Midnight.
The starlit sea above shimmered like a dream!
Yet the Proadas Plains below blazed as bright as day under the glow of towering flames!
Around the massive bonfire before the King's Tent, seats were arranged for the chieftains and kings of the continent's myriad races.
Above the fire, the roasted hand of a Thunder Titan had been reduced to a skeletal frame.
Its flesh had been divided by the Goblin King among all the tribal leaders present.
This act not only underscored their triumphant defeat of the Titan Giants but also proclaimed the Goblins' ascendancy as the new rulers of the continent, supplanting the Titans!
As one of the Goblins' key allies, Jarius received a portion of the Titan's flesh.
Specially treated, the Titan's meat had lost its volatile properties, its flavor exquisitely delectable.
After all, this was the flesh of a demigod.
From this banquet onward, the Felanders seemed to shatter an ancient shackle, overcoming their innate fear of Titans and Dragons.
In the future, bathing in dragon blood and consuming dragon flesh would begin from this moment, a practice the Dragon Clan could never fully suppress!
Thus, in the bloodline chronicles of the Dragons, the Titans were not only mortal enemies but also treacherous betrayers!
Halfway through the night's feast.
As Jarius watched with keen interest the bare-chested Troll Clan chieftains performing drunken fistfights before the bonfire.
A human elder approached him discreetly.
"Esteemed Winged King Jarius, I am Yang Yan, one of the humans who emerged from the Sanctuary."
"You, too, hail from the previous era's human race?"
Jarius asked, a sense of kinship stirred by the elder's appearance.
"Indeed,"
The human elder nodded with a smile.
"Fiona spoke of you, Lord Jarius, noting your origins among the Western humans. No wonder I feel such affinity upon meeting you!"
"Hahaha, I feel the same,"
Jarius laughed heartily.
"Then, Lord Yang Yan, what brings you to me?"
"I've heard from Fiona that you prefer straightforward dealings, so I'll be direct. Are you familiar with enchantment techniques?" Yang Yan asked.
"You possess enchantment techniques?"
Jarius's eyes lit up with surprise.
In later eras, enchanters were among the most revered professions in Felander.
"To be frank, enchantment techniques are a transcendent craft we developed by merging human technology with the supernatural forces of this era. Thus far, we have mastered three types of enchantments"
"Fire, Lightning, and Wind,"
Yang Yan explained solemnly.
"We are willing to entrust these three enchantment techniques to you."
"And what do you seek in return?"
Jarius inquired.
"In a few centuries, when the human race wanders the continent in exile, I ask that you, Lord Jarius, shelter a portion of our people and pass these enchantment techniques back to them,"
The human elder replied earnestly.
"Agreed,"
Jarius nodded gravely, then asked, "But why are you so pessimistic about humanity's future?"
The human elder sighed deeply.
"As Fiona likely told you, the Goblins both utilize and guard against us."
"Though Amigel provides 'protection,' he believes humans hold the potential to dominate the continent. To secure Goblin hegemony, our descendants are forbidden from inheriting our knowledge. Without the transmission of knowledge, humans will become just another ordinary sentient race of Felander, posing no threat to the Goblins,"
Yang Yan said with a heavy heart.
"Could you not secretly send some of your people away?"
Jarius suggested.
"We've tried, but until our generation from the Sanctuary passes, the Goblins will keep humanity under their watchful gaze,"
Yang Yan replied, shaking his head.
How ruthless, Jarius thought, to cage the Sanctuary humans until their extinction!
He felt sympathy for humanity's plight and gained a deeper understanding of the Goblin race.
When the birds are gone, the fine bow is cast aside.
They were allies in adversity, but not in prosperity!
Though Amigel now generously divided the continent among the tribes, Jarius sensed the Goblins' generosity was not without ulterior motives.
That night.
Jarius acquired the humans' enchantment techniques, his spirits soaring!
Unbeknownst to him.
The humans had not only approached the Winged Man but also the Dwarves, Merfolk, Gnomes, and Fairies.
In the future rise of humanity, thanks to their ancestors' tireless efforts, many races would lend aid, however small, to their cause.
The Dwarves gained masterful forging techniques, the Merfolk acquired potent sonic spells, the Fairies developed greater versatility in elemental magic, and the Gnomes…
To ensure humanity's legacy, the Sanctuary humans exhausted every ounce of their ingenuity.
The following day.
Jarius bid farewell to the Goblin King Amigel, leaving the wounded to recover while leading the remaining Winged Legion toward the Sky Mountains.
Ten days later.
They arrived above the peaks.
Nearly eight thousand Winged warriors hovered above the Sky Mountains, their wings beating in unison. Armed with longbows and swords, they were the epitome of elite forces, poised for battle!
Below.
In the Eaglefolk's Royal Court nestled within the mountains, Eagle warriors stood on the slopes, their faces etched with worry as they gazed at the arrayed Winged Legion in the skies.
Their fear stemmed not from the Winged Man themselves but from the victorious coalition they represented.
At that moment.
An Eagle envoy soared upward toward Jarius.
"Esteemed Winged King, I beseech you to halt your advance. Days ago, our envoys set out for Proadas to submit a letter of surrender to the great King of Kings, Amigel, seeking to pledge allegiance!"
The envoy called out loudly.
"Please wait a few days. The Eaglefolk will surely gain His Majesty Amigel's forgiveness!"
Jarius sneered, his voice cutting through the air like a blade.
"No need! The Eagle Royal Court has no right to exist in Felander!"
"Amigel will not accept your surrender. Today, I shall raze the Sky Mountains and annihilate your Eagle Royal Court!"
With that, heedless of the envoy's ashen expression, Jarius raised his longbow and roared.
"Warriors! For the blood feud of nine generations, today we exact vengeance! Charge!"
At his command.
The Winged warriors brandished their weapons, their war cries shaking the heavens!
"Avenge the blood feud of nine generations! Kill!"
"Level the Sky Mountains! Kill!"
In an instant, a torrent of arrows rained down upon the Eaglefolk below.
The battle erupted!
Caught off guard, the Eagle warriors on the mountains fell in droves.
Blood flowed freely, staining the peaks a vivid crimson.
Realizing negotiations had collapsed, the Eaglefolk took flight in droves, charging toward the Winged Legion.
Though they feared the Goblin coalition's might, with enemies at their doorstep, surrender was no longer an option.
Days earlier, Eagle scouts had spotted the Winged Legion's approach but clung to fleeting hopes of diplomacy.
Tens of thousands of Royal Court Eagles surged into the sky, only to be met by the Winged Man's superior ranged advantage. Employing their sky battle tactics, they drove the Eagles into a desperate retreat.
Even the Eagles' swift transcendent warriors were countered by an equal number of Winged professionals.
The Eagles once boasted more transcendent warriors than the Winged Man, but half had perished in the Titan-Goblin coalition's wars.
As the Eagles' morale teetered on collapse, a thunderous shout erupted from the grandest stone palace atop the Sky Mountains.
"Damnable Winged Man, you've gone too far!"
A formidable Eagle warrior.
Exuding an aura of raging winds like a passing typhoon, charged toward Jarius's forces!
Adorned with a golden crown and clad in deep black feathers, he towered half a head above ordinary Eagles, radiating an imposing presence.
This was none other than the Eaglefolk's sole Legendary, King Lekris!
The mightiest of their kind, a Sky Warrior ascended to the Legendary profession: Storm King!