Chapter 111: The Serpent of the Night

In the frigid forest, the sinister-looking Cold Forest Serpent Dragon finally became hesitant, and as it pondered, Garon watched it intently.

At this moment, Garon was also on guard, slightly opening his mouth, ready to unleash the breath of time.

Should the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon despair and choose to kill itself in a fit of rage, casting a death curse in the process, that would not be an outcome Garon wished to see.

Seconds later, after brief contemplation, the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon exhaled heavily through its nostrils, gave Garon a hard look, and then turned tail and fled without looking back.

It had calmed down somewhat now and realized it had no means to challenge Garon, deciding instead to leave and seek revenge against the other two true dragons.

Garon watched the serpent dragon's body begin to move and shook his head slightly.

On the other side, just as the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon turned around, not even a few meters out, its expression numbed as it found itself back where it started, as if in an instant. Though it remained vigilant, it had no chance to resist each time.

If other creatures were observing, they would have seen an interesting scene.

As the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon moved, the surroundings fell into a frozen, time-stopped state.

Garon quickly ran over, put it back in place, then returned to his spot, maintaining a mysteriously unfazed demeanor as if nothing had moved, yet everything was under his control.

He had done this before.

A very simple time stop maneuver.

Unfortunately, while Garon now had access to various time abilities, he was still too young and his connection to the river of time was far from sufficient, limiting his flexible control over time.

"What do you want to do?"

"Either kill me or let me leave!"

"I won't bother with you. I'll seek revenge against the other two true dragons instead."

The Cold Forest Serpent Dragon realized it was being toyed with by Garon and involuntarily stepped back a few paces, then shouted angrily under his calm gaze.

Garon smiled slightly, sensing some fear of himself growing in the serpent dragon's heart.

He thought this creature hadn't expected him to be a time dragon, or perhaps the serpent dragon's lineage had no record of time dragons, which was vastly different from the heritage of true dragons.

"Third option, you remain trapped here forever."

"Alive, but unable to move a step."

After a pause, Garon added sternly, "Or, you can choose to swear allegiance to me and become my follower, my vassal."

Dragons don't become vassals to other dragons, but becoming guardians of dragon lairs, like the two white dragons, was not uncommon.

The Cold Forest Serpent Dragon hesitated for a moment, then bared its teeth in a fierce snarl, "Don't dream of it. I'd rather die than let you succeed."

"When I die, I assure you, you will taste the curse of death that my serpent dragon lineage holds!"

Garon's eyebrows furrowed, and his expression turned serious, "Are you sure?"

He wanted a rare serpent dragon as a subordinate, but if its attitude was unchangeable, then Garon would have no choice but to exile it from the river of time.

At his current age, he could make the target experience the passage of three years in an instant.

After three years, when the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon was recaptured by the flow of time, he could exile it for another six years, or until he found a way to counteract the death curse, and then release it and kill it outright.

The serpent dragon kind was too vindictive, and if it couldn't be subdued, Garon didn't want to keep it.

On the other side, under Garon's increasingly dangerous gaze, the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon grunted heavily, spat poisonous saliva onto the ground, and then raised its head, loudly saying, "I confirm."

Garon's dragon claw twitched, and the power of time silently extended.

However, before it could finish speaking, it seemed to suddenly remember something, paused for a moment, and then said in a muffled, thunderous voice, "I'm not so sure!"

Garon slightly raised an eyebrow and lowered his dragon claw again.

The Cold Forest Serpent Dragon turned its neck around, and in a coarse voice, asked, "If you can promise me one thing, I can become your follower."

The usually ferocious face even showed a hint of hope.

Garon reflected in his platinum dragon eyes the serpent dragon's expression, curious and puzzled, and said, "Let's hear it."

The serpent dragon swung its long tail, unintentionally wreaking havoc on the ground, and said anxiously, "I need to fulfill my duty to propagate my species, but I've spent a long time and still haven

't found another of my kind."

For serpent dragons, propagation is a once-in-a-lifetime duty that becomes urgent once their bodies are ready, a task ingrained in their bloodline instincts.

However, due to the dwindling numbers of serpent dragons, their propagation has become increasingly difficult, covering millions of miles without finding a mate.

"No, actually I did find one of my kind once, but it was the same sex as me. We fought, and then I never saw it again."

Its voice was harsh and raspy, like the clashing of metals and the wails of ghosts, very unpleasant.

This voice alone was enough to instill fear in many creatures.

But looking at the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon, Garon heard a hint of sadness in its voice.

Despite their ferocity, serpent dragons are intelligent beings, more aware and understanding of their species' plight than other creatures, but unless a majority of serpent dragons can overcome their nature, their extinction is only a matter of time, now already being many times rarer than true dragons.

"I think you are very powerful. If you can promise to help me find a mate, I will willingly follow you."

The Cold Forest Serpent Dragon looked at Garon.

Garon honestly wasn't sure he could find another female serpent dragon.

Unlike true dragons, serpent dragons don't use transfiguration in adulthood and lack the vision to see beauty, only seeking mates from among their own kind.

After pondering for a moment, under the serpent dragon's expectantly fierce gaze, Garon slowly said, "I can't guarantee success."

"But I promise you, if you become my vassal, my followers will search for traces of serpent dragons."

"My followers' footprints will cover every corner of the world. If there are still female serpent dragons on the continent of Noah, you will have a chance to find a mate and propagate."

The Cold Forest Serpent Dragon turned around in place, unusually contemplating for several seconds before stopping and bowing its fierce head to Garon.

"From now on, I, the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon Urbis, swear by the name of the Night Serpent, the Devourer of the Sun, the Nightmare Snake, the Cutter of the Night, revered by many realms as an ancient and wild god, to become your follower."

"I will tear apart all your enemies! Let them kneel in the rubble and ruins, wailing and screaming your name! Smear their blood and corpses into your image!"

Garon:

The last sentence is really unnecessary.

Listening to the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon's fierce words, he was momentarily unsure whether recruiting it as a vassal was a good idea.

Garon gathered the leaders of the different vassal clans in front of the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon and issued the command to find serpent dragons.

Garon's followers, even the most powerful Wolfheart clan, felt a chill in their hearts at the sight of the Cold Forest Serpent Dragon, and Garon's former top lieutenant, the Savage Frost Tiger, bristled all over, like a big cat whose tail had been stepped on.

The Cold Forest Serpent Dragon licked its lips, its forked bright red tongue flitting through the air, then asked Garon, "Can I eat them? These winter wolves and this savage tiger smell delicious."

The winter wolves of the Wolfheart clan did not understand dragon speech, but they saw full malice in the serpent dragon's eyes and growled lowly at it in unison.

Garon's expression turned serious, and he said earnestly, "No."

The Cold Forest Serpent Dragon's gaze reluctantly retreated.

After thinking for a moment, it asked Garon again, "Can I still seek revenge against those two true dragons?"

Garon's expression darkened, and he repeated sternly, "No!"