As Placidusax fell, his body was battered by tremendous impacts and devastation again and again.
His dragon wings were gone and could no longer support him. Even his body was gradually breaking apart.
Placidusax felt utterly exhausted. He had completely lost the ability to control himself and could only let gravity pull him down toward the ground.
But the silver-white giant dragon, its wings spread wide, was falling straight down at almost the same speed. The dragon wing that had just been severed by golden dragon breath had already grown back.
With the last of his strength, Placidusax glanced at that beautiful dragon.
Its silver scales shone brilliantly beneath the sunlight, as if they were made from countless stars.
A silver giant claw swept through the air, but it did not come to crush the final proof of his existence. Instead, it gently caught him.
"Five thousand years have passed, yet the world has never changed. Aged Kings are destined to die, and young Kings raise their war banners. Dynasty after dynasty crumbles, like shifting sand in rivers and seas. I knew the outcome long ago. The Ancient Dragons were no different."
Placidusax's body was gone. Only a single lonely head remained, held tightly in the silver dragon's embrace.
His eyes gazed into the distance, as if through the sky dyed red by flames, he could see another world.
Five thousand years ago, he was born into this world. That era belonged to the starry sky.
Four thousand years ago, as more and more newborn dragons appeared, the power he was born with, a power that could make all living beings submit, brought him to the throne.
Two thousand years ago, a maddened rebel dragon bared its fangs and shattered the immortal myth of the Ancient Dragon Dynasty.
One thousand years ago, a pitch-black beast came to the sky. Countless of his subjects were burned by Black Flame, and he could only watch in silence.
Today, he had finally displayed the power of a King once more, only for a young dragon to shatter his body again.
History was always so helpless.
"A splendid battle. As expected of the first Elden Lord," Nolan said with a smile.
He knew very well that he was the victor of this battle, and that the old dragon had lost. But that praise came from the heart.
In this tale of a battle between Kings, one side was destined to die.
Nolan did not want to die, so in battle, he had used everything he had without holding back. The old dragon had done the same.
In truth, after the final collision ended, Nolan himself had also been badly wounded. His dragon wings had all been broken, and nearly half his body had been missing.
But his recovery far surpassed Placidusax's, and by now, he had basically returned to his original state.
The old dragon did not respond to his words. He merely continued gazing silently into the distance, his expression calm and peaceful.
The young dragon had driven the old dragon from the throne, but that did not make him feel grief or resentment in the slightest. It seemed this was not important to him.
The clouds and wind that had been driven away suddenly returned. The dazzling sun could be seen in the sky. In the old dragon's era, the sun still had a powerful presence.
It was like a lighthouse, guiding them forward.
Although Farum Azula could no longer be seen, the sea of clouds still shone with the splendor of a bustling city, reflected in the old dragon's eyes like a twilight cityscape.
Facing that magnificent sight, Nolan could not help feeling dazed.
He suddenly realized that he did not truly understand this old dragon all that well. So much so that he did not know what to say to him next.
The old dragon in his claws really was like a piece of rock.
If this rock were Gwyn, Nolan would warmly greet the old man's entire family. If it were Godfrey, perhaps they truly would have fought until the very last moment.
In the end, he simply stood there quietly like a silent rock, making no sound and no movement.
"Where has Farum Azula gone?" Placidusax's voice sounded low, like an echo from a deep valley, faint and distant.
His tone was so gentle, carrying a faint sorrow, yet the look on his face was so still and solemn. A King's majesty did not need words to express it.
"It's gone. It disintegrated when we collided," Nolan answered softly. "But if you don't mind other people seeing you in this miserable state, I can take you around the real Farum Azula."
"Then forget it." Placidusax's eyes slowly closed, and his remaining head fell apart like sand from a shattered rock, slipping from Nolan's claws.
"That old fellow really cared about his dignity to the very end."
...
In midair, the falling Josdasax woke up. He had been knocked unconscious by the shock from the collision between the two Kings.
After waking, Josdasax was first shaken by the power of Kings. Then he realized that the Farum Azula he had just been standing on had vanished entirely.
Josdasax flew through the sky in a daze, but soon remembered that he was inside a rift in time and space, and immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
The Farum Azula that had been battered until not even scraps remained was only a remnant image of the past. The real Farum Azula was still outside.
But Josdasax soon noticed something wrong. He could no longer hear the sounds of battle outside.
Unease welled up in Josdasax's heart. He felt as if something were chasing him, and he began flapping his dragon wings with all his might.
The distant sky was covered in dense clouds and mist, while brilliant sunlight dyed everything gold. He could see nothing.
"Did His Majesty win?" Josdasax hesitated inwardly. He truly could not judge the outcome of this battle.
He believed His Majesty Placidusax was invincible, but the power Nolan had displayed just now was so overwhelming that even Josdasax felt some fear toward the result.
Josdasax plunged into the clouds, then flew several hundred meters higher before finally stopping. Not far away was a scene that could have been painted from myth.
Nolan's claws held Placidusax's head, and the old dragon's final remains were gradually fading away. In the young dragon's eyes, there seemed to be a faint trace of pity.
Josdasax widened his eyes.
"His Majesty... lost?" he murmured, his voice filled with shock and pain he could not accept.
The Ancient Dragon froze for an instant. Then red Dragon Lightning crackled around his entire body, and his figure shot toward the silver-white giant dragon in the sky, his wings slicing through the clouds.
But the closer he drew to that silver-white figure, the slower he became. Nolan looked at him without moving or speaking.
"Your Majesty." Josdasax finally forced the words out with difficulty, his throat seeming blocked by something, his voice hoarse.
The dragonfire breath he had prepared was forcibly swallowed back at that moment.
Nolan looked at Josdasax. Of course he understood the respect this captain of the Ancient Dragon Guard held for him, but that was only because of the old His Majesty's mission.
He shook his head lightly and left the rift in time and space with the Ancient Dragon, who had become silent. At the same time, the storm at the center of Farum Azula finally dispersed.
Some dragons, having waited too long, were just about to lie down and take a nap. When they saw this, they immediately stretched out their necks.
Looking at Josdasax and the six-winged Ancient Dragon who appeared where the storm had vanished, the gathered dragons all fell silent.
This scene was clearly not what Placidusax would have wanted to see. So Josdasax looked toward the dragons and declared loudly,
"His Majesty Placidusax has passed. This is our new King, His Majesty Nolan Bethel, Lord of Cinder. His Majesty stands before you. Why do you not come forth to pay your respects?"
Farum Azula remained deathly silent. The Ancient Dragons had indeed gathered the dragons here under Placidusax's command, but none of them had expected this outcome.
Seeing this, Josdasax was just about to speak again and rebuke these dragons when he suddenly felt the sky darken. He turned to look.
Nolan had already spread those six wings. Golden lightning spilled from the dragon wings, as if tracing an even larger pair of wings across the sky.
Lightning fell gently like rain, and the dragons raised their heads to gaze up at the heavens.
"Dragons, how powerless are tears! Then ignite your fury! Bare your fangs, extend your claws, raise your war banners, and go conquer the world!"
That majestic voice came from the mouth of the silver-white giant dragon. It was Nolan's voice.
"Roar!"
The Ancient Dragons responded first, followed by the echoes of more and more dragons.