Chapter 4: Council of Four Elders

“My name is Lu Qiuchen.”

Lu Qiuchen’s name wasn’t common—hardly anyone else shared it. It didn’t sound out of place in most online games, and using his real name helped him feel more immersed, so he always stuck with it when playing.

“Lu Qiuchen, huh. What a strange name.”

Alright, Lu Qiuchen had to admit, in a Western fantasy setting, his name did sound kind of weird.

“Um… Miss Dragon, that wyvern had nothing to do with me. I was just… passing by.”

He wasn’t sure how to read the girl’s attitude and worried she might have come to avenge the drake.

He’d wanted to say he was just food, but recalling how this harmless-looking girl had, moments ago, been a colossal dragon with a threatening string of yellow question marks hovering over her head… he thought better of it.

What if reminding her made her expect him to keep playing the role of prey?

“That idiot brought it on himself. But humans really went too far this time—daring to chase prey all the way to Dragon Island. Lucky they ran fast. Otherwise, I’d have made sure they suffered for it.”

The dragon girl snorted and walked over to the fainted wyvern on the ground.

“Low-intelligence subspecies like this really are a disgrace to dragonkind.”

So she’s not here to eat me.

Lu Qiuchen breathed a quiet sigh of relief—then blinked, puzzled. Just now, she’d said “we dragons.”

From what he remembered, pureblood dragons usually looked down on half-dragons and subspecies. After all, in Western fantasy settings, noble bloodlines really could do whatever they wanted.

Sensing his confusion, the girl turned her head and explained, “The Elder Council sent me to find you. It’s basically our dragonkind’s council chamber—but only pureblood dragons are allowed to participate, you know.”

Once she started talking, she didn’t stop:

“Today one of those old fogies made a prophecy about a half-dragon appearing here. Said you’re supposed to be some savior or world-changer or whatever. I’ve never seen those lazy geezers act so worked up.”

“Competing with kids all day is boring, so I volunteered to come get you. Looking at you now, you don’t seem all that special. As for that idiot over there—he just happened to run into you and got wrecked for it. Should be staying quiet for a good while now.”

Hearing all this, Lu Qiuchen was even more stunned. NPCs in Eternity can actually respond based on a player’s facial expression?

That went way beyond just “realistic.” Even in real life, plenty of people couldn’t read faces—him included.

But the girl didn’t seem hostile, so he relaxed. As for the prophecy and the Elder Council sending dragons specifically to find him, he stuffed that confusion deep into his mental backlog.
I’m a player, after all.

No matter what happens, there’s always respawn and logout—those were his trump cards.

Still, he was curious about this “Elder Council” the girl mentioned. It might be the quest hub for half-dragon players.

That last encounter was kind of intense… Hope other half-dragon players have nerves of steel.

“You don’t seem to have half-dragon transformation abilities yet. You’re too slow—I’ll take you to the Council.”

She walked a few steps into a clearing, her body enveloped in a white glow.

A moment later, the tall, slender blue dragon stood once again before Lu Qiuchen.

Half-dragon transformation, huh? Never heard of it. Then again, I don’t even have any skills yet.
Lu Qiuchen sighed inwardly.

Would this be a later-game skill? Could it let him fly? And how would players control that?

Like a child spotting a shiny new toy, Lu Qiuchen’s heart thumped with excitement.

Maybe it was Zhang Cheng’s influence, but Lu Qiuchen had developed a real interest in cute beastgirls and cool armor lately.

He walked to the massive back of the blue dragon, towering even while lying prone. Gazing at the menacing reverse scales on her thick tail and the sharp crown-like horns behind her neck, Lu Qiuchen hesitated for a moment.

For the sake of his own safety, he declined the invitation to ride on the blue dragon’s back. Between being carried in her mouth or held in her foreclaws, he reluctantly chose the latter.

With a powerful leap, the giant dragon soared into the sky, heading east. Considering how frail Lu Qiuchen looked, Miss Blue Dragon considerately cast a wind-shielding magic barrier around him.

The scenery at the heart of Dragon Island was completely different from the outskirts.

Small dragon species spread their wings, gliding through towering, dense forests before diving into canyons interwoven with waterfalls and streams.

