Chapter Forty-One: The World, a Prison
On the 66th floor of the Dragon Head International Integrated Office Tower in Azure Head District, Liu Zhongwu slammed his palms on the table and roared at the assembled crowd.
"All personnel, Level One combat readiness! Confirm all intelligence on the dragon phenomenon!"
The conference room’s giant screen displayed the true face of this dragon calamity: the body of the Glass Dragon.
“Intelligence comparison complete. The destructive manifestation in reality matches the source of disaster previously observed in the Kingdom. Initial assessment: this is the recurrence of Supibia Dragon Disaster No. 2. Body similarity rate at 58%. Suspected interference during manifestation by unknown factors!”
The analyst’s report came from the corner of the room, as he switched the screen to a model of the dragon constructed from eyewitness accounts.
A creature stripped of its dazzling brilliance, left strange and pitiful. It possessed three necks, yet only the central one bore a head; the other two were half the length, as if the heads had been forcibly severed. Of its eight claws, three had shriveled completely. Of its ten wings, half were shattered, leaving only skeletal remains. Most terrifying of all were the wounds—on each side of its body, a massive cross-shaped gash, old injuries that had robbed it of nearly half its flesh. Golden blood streamed from them; just seeing this was enough for witnesses to feel its agony.
Director Liu stared at the dragon’s form. “No abnormalities during manifestation. These are the wounds Supibia left it. No further confirmation needed—this is the Glass Disaster. Report on current destruction…”
Onowel, beside him, pressed urgently, “Destruction rate and rate of encroachment!”
“The rate of encroachment exploded at manifestation, then slowed, but remains extremely rapid—precise numbers yet unpredictable! Giant dragon phenomenon observed 1 minute and 40 seconds ago. Spines District destruction area at approximately 34%; Central District at 23%. According to Protocol 02 calculations factoring in conventional resistance, full destruction of Azure City predicted within thirty minutes at latest! Destruction manifests as glassy crystal structures, which absorb organic life and merge, reconstruct, and destroy inorganic material—identical to Supibia observation data!”
The screen shifted to aerial footage of Azure City. Seeing the scene, everyone’s actions paused involuntarily.
Displayed on the screen was a crystalline sea blooming like a flower.
Centered on the dragon’s body, glass-like crystals radiated outward, spreading visibly fast over every inch of Azure City. The dragon’s power swept over houses and skyscrapers, residential areas and academies; building height made no difference to the encroachment. Everything the light touched was wrapped in a crystalline shell, turning houses into blocks of ore, towers into peaks of crystal.
Humans, in the face of this power, were utterly powerless. Most residents couldn't even resist, turning into semi-transparent statues as they fled. A few superhumans temporarily held back the crystals with their powers, but before they could catch their breath, another beam transformed them as well.
Through the crystal surfaces, the expressions on the crystallized faces could be discerned: panic, despair, and a strange happiness that seemed almost wish fulfilled.
“Ugh…!”
The sound of retching echoed in the conference room—someone had vomited at the sight.
Onowel’s stomach churned as well; clutching the table, he groaned in agony, “Too fast… thirty minutes!”
“Too slow.”
But what awaited him was the cold reply of a friend. He looked up in disbelief to see Liu Zhongwu pacing with hands behind his back, muttering, “Supibia never had this much time… not like the Sky Dragon, which is a two-thousand-year rarity… Even severely wounded, it shouldn’t be…”
Liu Zhongwu slammed the table and shouted, “Look beneath the city!”
Azure City floated above the border between the Empire and the United States. Below lay the Ebinus Mountains, a natural border zone, vast and majestic, spanning about 670,000 square kilometers—an awe-inspiring wilderness.
The analyst, initially confused, finally understood his superior’s intent. Nervously, he adjusted the monitors, and upon seeing the new scene, stammered, “Ebinus Mountains… destruction area approximately 58%… main peak completely destroyed!”
Everyone in the conference room saw the terrifying scene.
Glass-colored crystals tumbled down from the mountain peaks, reshaping the landscape faster than any avalanche, creating crystalline summits. Even without experts, it was clear: in less than ten minutes, the border mountains between the two nations would be transformed into the world’s largest crystal mine.
