Saga, accompanied by the two Little Dragonesses, was heading towards his own territory.

In the seas surrounding the Black Skull Archipelago, a tall, stern-faced man strode step by step across the surging waves. Clad in silver-white knight’s armor edged with golden patterns, each step he took calmed the rolling waters beneath him, making the tumultuous sea seem like flat ground.

“Barbette, the Oathbreaker Knight, leader of the Black Skull pirates, the disgrace of the Silver Knights.”

“It’s time for you to face punishment for betraying your oath and your country.”

The ninth-tier great knight murmured to himself as he walked on the sea.

The knight, named Kaylewell, was the deputy leader of the Silver Knights under the Lionheart Kingdom, and also the former colleague and direct superior of the holy knight Barbette.

Years ago, after Holy Knight Barbette had destroyed a town to contain the spread of a plague, it was Great Knight Kaylewell who had judged and condemned him.

In the eyes of the great knight, Barbette had completely deviated from the virtues of the temple knights and was a disgrace to the order.

Over the years, the great knight had sent many subordinates to the sea to capture the Oathbreaker Knight Barbette.

As a result, his subordinates perished in the vast ocean.

Meanwhile, the name of the evil knight grew notorious, becoming a pirate general.

This was intolerable for the knight leader, who was strict in his discipline and oaths. He set aside other tasks of punishing evil and decided to take matters into his own hands, to capture the evil knight Barbette and personally execute this former subordinate.

“Barbette, your heart has been corrupted by darkness; only death can purify you.”

The great knight’s gaze was resolute as he stared at the fog-enshrouded Black Skull Archipelago, drawing ever closer.

However, after some time, as he parted the thick fog and neared the Black Skull Archipelago, his gaze sharpened, and his heart trembled slightly.

A murderous, evil, and brutal aura enveloped the entire archipelago.

In the waters near the islands, a layer of fish and shrimp carcasses floated, and the rich stench of decay wafted with the wind, as swarms of sea flies gathered.

“What’s going on?”

The great knight’s gaze turned solemn, his palm wiping across his eyes, and immediately his pupils shone brightly, looking towards the largest Black Skull main island.

Buzz!

A blood-red world, shrouded under a grand and indescribable phantom, suddenly appeared in the great knight’s vision. At the heart of this world, on Black Skull Island, a blood-colored cocoon swelled and contracted repeatedly, like a beating heart, with an extremely evil and brutal aura brewing inside, nearing maturity.

“The power of a dark god!”

The great knight was shaken, not expecting such an encounter on his journey.

Immediately, he tried to contact the knight order, but to his heavy realization, the dense fog around the Black Skull Archipelago severed all communication. Looking back at the path he came from, the thick fog gathered again, now with an effect that shielded perception.

It was easy to enter here.

But leaving would be difficult.

Now, two paths lay before the great knight.

One was to turn back into the fog, slowly searching for a way out, but he could not be sure when he could leave.

The second was to continue forward, approach the cocoon, and risk death to destroy it before it matured.

For a holy knight, the choice was easy.

Sigh. The great knight gazed at the Black Skull Island, feeling the evil aura of the pulsating cocoon.

“A creation related to the dark gods; if it is born safely, it will surely bring disaster. I cannot stand idly by.”

With that thought, the great knight stepped onto Black Skull Island.

He moved forward, his heart growing heavier.

The island was littered with broken bones, and fresh blood stained the ground a deep red. The rich evil aura lingered in every inch of air, nearly making the great knight retch.

“There’s not a single living creature on the island.”

On guard, the great knight drew his greatsword from his back and approached the cocoon on a hill.

Step by step, he climbed the rugged slope, and the cocoon came into his naked eye’s view.

It was a blood-red cocoon about three meters tall, rooted in the rock. From it, blood vessel-like tendrils penetrated the ground, almost covering Black Skull Island, and the pervasive evil aura originated from it.