Lakes dotted the heavy mountains like chess pieces, where young dragons of all kinds frolicked. The rushing waters beneath the waterfalls calmed into gentler streams, which wound through twisting valleys, eventually flowing into the sea.

Clutching tightly onto Miss Blue Dragon, Lu Qiuchen glanced back to see playful dragon hatchlings flapping their wings furiously atop the cliffs—yet the distance between them and the blue dragon only grew farther.

*****

“We’re here.” Miss Blue Dragon descended onto a flat area at the base of Dragonspine Peak, a puff of hot air snorting from her nostrils.

Lu Qiuchen looked up—an awe-inspiring view unfolded before him. If the laws of physics in Eternity resembled those of Earth, and if the planet’s equator were similarly scaled, then the vertical drop from the foot to the summit of Dragonspine Peak must have exceeded 3,000 meters.

Transforming back into her human form, Miss Blue Dragon led Lu Qiuchen toward the mountain.

Her cheeks were visibly rosier than before—clearly, even for her, flying at such speeds had taken a toll.

“The Patriarch and the Elders are in the valley up ahead.” After a while, she stopped at the valley entrance.

“The rest of the way you’ll have to walk on your own. Those old geezers are dreary as death, and their lairs give me the creeps—I’m not sticking around.”

Bidding farewell to Miss Blue Dragon, Lu Qiuchen pressed forward with excitement. The valley entrance was narrow at the bottom but gradually widened as he advanced.

Lifting his gaze to the ridges flanking both sides, he saw steep peaks jutting sharply into the sky, so much so that even the bright blue heavens seemed to grow dim.

He kept walking, the fog in the valley ahead growing thicker. The increasingly dark sky seemed to press down on the dense forest on either side, closing in toward the path.

No wonder Miss Blue Dragon didn’t like it here.

The gloom and oppressive air seemed to devour one’s courage—but to the fearless “Fourth Calamity,” this kind of place only stirred more excitement.

As Lu Qiuchen stepped over a boulder, the world suddenly shifted—like he had passed through an invisible membrane.

For a moment, he felt disoriented.

Then, all at once, the mountains on either side revealed massive caverns that hadn’t been there before. In nearly every one of them was a giant dragon.

Some were half-standing, half-squatting. Others lounged deep inside, only part of their bodies visible.

A few had their wings unfurled, leaning forward in aggressive, threatening poses.

Lu Qiuchen looked around. There had to be over forty dragons here. It seemed the dragons were holding some sort of council or gathering.

With their typically irritable temperaments and thunderous voices, even casual conversation among them left Lu Qiuchen’s ears ringing.

Directly ahead, a slightly aged pitch-black dragon lay sprawled upon stone tiles, eyes closed.

The moment Lu Qiuchen stepped into the space, the dragon’s crimson eyes snapped open, their sharp and piercing gaze shooting straight through him.

The pressure was instant—so overwhelming that even the dragon’s aged body suddenly emanated a regal aura.

From the outside, this dragon was clearly far larger than any of the other adult dragons present—at least twice their size.

Even curled up on the ground with its tail tucked in, it still stretched over twenty meters in length.

The ancient dragon before him slightly lifted its head and let out a low, rumbling growl. It was immediately apparent that this dragon held immense authority. The once-boisterous valley instantly fell silent.

“I am Alduin, lord of the dragonkind. Little half-dragon girl you are the first non-pureblood dragon ever to step into the Elder Council.”

The dragon’s massive head—large as the front of a freight truck—lowered just slightly, its burning red gaze once again meeting Lu Qiuchen’s eyes.

“I see you come from a silent world carrying the hope to change the fate of all living things.”

‘Finally! The main storyline!’ Lu Qiuchen cheered inwardly.

‘And that name… Alduin? Why does that sound kind of familiar…?’

“Young half-dragon take up the mission to protect the dragon race. In return, the dragons shall bestow upon you a powerful body, an unyielding soul, and noble blood. The dragons will become your strength.”

“Whether you accept or not, calamity shall inevitably befall the dragon race. But know this the dragons will not perish simply because of your refusal.”