Chapter 207: This Species is Bonkers in the Head
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The entire situation did raise a lot of red flags.
For starters, there were many reasons why an animal would go berserk, but would it forget the fear hardwired into its gene, which was handed down from generations to generations? That's almost no chance of that ever happening.
The 'safe zones' that the dragon knights had marked weren't always patrolled 24/7. The real reason why these territories were respected was mainly because the wild animals could sense draconian aura enveloping the safe zones, and the natural tendency of animals to steer away from other beasts' territory.
No matter how illogical an animal becomes when it goes crazy, it still wouldn't be foolish enough to trespass a territory enveloped by a heavy draconian aura—until now.
Additionally, the common beasts weren't the only ones trespassing; even the wild dragons had joined in on the madness. These dragons may not be as beautiful and intelligent as the elder dragon noble lady—Aya, here, but their robust physique had given them extra mental resistance to most common mental manipulation, too. They had never been the type of beasts to be enchanted by this particular kind of magic.
Their actions couldn't be passed off as the beats fleeing from predators because dragons were the apex predators. They were at the top of the food chain.
"Alright, this is suspicious. I'll need some time to think about it," Baiyi muttered. Of course, to him, by "thinking", he meant "starting a new thread in the Void forum with the Voidwalkers".
Aya was prudent enough to know better than interfering. Still, she quietly prepared a cup of red tea and presented it to him in her hands as she waited patiently.
The entire scene looked oddly warm though, and it was as if they were a family. 1
"What do you guys think?" Baiyi started, calling out loudly into the Void.
"This is fishy!"
'Well, thank you for such an insight, Captain Obvious.'
"The stronger the beast, the less likely it is to be affected by mind-bewitching spells. It's common for normal beasts to turn mad through these means. However, now that even dragons are susceptible, it's safe to remove the possibility of humans being involved. In fact, I doubt that even the demigod-level Lich would be able to pull that stunt off, right?" The Soul Armature Practitioner responded.
The man used to be an accomplished summoner, so his conjectures on the subject of wild beasts had its authority.
"Oh please. The dragons may not fear Deimos* and other fear-mongering techniques of mine, but they still fear my true power!" The Lich replied indignantly; nevertheless, his retort was still in line with what the Soul Armature Practitioner had said.
"Dude, are you even on topic? This is about madness, not fear. The animals have gone berserk," Baiyi replied, unimpressed.
"Why can't they be related? Only a greater fear could override genetic fear!" The Lich retorted in confidence.
'Uh, he's not wrong.'
In reality, Baiyi turned his attention to Aya. "Tell me, did those beasts and dragons display any form of ultra-aggressiveness when they ventured into the safe zones?"
"Huh?" Aya was stunned, obviously confused at his question, yet she managed to answer, "Um, they appeared to have completely lost their mind and retaliated violently to our attempts at capturing them. That's ultra-aggressiveness, right?"
"No, that's beside the point. What I was asking is if the intruders had displayed ultra-aggressive behaviors even before you guys attempted to capture them? For example, actively attacking skycruising rays or other common beasts that happened to pass by them?"
"Um…" Aya trailed off. She had no straight answer for Baiyi's direct question because she—or any other dragon knight for that matter—never thought to look for differences in the methods that the beasts used to intrude. The Safe zones were similar to restricted areas guarded by the military; it didn't matter why one trespassed. To the guards, once anyone made a move that breached security, they would either capture the intruders or gun them down—no due process required.
However, now that Baiyi had highlighted that important question, Aya tried her hardest to oblige. She blinked her large azure eyes as she tried to think, and finally, slowly said, "It's fuzzy. There are many kinds of common beasts flying through the safe zones, and these mad beasts all had very different appetites. Some of them loved griffins; some of them preferred skycruising rays, and some even loved human flesh. After breaching our zone, these mad beasts either go for the domesticated creatures, or they fly around aimlessly. I—I can't tell what their actual intention is."
"Is that so? Hmm, the situation has just gotten more complicated…" Baiyi remarked, then turned his attention inward again.
"Hey! Why don't we ask someone who had lived with wild beasts for a long time?" The Soul Armature suggested helpfully.
"Good idea." Baiyi poked the Caveman, requesting his input.
"Errr.. Very honestly? All I know is how good they taste. As for other knowledge? Um, do you know that if you kill their cubs, they go berserk?" The Caveman replied plainly.
'So, why did I think a gastronomer would make a good zoologist?'
Baiyi let the man off the thread and turned to the Walker codenamed Monster.
"Woof!"
"?"
"Woof woof woof!"
"???"
'Ah, for fuck's sake. Trying to ask for advice from a slobbering dog-worm-monster is really stupid. Next!'
Baiyi poked the ever-knowledgeable Scholar.
"D-don't you dare jab at an a-area this… critical!" The Scholar was less than enthusiastic. "I have no interest in zoology, which means that I have nothing to offer. As evidence, when I was alive, I never even owned a common household feline as my pet."
'Oh, that's not surprising, considering how you almost couldn't even feed yourself regularly.'
Baiyi looked around the Void and realized that none of them seemed to have any actual knowledge about animals.