At the same time, amidst the terrifying evil aura, the great knight sensed a familiar presence.

“Barbette?”

He frowned.

“Have you not only betrayed your oath and kingdom but also become a pawn of the dark gods?”

Staring at the blood-red cocoon, the great knight gripped his greatsword tightly, lifting it high before bringing it down with force.

Clang!

The sound of metal striking metal rang out.

The powerful blow that could shatter mountains failed to land.

The great knight’s gaze sharpened, his pupils constricting to pinpoints.

The surface of the blood-red cocoon cracked open, and a thick arm covered with blood-colored bone and a mix of steel, with hints of silver-white armor, reached out like a demon’s claw, grabbing the great knight’s greatsword.

“A demon? An eighth-tier demon?”

In the great knight’s perception, the life force of the other was not strong.

Yet, the claw held firm like an iron hoop, immovable no matter how hard he tried, and a deadly aura rushed towards him.

“This overwhelming strength and sense of danger.”

The great knight’s heart was heavy, not relaxing due to the lower life level of his opponent.

Then, with a heavy, oppressive breath, a deep voice sounded.

“Kaylewell, the deputy leader. What a surprise.”

“Holy Knight Barbette! Wake up! It’s not too late!”

The great knight roared, his arms straining, pressing down with the greatsword.

“Holy Knight?”

“My name is Barbette, the Tyrant Knight Barbette!”

A roar came, and the demonic claw remained unmovable.

Then, in the next instant.

Clang!

His arms shook violently, an unstoppable force transmitted, and to the great knight’s disbelief, the greatsword was knocked away, skewering the ground.

The cocoon split open, and a blood-red figure leaped out.

Ten minutes later.

Peace returned to the place, the blood-red cocoon closed again, its pulsing quickened, and the curled figure inside was faintly visible, its aura growing stronger bit by bit.

The fog lingered.

The Black Skull Archipelago was as silent as death.

…

After enjoying the oceanic scenery beyond the Golden Sea with the two Little Dragonesses for several days, Saga returned to Moon Bay.

Under the night sky filled with stars, on the vast sea, three small islands bathed in moonlight appeared like a crescent moon in the sea.

Looking at the familiar Moon Bay, Saga stopped flying and hovered nearby.

“Where is this?”

“The territory I told you about, the one that belongs to me.”

“Ah? It’s so small.”

Gemstone Dragon Charlotte widened her eyes, muttering.

At the same time, Amethyst Dragon Tixil smiled slightly, turned to the Little Golden Dragon, and said, “Didn’t you say your territory was quite large? I can’t see where it’s large.”

Saga, unfazed, replied, “Small? I think it’s quite big.”

Amethyst Dragon gave Saga a look and said, “I knew you were exaggerating nonsense.”

Saga grinned, thinking to himself that she knew yet still followed him here.

Immediately, Saga spread his wings and soared, heading towards Moon Bay, while roaring out loud, “Moon Bay, your emperor has returned!”

On the small Moon Bay, Saga ruled like an emperor, so his proclamation was not out of place.

The rolling dragon chant emanated from his not-so-huge but not small body, quickly spreading over Moon Bay.

On Moon Bay, creatures like the Tiger Shark, Slime, and Lamprey Fishmen were startled, first showing a wary and vigilant demeanor, but then relaxing upon seeing the golden dragon silhouette in the night sky.

“Welcome back, our lord!”

The subjects cheered enthusiastically.

In Saga’s absence, although the leaders managed everything orderly, they always felt the lack of a stabilizing force. Now that Saga had returned, all the subject monsters felt a sense of security, as if they had found their backbone.

“Huh? There are two more dragons following our lord.”

The sharp-eyed Black Shark noticed the other two dragons.

“Probably like the Blue Dragon before, subdued by our lord’s charm,” it thought.

Meanwhile, the Golden Dragon folded his wings and perched atop the towering Gemstone Peak, looking down, his gaze sweeping over his territory.

