Some secrets are buried so deep that only a dead man’s blood can bring them back to the light.Logan stood in the center of the steaming mud crater, his heavy boots sinking into the wet, dark earth. Steam rose in thick white coils around his legs as the last remnants of the magical ice melted away. Right here, under this precise patch of scorched soil, he had held Vance’s lifeless body while his own chest screamed with unholy heat.Are you sure it is right here, Vivienne asked, stepping around the edge of the crater with her silver daggers lowered. The ground just looks like burnt rock and melted slag.It is here, Logan said, his voice dropping into a low, steady rumble. My father did not just give me a story before he died on the border. He gave me a promise.He reached beneath his blood-stained leather vest, pulling out a heavy cord tied around his neck. Dangling at the end of the leather string was a long, triangular key forged from solid obsidian. The polished bl

A heavy explosion directly overhead makes stone dust rain down like fine grey sand. The deep spiral staircase shook violently, throwing Logan against the carved granite wall. Warm dust filled the air, turning the soft golden light of the ancient wall runes into a hazy yellow fog. Down below, the winding stairs stretched into pitch darkness, but above them, the entrance was already glowing with an unnatural, sickly purple light. They found the seal, Vivienne yelled over the deafening roar of falling rock, her hands gripping the stone railing to keep her balance. That was a high-grade siege mortar, Logan said, coughing as he wiped a layer of white grit from his eyes. Vane brought his full artillery unit to the trench line. Another explosive blast thundered above, sending a massive shockwave down the stone shaft that rattled Logan's teeth. The heavy granite walls groaned under the pressure, deep cracks spiderwebbing through the glowing dragon run

The golden liquid did not burn his skin, it flooded his ears with a sound like a thousand thundering drums.Logan sank through the blinding light of the central pool, his black scales glowing hot as the obsidian key in his hand pulled him straight toward the square altar at the bottom. The churning energy above vanished into a quiet, warm silence, and the roaring noise of the cavern died away completely.Suddenly, the dense golden water parted, leaving Logan standing on a smooth glass floor inside a giant pocket of pure, silent air.Sitting on a massive stone throne carved into the glass floor was a towering figure wrapped in robes of pure white flame. The figure stood over ten feet tall, its face hidden behind a mask of solid gold shaped like a roaring dragon. Two brilliant crimson eyes burned through the eyeholes of the mask, looking down at Logan with an ancient, terrifying wisdom.Welcome to the heart of the world, child of dragon blood, a voice echoed in Logan's

The white-hot blade stopped less than an inch from High Mage Vane’s throat, held back by a thick wall of purple gravity magic that hummed like a trapped hornet.You think you are so clever, dragon boy, Vane sneered, his silver beard shaking as he held both hands out to maintain the heavy magical shield. You think this entire siege was about taking your life.Logan pressed his Vanguard blade forward, his black scales glowing with intense crimson light as the sheer strength of his arms began to crack Vane’s barrier. Why else bring an army of shadow mages to the deepest vault in the north?Because killing you would be a complete waste of raw power, Vane laughed, his dark eyes widening with a wild, fanatic glare. Look at you. You survived the unrefined pool. You anchored the divine core to your very soul. You are standing here as the first true living Dragon God in a thousand years.Then why try to smother the pool with anti-magic rods? Vivienne asked, stepping up behind

Her body hit the hard stone floor with a violent crack that echoed across the entire underground cavern.Vivienne gasped for breath, her hands clawing uselessly at the cold marble as High Mage Vane pressed his dark staff downward, flooding her back with hundreds of pounds of invisible gravity magic. Her wooden staff rolled out of her reaching fingers, its soft blue light flickering out against the dust.Look at her struggle, dragon boy, Vane mocked, his face twisted into a cruel, triumphant grin as he stood on the edge of the stone ledge. One more inch of downward pressure and her ribs will shatter like dry twigs. Is this how your story ends?Stop it, Vane, Logan roared, taking a fast step forward, his hand tightening around the heavy hilt of his Vanguard blade.Do not move another inch, Vane warned, his dark eyes flashing with lethal intent as he pressed his staff down another fraction. You take one step toward me and I break her spine right here. You think your sca