Once the Ebinus Mountains fell, the Glass Disaster would rush toward the neighboring countries.
Everything would be consumed.
“Were the residents of the mountain region evacuated beforehand?!”
“Checking… All recorded residents were evacuated as of 8:27 p.m. tonight.”
“Good… good…” Director Liu wiped his brow in relief, turning to ask, “What about the academy?”
The principal’s face was ashen. “Emergency evacuation complete, but the automatic defense system was triggered by mistake—a batch of uncontrollable missiles are about to launch.”
Director Liu waved his hand with a sigh.
“It’ll make no difference. Leave it be.”
Ten seconds later, dozens—hundreds—of fiery trails soared toward the dragon in the sky, each one bearing a “conventional” missile developed by the Central United University. What level were these “conventional” weapons compared to the outside world? Onowel could probably provide an accurate measure, but numbers and destructive power were meaningless before the dragon.
They watched as the missiles collided with the dragon’s body, only to shatter like eggs thrown against stone, dissolving into crystalline dust that drifted away, without so much as a spark of explosion.
The conference room fell utterly silent. Modern humanity had never so plainly experienced its own impotence.
A bald man quietly picked up the phone. “Emergency contact…”
His words were interrupted.
A muffled voice, as if speaking through something, resounded.
“Just as I said before.”
That voice, clear and unimpeded by any noise, entered everyone’s ears.
“Sit tight. Don’t do anything. Don’t try to be clever and cause trouble!”
·
The air was fresh.
The view was boundless.
Everything could be felt.
The surge of power, the crystallization of wishes, the manifestation of desires, the lingering regrets within this body, the grand ambition that once drove it…
These were all unnecessary clutter now.
And so Shiyu Zero willed away all redundant information, allowing herself to truly become the dragon’s heart.
Controlling the vast body was harder than she had imagined; only after considerable effort did she learn how to “fly.”
Unprecedented joy echoed in her heart.
She possessed the power of calamity, an eternal body—she could do anything, go anywhere. She finally held authority matching herself, found peace within—true freedom, unbound by anything.
She almost wanted to burst into song, though the dragon’s body was ill-suited for such things. Ah, this body, though immense, was far too ugly.
Now was the time to leave this city. She would reshape this body to truly fit her, and then, like a god, enjoy absolute freedom—a life of everlasting happiness!
Yes, eternal happiness.
She—She deserved this, for she was a being above all vile scholars and inferior test subjects, like an orchid in shadow, like a pure narcissus. She—She was the one and only Shiyu Zero…
She was—She is perfect.
She is Shiyu Zero. Yes, of course, She is Shiyu Zero, She will surely fulfill Shiyu Zero’s wish.
For She is the Glass Dragon that created the Void World.
The Glass Dragon will fulfill the wishes of life.
Fulfill Shiyu Zero’s wish, fulfill Gong Sun Ce’s wish, fulfill the wishes of all humanity.
Let every living thing receive what they pray for—this is the Glass Dragon’s purpose.
This is Her Void Realm.
“See? Didn’t I say so?”
At that moment, the Glass Dragon heard a voice.
“Beautiful flowers never grow in shadows. You are ugly, filthy, just like the other Shiyus you disdain. No, you’re even more disgusting, self-important as you are.”
Words full of mockery, impossible to be drowned out.
“Truly a hyena gnawing on corpses. Having pillaged the dragon’s remains, you think you’ve become something!”
The Glass Dragon looked toward the source of the voice.
Atop what had once been a building, now the peak of a crystalline mountain, a human—face obscured—sat cross-legged, alone.
You have not entered the Void Realm.
What is it you desire?
“Ah… Ha! Laughable, truly laughable—so soon assimilated? Even I didn’t expect this twist, but it works just fine… Well, since you’ve become so stupid, I’ll use this chance to open your eyes.”
The man clutched his stomach and laughed.
“You ask what I want? Listen well, Glass Dragon—”
The masked man stood, snapped his fingers, pointing at the Glass Dragon’s head.