The scenery here couldn’t compare to Deep Sea Dragon City.

However, this was a territory belonging solely to Saga.

Standing atop this high mountain, the feeling that arose from looking down was completely different from that in Deep Sea Dragon City.

The cool night wind, carrying the scent of the sea, blew past.

At the same time, Amethyst Dragon Tixil and Gemstone Dragon Charlotte, one on each side, landed near Saga, looking around curiously.

A large Slime with different colors flowing on its surface flew towards Saga.

Seeing the strange and colorful Slime, which suited her aesthetic, Charlotte’s eyes lit up, and she flew over in a flash, hugging the unsuspecting Slime.

“The soft feeling is really nice.”

“It looks different from the Slimes I’ve seen in Deep Sea Dragon City.”

Gemstone Dragon squeezed the large Slime, watching its body deform in her dragon claws, and said with a giggle.

“Yiyiyi?”

The Slime, played with by the Little Dragoness, looked towards Saga with an innocent expression.

“It’s a mutated Slime, it seems quite special.”

Tixil sensed the different elemental energies within the Slime’s body and commented.

Meanwhile, the sound of something massive running came thundering through.

“Eh, there’s a Subdragon here too.”

Amethyst Dragon turned to look and saw a large Amber Earth Dragon rushing towards them, and she sensed an aura similar to Saga’s on this larger creature.

“Is this a Subdragon transformed by your Dragon Vein?”

She looked at Saga.

“Yes.”

Saga grinned and then folded his wings, diving down from Gemstone Peak to land.

The running Amber Earth Dragon rolled with the momentum, stopping right in front of Saga as he landed, exposing its belly and tilting its head to look at him.

“Ha-ha, where did you learn this flattering trick?”

The bulky and ferocious creature unexpectedly acted cute, the stark contrast amusing Saga.

Atop the mountain peak, Gemstone Dragon continued to squeeze and play with the Slime, glancing at the Subdragon below and showing a look of disdain for its fierce and ugly appearance.

When she saw a strange creature with a human head and spider legs approaching Saga, she almost couldn’t resist going over to smash it with a slap.

“So ugly,” the Gemstone Dragon muttered, then continued to play with the Slime happily.

The unsuspecting Addison scratched his skull, thinking back to his younger days as a handsome youth, and comparing it to his current appearance, he couldn’t help feeling melancholic.

“Oh? Such vigorous mental power.”

Amethyst Dragon Tixil looked at the demon Warlock below with interest.

With a stretch of her dragon claw, she targeted the demon Warlock.

Mind Control!

Whoosh! Addison felt light as a feather, then arced through the air, landing in the Amethyst Dragon’s claw. He instinctively wanted to resist, but upon locking eyes with the Amethyst Dragon, the urge to resist dissipated.

Realizing the change in his heart, Addison understood that the Amethyst Dragon before him was no simple creature.

Then looking at the colorful and strange dragon beside him, he mumbled, “Where did our lord bring back two more dragons from? They seem much more formidable than the previous Blue Dragon.”

Amethyst Dragon picked up the skull, her eyes glowing with psychic energy, curiously examining it:

“Let’s see, are you an Undead or some other strange creature?”

Since these dragons were brought by Saga, Addison did not resist and allowed Amethyst Dragon to inspect him.

On the other side, Saga was scratching the Amber Earth Dragon’s large chin, casually breaking off a few of its surface amber crystals to keep.

Suddenly, a flash of silver streaked by.

The Black Shark, with a horn on its head and silver-white patterns covering its body, appeared before Saga.

“My lord, welcome back.”

“You’ve grown even stronger.”

It bowed its head and said.

“Did anything unexpected happen while I was away?”

“With your invisible protection, all is well in Moon Bay.”

Black Shark said.

Saga’s gaze fell on Black Shark, sizing it up and saying:

“Not bad, you’ve broken through to the sixth tier.”

