric of this unclaimed world be fixed before they start arguing about who gets to lay claim to this world.”

“That’s good… I think. So, where is this… spot we will be going to?”

“It’s a floating isle but this one is high above the clouds. I’ll send you the information straight to your brain.”

“And a Titan is on this isle? What kind of Titan?”

“It’s a Sand Drake, a very large one, but it will not be much of a problem to you. However, you do need to take care of it before you can commence the ritual.”

“The ritual?”

“The one you need to perform in order to open up a rift. Well, I call it a ritual for the lack of a better word. You better hurry. The Lavan are in a state of unrest over the sudden loss of their priestess. The humans are trying to take advantage of it. We’ll speak again once you reach that frail spot.”

And Nadea was gone from his head.

“Those sons of bitches…” Henry grumbled.

Just then, Vishara arrived on the isle with Iluna in her arms. The priestess hopped off from Vishara’s arms and rushed over to Henry.

“Are you alright, Henry?”

Seeing her worry for him, Henry could only smile warmly at her. “Of course, Iluna.” He decided not to tell her about the Lavans as she already had enough on her mind. He didn’t wish to pour oil into the chaotic fire that was her inner turmoil.

“Please tell me, we can return now,” Vishara said, walking slowly up to him.

Henry showed the two slate fragments. “We have the means to return now but not here. We need to find a place where the fabric of reality is weak. These fragments contain divinity and we can use the divinity from these fragments to open up a portal that allows us to return to Ulrum.”

Vishara refrained from sighing. “And where can we find such a place?” she asked in an exasperated tone.

Henry pointed in the direction where the sun was setting. “It’s on a floating isle but a huge creature will be waiting for us there. A Titan.”

“A Titan?” Iluna blurted out. “Like a Titan or—”

“Exactly a Titan from Ulrum. Like us, it was also caught up in the rift’s expansion.”

“How do you know all of these things?” Vishara questioned with a dubious gaze.

“Iluna has her God and I have mine, the Dragon God.”

“Unbelievable,” Vishara scoffed. “Didn’t take you for a godly beast. Even a monster can have faith. Times truly are strange nowadays.”

“It’s only strange if the path of your knowledge is narrow.”

“And you certainly don’t talk like how I expect a beast would. You’re not single-minded like animals tend to be. They follow their instincts faithfully but you… you have a moral compass. Can you even be called a beast at all?”

“I am a beast by flesh and blood. As for my mind… well, that’s still up for debate.”

“You show more rationality than most humans I know. Could you have been a human in your past life?”

Henry shrugged. “Who knows?”

“Um… shouldn’t we be hurrying?” Iluna asked.

“No,” Henry said. “We rest for now. As I have said, the place we will be going to is beset by a treacherous enemy or enemies. Haste would only make waste if it’s not properly paced.”

“But the later I return, the higher the chance my people… they need—”

“They need to be independent, Iluna. You are not their mother. Your absence does not spell the end of the world and they have to realise that.”

“I know but… you can’t expect them to adapt so quickly to my abrupt disappearance.”

“They will have to, Iluna. For their sake and yours.”

“But—”

“Henry’s right, Priestess. I can’t believe I’m saying this… but he’s correct. We can’t be hasty or careless now, not when we’re so close. We are exhausted, not just physically but mentally. We will make our final push tomorrow.”

Iluna stared at Vishara with her eyes widened in stupefaction. “Henry… You just said his name… for the first time.”

“Huh… I suppose I did…” Vishara looked at Henry. “Great… you’re starting to get into my head. I can’t say it’s very pleasant.”

“That makes two of us,” Henry retorted with a huff. “Anyway, we will camp here for the night and depart at the first light.”