The dragon’s body was instantly stained pitch black.
The black came from within—the countless blades tearing flesh, piercing skin, shattering scales, emerging from the dragon’s belly—
Countless black swords, painted in ink.
Injected into its heart by a superhuman that very afternoon!
“I want your life.”
The ink swords tore open the dragon’s abdomen and back, countless wounds bloomed on its body. Golden dragon blood rained down on Azure City like a storm!
The master of the Void Realm was bewildered by agony, halted by grave injury, unable to comprehend what was happening.
And then,
It was not the Glass Dragon, not the unified god—
Shiyu Zero, sensing pain, let out a heart-rending scream.
“——AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!”
The previously seamless body rejected her control; Shiyu Zero’s consciousness instantly separated from the dragon. Atop the dragon’s head, a cluster of crystal formed, and from it emerged the body of a black-haired woman, furious and shocked, glaring at the distant rooftop, at the laughing masked man!
“What did you do?!”
The masked man held an inkless brush, its tip sweeping through the flying ink swords, transforming thousands of blades back into ink, returned to his brush.
With his free hand, he removed the mask, revealing the face he had hidden until now.
Almond eyes, high nose, handsome features—a scholar’s visage, but his expression was more that of a street ruffian.
“Phew! That thing was suffocating.”
He tossed the silver mask aside, exhaled comfortably, and grinned, “None of your damn business.”
Shiyu Zero said nothing.
She could not bother to respond to such venomous provocation; from the moment the mask came off, her mind blared with frantic alarms. This was the danger sense cultivated since childhood, the instinct that let her survive among test subjects, the vigilance of a spiritual mage—her intuition and experience both screamed: this is an enemy she cannot defeat, a foe Shiyu cannot overcome!
“Heh.”
But the black-haired woman smiled.
Shiyu Zero cannot win—so what?
She was no longer a test subject of the Shiyu Institute. She no longer needed to flee, no longer needed to live in terror. She possessed the dragon’s power, the highest calamity. Now—
She was almighty.
“You tampered with Gong Sun Ce’s heart without my noticing. A clever trick—whose impermanence magic, I wonder? But you are too arrogant. To appear so openly before me… What do you think you can do?”
She summoned the full power of the dragon disaster; the glass-colored sea surged toward the sky.
“Turn to crystal, arrogant one.”
The man raised his right foot and stamped the ground.
He sneered, “Stop.”
And the crystalline sea shattered.
Immediately after—
The calamity covering Azure City and the grand mountains vanished at once.
The glassy hues surrounding buildings receded, crystal clusters trapping humans dissolved into light, and those freed from disaster stared blankly at the sky, unsure what had happened.
They could only recognize the fact that they had survived.
Their expressions were dazed.
Just like Shiyu Zero’s now.
“Wh-what is this…?!”
The tall man touched his chin, speaking in a strange tone, “Glass Dragon—Void Realm, an interesting world! But lacking the essential core, even the best ideas turn to beautiful trash. The crystal world doesn’t suit our era, so I used my own world to cancel it out.”
He looked at the woman atop the dragon, “Why so surprised? Don’t you have any intuition as a mage of impermanence, little girl? Dragon-slaying, impermanence magic—boring, troublesome junk like this only shines at times like these.”
As if stating the obvious, the man spoke words that seemed from another world, utterly incomprehensible.
Using his own world to neutralize the dragon phenomenon?
Such a thing had never been heard of; pure nonsense. How could impermanence magic accomplish something so absurd?
The reality before her eyes clashed violently with the knowledge she had learned since childhood—Shiyu Zero was momentarily lost for words.
“Oh, right, I forgot. You’re from the Shiyu Institute—those morons didn’t teach you well! Not your fault, little girl—just bad luck of birth, ha ha ha!”
The man’s words snapped her back to reality.
Anger reignited, just as it had when they first met: every word struck at her most sensitive spot. That place she never wanted to recall, the origin she never wanted mentioned, the hell she swore to escape… For this, she sought power, for this, she pursued freedom, yet now—why, why…!
“Then I’ll use absolute power to make you leave.”
She made her decision.