When Saga had just finished the Dragon Vein transformation for Black Shark, it was a fifth-tier lifeform, but now it had ascended to the sixth tier, with more silver-white patterns on its body, occasionally crackling with electric arcs.

Black Shark nodded solemnly and said:

“All thanks to your grace.”

After a pause, Black Shark looked up at the increasingly large and majestic Golden Dragon before it and said:

“My lord, you’ve returned after two years away, now even more powerful and majestic.”

“Shall we prepare a feast to celebrate your return?”

Saga waved his dragon claw and said:

“Prepare good food and wine.”

The wine brewed by the Tiger Sharks tasted like wild waves rolling in the mouth, quite delightful, and Saga was a bit nostalgic for it.

Immediately, Black Shark left to prepare for the upcoming feast.

Saga played with the Amber Earth Dragon for a while, then with a flap of his wings, he soared to the top of Gemstone Peak.

The skull being explored by the Amethyst Dragon and the large Slime being held by the Gemstone Dragon turned their heads to look at Saga, their expressions filled with a sense of despair.

“Alright, alright, don’t break my subjects.”

“Let them go.”

Saga said.

Gemstone Dragon gave the Slime one more squeeze, then tossed it into the air, where it floated lightly like a balloon. Amethyst Dragon also released the skull.

“A caster’s soul dwelling in a skull.”

“A mutated Slime with many elemental powers.”

“.Saga, your subjects are quite interesting, all quirky and peculiar.”

Amethyst Dragon said with interest.

“Not bad, not bad.”

Saga replied casually, then asked Amethyst Dragon:

“In the competition, I destroyed your two psychic guards. What about now? Have you made new ones?”

Amethyst Dragon thought for a moment and said:

“My Gun Squid and Blade Tiger?”

“They are construct-type psychic guards, created by my psychic crafting, so they don’t truly die.”

“After the competition, I spent some time repairing them and, inspired by the constructs I saw in your Dragon Palace training ground, I combined them into one, transforming them into the Sword Cannon Dragon.”

As she spoke, Amethyst Dragon’s pupils shone with psychic light.

Click-clack, click-clack, pieces of purple crystal sprouted from nowhere, eventually revealing the Sword Cannon Dragon she mentioned.

It was a giant dragon about fourteen meters long, with a rather slender body.

On its shoulders were two purple crystal cannons, and the tip of its tail had a diamond-shaped structure that could open, filled with dense cannon muzzles like a rotary machine gun.

At the same time, the Amethyst Dragon’s elbows, knees, and other joints were covered with fierce blades.

“I’ve combined them.”

“What do you think?”

Tixil smiled slightly and asked.

“Not bad, it feels stronger than before.”

Saga stroked his chin and said:

“I’m also planning to develop a few psychic guards.”

Psychic guards are extensions of a Mind Warlock’s limbs and mind, growing alongside the Mind Warlock, making them one of the most useful types of guards.

“Oh?”

“With your current psychic strength, creating two psychic guards is most suitable.”

“Do you plan to create construct guards with your psychic power, or choose your own subjects to become psychic guards?”

Amethyst Dragon blinked and asked.

For Tixil, psychic guards were for assisting her in battle, so she used construct-type psychic guards, which could fight for her at any time.

But Saga wanted psychic guards with some autonomy, capable of acting on his behalf.

“I prefer biological-type psychic guards.”

“Uh, biological types are best. I used constructs because I couldn’t find suitable creatures.”

Amethyst Dragon said.

Taking the Ruby Dragon God, the most powerful psychic among the Dragon Kind, as an example, none of this dragon god’s psychic guards were constructs.

Constructs have many advantages, but also many disadvantages. Overall, they are not as good as biological bodies, unless the Mind Warlock using construct psychic guards is also a master of constructs, able to freely improve and modify their construct psychic guards. Tixil is striving for this, as her construct creation level is also not low.

“Biological types?”

