Ashen Dragon

"But this is also an age of strife, a turbulent era, an era where danger and opportunity coexist."

Suddenly, the music became passionate and rousing, and the scene shifted to a battlefield shrouded in gunsmoke.

Artillery roared, countless human soldiers charged with guns, yet continuously fell in a hail of bullets.

Titan Divine Descendants and Angel Divine Descendants slaughtered each other, the ground cracked, and the sky trembled as they created world-shaking disasters on earth.

"Cassandra, Thrace, and Seleucis, the Three Great Kingdoms, fought ceaselessly for the inheritance of the Empire.

Meanwhile, their Divine Descendant Nobles harbored their own designs, fragmenting the once great Holy Fadlan across the continent into hundreds of smaller states."

"Battle, awesome!"

"Holy shit, is that Shinra?"

"Following this storyline, the Empire is about to enter the scene!"

The narrator's voice was powerful.

"With the fall of Holy Fadlan, strife arose across the vast Fianso Continent, wars raging without end."

The scene changed to the chilling windswept hills, where heavy armored Dwarf cavalry on Worgs wielding warhammers surged forth from the valleys.

"The Dwarven cavalry thundered across the hills."

In the dense forest, underneath the towering ancient trees, the Elves of Serinia wore silver armor, held longbows, their beautiful faces showing resolute determination.

"The Elf armies marshaled through the forests."

On the boundless wilderness, Orcs clad in fur cloaks let out frenzied war cries, their Worg mounts howling mournfully, stirring up clouds of dust.

"The Orc cavalry galloped across the plains..."

"So many new Races, wow!"

"Love it, love it!"

"Don't stop me, I'm going to find myself an Elf wife!"

The scene shifted again, the cities familiar to the players appeared on screen, Wyvern Knights patrolled the skies, steam locomotives ran on the ground, and factories belched gray columns of smoke.

The narrator continued: "The Empire to the North is burgeoning, eyeing this world with hungry ambition."

"That's Isdalia!"

"Damn, I can see the factory where I work..."

"That arena was built by our engineering department!"

"High profile!"

"For the Ashen Empire!"

The scene shifted once more, with hundred-meter-long warships bearing sucker-laden tentacles appearing in the sky, casting huge shadows on the ground.

Inside the fleshy interiors of those warships, humanoid creatures with octopus-like heads emerged, their pupil-less milky white eyes chilling to the bone.

"The vast and ancient Heart Snatching Demon Empire had long since fallen into ruin, becoming mere empty shadows of the past.

And now, those who lurk in the shadows of bygone days seek to descend using the bodies of other beings."

"Yikes—so disgusting."

"Damn, tentacle monsters!"

"Hehehe, I love tentacle monsters the most, especially when you put them together with dragons, it's even better..."

"The guy in front, you've just exposed yourself! Aren't you Safis, the one who likes to post lewd pictures of dragons and tentacle monsters in the group?"

"Goddamn, it's fine to be niche but not perverse!"

The scene shifted once again, with people wearing the badges of the Dragon Worship Cult appearing inside palaces, whispering their prayers.

The person in the purple robe at the highest point, his expression fervent, put on the golden mask with five giant dragon heads, spread his arms, and invoked the name of Tiamat.

"The church of Tiamat continued to incite rebellion, becoming one of the many factions seeking power on this fractured land...

They believe that one day the Immortal Queen will descend upon the land of the Prime Material Plane and dragons will rule the world once again."

"The Dragon Queen!"

"She appeared at Emperor Kai's coronation!"

"It seems like touching Her Majesty the Dragon Queen's..."

"That's possible?"

"This update has way too much content, Airez's damn official team is really unbeatable!"

In the range of undulating mountains, in front of towering snow-peaked mountains, a black claw tore through the heavens, creating a crack hundreds of meters in diameter.

Countless bizarre and fierce demons surged out like a tidal wave, their ghastly wings blotting out the sun, casting swirling shadows upon the ground.

"Demons come from The Abyss, loathing everything in the world, spreading chaos and evil at will, attempting to plunge the entire universe into chaos.

Their first target is the secluded Anzeta Great Wilderness, as well as its occupying force—the Ashen Empire."

"Demons are invading?"

"This is definitely a main quest!"

"Defend the Empire!"

"Not cool, man. Why pick on someone strong? Everyone else goes for the easy targets, but you go straight for the Empire?"

"Let's take them down!"

Eventually, the scene arrived at the vast military exercise field in the suburbs of Isdalia City, with hundreds of thousands of spectators crowded along the sides, looking on eagerly.

"In this era filled with strife, the fate of the world will be rewritten by you, survival or extinction will be your choice!

This is—"

The narrator's voice stretched out.

Amidst the stirring martial music and the magnificent sound of war drums, Chimeras and Bipedal Wyverns obscured the sky, while Land Dragon Beasts and Steam Tanks occupied the ground.

Artillery roared, and gunshots rang out in unison; Humans, Tieflings, Ogres, and other Family Members formed neat ranks, marching from afar with imposing momentum.

But this was far from over.

Portals opened, one after another, with Fire Lizards and Fire Drakes roaring, Fire Dwarfs swinging Warhammers, and the Elemental Legion arriving from the Fire Elemental Plane.

Skeleton Dragon-Serpents slithered across the earth; Undead and Corpse Demons wandered under dark clouds; the Underdark Legion rushed from the underworld.

Fierce tigers, polar bears, and griffins roared, sprinting under the command of Empire Druids, streaming from the Garden of Myriad Beasts.

Real giant dragons also appeared at the venue, with White Dragons excitedly tilting their heads back in a long howl, Blue Dragons wildly dancing in mid-air, and Silver Dragons flapping their shimmering wings.

"It's lit!"

"This is the Empire!"

"Isn't this the Isdalia City military exercise field? Are they parading?"

"Seems like we've never been part of this event!"

Finally, the screen froze on a stage, showcasing a towering stature from a looking-up perspective, those broad wings hiding the sky and the earth.

The Red Dragon in the picture slowly opened its mouth, and a voice heavy like thunder came out.

"If demons can bring fear to the world, then the Empire—will bring fear to the demons!

Crush them!"

The audience's cheers rose like a tidal wave; only then did the narrator resoundingly pronounce the last few words:

"Erezer—Kings' Strife!"

The screen finally froze on the majestic figure of the Red Dragon with its wings spread, with the word "Erezer" emerging in golden letters at the center of the image.

"For His Majesty Cassius!"

"For the Ashen Empire! Damn those demons!"

"Heh heh, His Majesty Cassius..."

"Loyalty!"

"So hyped!"

"Such a strong presence, Emperor Kai is truly the unbeatable Long Aotian. He was the one at the end of the last trailer, right?"

"I was thinking about choosing the Elf Kingdom, but this video changed my mind, Long Live the Empire! Long Live the Emperor!"

"I will never switch camps! All my belongings are in the Ashen Empire already!"

Before the screen, Mantou was also struck hard by this heart-stirring scene, infected by the fervent atmosphere.

His face was full of excitement, wishing he could immediately enter the game to fight for the Empire against the demons.

"Damn game developers, let me in already!"

He muttered to himself.

Just then, as if hearing Mantou's call, the "Enter Game" button on the gaming pod really lit up.

Mantou's eyes brightened instantly, and he squirmed into the gaming pod like an eel.

"Holy crap?"

"Erezer, activate!"