The Astrologer surprised him, though. He gave Baiyi a solid suggestion: "How about you ask this beautiful dragon noble lady? She would know more about the dragonkins than any of us! Mmmmmm, I'm compelled to say 'this really is a lovely dragon'. I mean, she's of a different species, but mm, my careless tongue has been summoned to lick—"
'Okay, if the additional bullshit wasn't there, that would have actually been a solid suggestion.' After silencing the pervert, Baiyi returned to reality and asked, "Excuse my imprudence. I assure you I mean no offense, but is there anything that would scare or upset your kind?"
"Scare? Upset?" The question was weird and awkward, but Aya still gave it some thought and answered, "There really isn't anything that could do such a thing to us. Not at all. We are the proud lords of the sky; we don't harbor such weak sentiments."
"...but, I'm afraid that I myself may be a bit different," Aya added sheepishly, and her head hung low like an embarrassed girl's. "Maybe I've spent too much time with the humans, and some of their emotions had rubbed on me. I'm always afraid that someone on my team would get hurt, or that Mordred would turn rebellious… Upset? Well, if anyone dared lay a finger on my daughter, I supposed I will be very upset."
She was very sincere in her words, especially when she talked about any harm befalling her daughter. A strong killing intent emanated from her when she made that point, making the room feel even more chilly.
'Wow. That's some bond between mother and daughter, huh? Isn't she adopted?' Baiyi decided to dispel the awkward atmosphere now that he had upset her without meaning too.
So he half-jokingly said, "Well, then I guess the best follow-up question would be, is there anything you like in particular?"
"Hmm? Are you… hitting on me?" Aya was stunned by the puzzling off-topic question, but she recovered pretty quickly, sticking her pink tongue out like a schoolgirl. "Oh, and here I thought a gentleman like Master Hope would be smoother than that!" She replied in jest.
'Wait—what? The nervous circuits in the brains of you dragons are wired different, aren't they? I was just trying to make us chill! And don't call me a gentleman! I no longer think it means anything good anymore 2 !'
"You flirted and now you are rebuking her?" Someone in the Void spoke anonymously.
There was no way anyone could get any useful information from the dragon-lady. She may look human and talk like one, too, but deep in her bones, she still had that draconian pride.
'No other way.' Baiyi had to wake the Third Walker up for this particular matter. He poked the Walker with his consciousness as he cried, "Wake up! I need your help!"
"ZZZZzzzz…"
"Oi, wake up! I'm not asking you to join a game or anything! It's important!" Baiyi amplified his strength.
"ZZZZZzzzzz…"
"Er, breakfast's ready!"
"ZZZZzzzz…"
".… Holy shit! Is that your wife cheating with your perfect neighbor, Chad?"
Suddenly, the Void was subject to an enormous vibration that every Walker felt. A leviathan had awakened. An ancient, elder dragon opened its eyes slowly. The atmosphere suddenly seemed to weigh a ton, plummeting, suffocating...
Then, a voice that seemed to pierce through space and time boomed, "Wherefore doth thee waketh me, Brother?"
Its weird tone, which painted the picture of a foreigner trying to speak a new language, resounded in the Void.
Somehow, everyone was embarrassed.
Baiyi had to bite his tongue to stop himself from lambasting the third walker's chosen manner of speech 3 . He shared clips of the present to it, explaining his predicament.
"Such a babling matt'r! Thee can solveth it yourself. Th're wast nay needeth to waketh me!" ["Such a small matter! You can solve it yourself. There was no need to wake me!"]
'What the fuck?!'
"Hey there now. You haven't been conscious for a very long time, and a lot had happened. Isn't it good to let you know about them?" Baiyi tried reasoning patiently.
"Thou art both'ring me with a bawbling matt'r. I am only int'rest'd in bigg'r matt'r, Brother. Fare thee well." [you are bothering me with a small matter. I am only interested in bigger matter, friend. Good bye.]
The Third Walker gave a disinterested reply, and its eyelids began to close, which also finally made Baiyi lose all of his patience. He took hold of his power and retracted, exposing the Third Walker's consciousness to the true Void.
"Ow! ow! Holp me, kind Brother!" [Ow! Ow! Help me, kind friend!] The walker cried out in anguish.
"So you're helping or not?" Baiyi retorted coldly.
" Okay, okay, okay! I won't sleep anymore, no sleeping! 4 " The Dragon King caved.
The real reason why Baiyi kept insisting that dragons were bonkers in the head was mainly because the Third Walker didn't leave much of a good impression on him. After their memory exchange, Baiyi noticed that the oversized lizard had chose to focus on the wrong part of his memory.
This dragon wanted to cultivate itself to become a Daoist deity.
Perhaps, it was all the wuxia or stories that Baiyi had read—for whatever reason, that made this person become obsessed with the spiritual-mystical-tantric things, and the awesome superhuman powers in these books. It really wanted to have those, too.
Hence, it turned to cultivation to pass its unending time in the Void, but unlike real cultivation practices, the lizard opted to cultivate itself—by sleeping.
Fact: This dragon, will never succeed.