What impermanence magic cannot accomplish, she will solve with the dragon’s power.
This is the truth engraved in every soul—humans, no matter what, cannot defeat dragons!
The mindless dragon gazed at this creature, insignificant as an ant, while the wind stirred the man’s coat.
“Feeling frustrated, little girl? A sudden hurdle ruins your plans. But this is no exception. Everyone faces limits from their own flaws, obstacles from external conditions—it’s an experience shared by all.”
He stroked his chin and smiled, “Ordinary people lack talent, the mediocre lack wisdom, scholars are hampered by greed, warriors fall to recklessness, geniuses are born poor, nobles have short lives. Of all the millions, who truly gets what they wish for? All are disappointed, all are unfree!”
He stared directly at the source of the glass calamity, at the single-headed, ten-winged dragon, his eyes fearless, brimming with confidence and ease.
The brush tip drew four strokes in the air, forming a square: “Ha! Fate binds us in cages, the vast world is but a prison! Learn a thousand arts, master ten thousand spells—still, freedom eludes us!”
The Glass Dragon opened its jaws, unleashing a scorching beam capable of annihilating all.
As if to embrace the endless sky, the man spread his arms.
“Brahma Form—Creation Realm—”
His voice drowned out the roar of the radiance, his power dimmed even the dragon’s glow.
“Fourfold Seal—Free Cage!”
In an instant, four ink-black barriers descended from the heavens. The dragon’s breath was blocked by the dark walls, its light vanished within the man’s drawn seal. Before it could comprehend, the Glass Dragon howled in pain—ten beams, like divine punishment, pierced its sides, and its own destructive power, amplified tenfold, was reflected back upon itself!
The effect seemed to encompass the entire dragon’s body—likely a counterattack mechanism, Shiyu Zero assessed. No matter; not an invincible ability. She would fly to the upper atmosphere, attack from where he could not interfere.
She whispered inwardly, Fly away, Glass Dragon.
The Glass Dragon remained motionless.
“?!”
She anxiously issued multiple commands, as if directing her own body—she found the dragon could attack, could roar, but its body could not move at all!
“How is this…?!”
Shiyu Zero finally felt fear.
In that moment, she truly realized—the situation was entirely out of her control.
“Do I have to explain what a cage is?” The man sneered, “Inside things can’t get out, outside things can get in. You have no freedom, idiot.”
The glass beneath him had already receded. The tall man sat cross-legged again, tossed the brush into his coat pocket, and hammered the rooftop with his fist, shouting, “Time to work, Gong Sun lad!”
·
Dragon Head International Integrated Office Tower, 66th floor.
The conference room was deathly silent.
The highest-ranking official slapped the table and shouted, “Activate the isolation dome! Open the mental protection barrier! All members of the ritual hall, mobilize! Contact personnel from the Republic and Kingdom—begin a joint city-wide dragon contamination sweep at once! Maximum inhibitor dosage permitted—ensure secondary dragon phenomena are prevented immediately! What are you waiting for? Get moving!!”
Only after these commands were issued did the room full of people snap out of their daze and resume work. It was hardly their fault—even though every one here was an impermanence mage, even though all were elite of the Empire, none could have imagined what they had just witnessed.
A trembling intelligence officer replied, “Director Liu, received intel: Mingke arrived in Dingyi District one minute ago…”
“Captain Li, take your best team and fight him—do not let him interfere with Lord Yan’s battle. Tell that madman, if he’s still dissatisfied with his foes, I’ll personally challenge him as a former Grand Minister!”
Director Liu rattled off a barrage of orders; the old principal heard none of it.
Onowel gaped at the tall man on the screen. “Who is he?”
His old friend dropped into a chair. “Oh my… That’s Lord Yan Qi, the Empire’s Celestial Summit.”
“Celestial Summit… the peak of heaven… he is…?!”
The imperial minister gulped two mouthfuls of hot tea, wiped his mouth, and finally recovered.
“Just as you thought—he’s the hero who defeated the Glass Disaster ten years ago.”
He gazed at the black-haired man on the screen, smiling.
“To break through the heavens, is to be the Celestial Summit.”