Gemstone Dragon interjected:

“Have you already decided on the candidates for your psychic guards?”

Saga said:

“Pretty much, I have a few suitable subjects.”

The best biological psychic guards are those with nascent intelligence. Among Saga’s subjects, the Little Skeleton, the Great Slime, and the Amber Earth Dragon are suitable candidates. Black Shark could also be considered; its intelligence is not nascent, but because it followed Saga early on, witnessed Saga’s various performances, saw Saga’s rapid growth, and underwent Dragon Vein transformation, its loyalty to Saga is very high.

Core subjects transformed by the Dragon Vein cannot develop a sense of betrayal.

All Dragon Vein subjects are the core leaders of the True Dragons.

“Choosing psychic guards doesn’t need to be too cautious; after all, if you’re not satisfied, you can easily replace them.”

Amethyst Dragon said.

“Psychic guards are the left and right arms of a Mind Warlock, very useful. If you’ve already mastered the ability to create psychic guards, you can start right away.”

In Deep Sea Dragon City, after the competition ended, Saga explored the basics of strength in his spare time and also thoroughly understood the ability to create psychic guards.

“I currently have only two psychic guard slots, which I can give to the Amber Earth Dragon and Black Shark.”

Thinking back to the steps of creating psychic guards, Saga pondered:

“To create biological psychic guards, the first and most crucial step is to create a suitable personality type, then implant it into the candidate guard’s mind.”

In the well-developed path of Mind Warlocks.

Personalities are strictly categorized into fifteen types: Artisan, Bully, Coward, Friendly, Hero, Liar, Meticulous, Nimble, Observant, Calm, Resolute, Wise, Focused, Tranquil, Empathetic.

Psychic guards are extensions of a Mind Warlock’s will.

Creating psychic guards with corresponding personalities is also beneficial to the Mind Warlock.

For example, the Coward personality: A healthy self-defense instinct lies deep within every creature. When the element of cowardice is captured and amplified, it can help the Mind Warlock find a safe haven in dangerous situations. However, this type of psychic guard is overly eager to urge the Mind Warlock to flee and hide, even in situations that are not particularly dangerous, and when the Coward is cornered, it may show a frenzy that shocks the enemy.

Or the Liar personality: A lying psychic guard can’t help but lie, even to its master who knows when it’s lying and when it’s telling the truth. This inability to deceive its master doesn’t stop it from lying, and when the Mind Warlock must lie, its way of lying can be helpful.

Each of the other personalities has its own characteristics and can assist the Mind Warlock in certain ways.

If a Mind Warlock could simultaneously possess fifteen different psychic guards with different personalities and perfectly control them, then that Mind Warlock would have no weaknesses in their mental and willful faculties.

“Choosing a personality for psychic guards should match their original character, otherwise the conflicting personalities of the Warlock and guard can clash.”

Amethyst Dragon advised.

Saga nodded and said, “I’ve already got an idea.”

For the Little Skeleton Urell and the Great Slime Ilum, Saga wasn’t considering them at the moment, but if he were to make them psychic guards, he would assign them the Resolute and Coward personalities, respectively.

Resolute personality: A Resolute psychic guard’s determination and belief are incredibly strong. Its advice and opinions are unwavering, or as its master would say, stubborn. However, this unwavering belief can help the Mind Warlock in all willpower confrontations.

The Little Skeleton had once dared to chase after Saga’s head with its frail body.

It was a perfect match for the Resolute personality.

As for the Great Slime, which simultaneously wielded multiple elemental powers, it was actually quite powerful, akin to a fierce elemental cannon, but its courage was pitifully small, making it well-suited to the Coward personality.

“I’ll give my two slots to the Amber Earth Dragon and Black Shark for now.”

“Suitable personalities for them.”

Recalling the characters of the Amber Earth Dragon and Black Shark, as well as the types of personalities, Saga’s gaze narrowed, and he decided:

“Bully and Calm.”