Ashen Dragon-Chapter 452 - 374 The Fire Elemental Plane
Chapter 452: Chapter 374 The Fire Elemental Plane Chapter 452 -374 The Fire Elemental Plane “Swish—”
In an instant, the world before Cassius turned black and white. Everything around fell silent, leaving only the narrow passageway.
He had entered the Ethereal Plane.
The Inner Plane was dominated by the laws of matter, while the various Elemental Planes were connected to the Prime Material World through the etheric passages.
“Back to the Ethereal Plane again…”
Cassius gazed at the monochrome scenery around him, letting the spell’s power drive him toward his destination.
In the distance, the energy tide roiled violently, but the teleportation spell could pierce through it, landing straight at the destination.
However, after a moment of contemplation, Cassius forcefully flapped his wings, stepping out of the “safe zone” formed by the etheric passage.
“Boom!”
The sound of tearing silk echoed, and the surrounding energy seemed to roar and howl.
Meanwhile, the Fire Dwarf in his claw continued to wail.
“Your Majesty, Cassius!”
“Wait! Let me out first!”
“My lord, this is very dangerous! The frenzied elemental tide will tear us to shreds!”
The Red Dragon chuckled, “Heh, aren’t I taking you home?”
“Relax, guide, I will ensure your safety.”
The sound of air friction crackled.
His massive dragon body continually broke through the spatial constraints, finally seeing the distant, fire-lit, endlessly hot, and dangerous world.
As the Red Dragon gradually approached, the flame-laden fierce wind around him grew more intense.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
Explosions from energy collisions erupted around him, with the frenzied elemental tide surging like waves.
The Inner Plane was a realm of natural energy and pure elements, in an extreme state and conditions.
They were the building blocks of the cosmos, the primordial matter, and energy in its basic form.
As a travel destination, the Inner Plane was remarkably hostile to beings from the Material Plane.
Unprepared travelers seemed utterly helpless against this powerful force, and in the worst cases, they could be snuffed out like candles in a storm.
However, as a Red Dragon with ancestral lineage, Cassius felt not fear but a profound sense of comfort.
“Is this the energy of the Fire Elemental Plane? Now, this is interesting!”
“Roar—”
Cassius let out a light whistle, with flames flickering in his golden slitted pupils.
He suddenly tightened his wings, trailing a magnificent blaze behind him.
The screeching sound of tearing air was heard.
Next was the “crash” of something breaking.
The Red Dragon broke through the surging energy tide, plummeting straight from the sky like a scarlet meteor, forcibly breaking into the world of flames.
“Boom!”
The scorching ground shattered, with sparks and ashes flying everywhere.
The Red Dragon looked up at the sky, seeing nothing but endless red.
His scarlet, searing dragon body appeared perfectly at home in this world, as if he’d merged with it.
This was a constantly burning plane, exuding the scent of scorched flesh and dreams turned to ash.
This was the embodiment of flame—the Fire Elemental Plane.
Everything in the Fire Elemental Plane glowed with fire.
The ground was nothing but a gigantic, shifting, flattened flame plate; the air writhed in threads under the constant heat of flamestorms, and the most common liquid was magma rather than water.
Oceans were formed of flowing fire, and mountains seeped magma.
Widely found humans could not live here; it was the shared home of Fire Imps, Fire Dwarves, Fire Lizards, and Fire Giants.
It was a crematorium for ill-prepared travelers, and even for well-prepared adventurers, it was not a comfortable place.
The flames here needed no fuel or air to burn, consuming brought-in combustibles rapidly.
Flames dominated the Fire Elemental Plane, with only scant elements and other matter existing like islands amidst the dominant element or energy.
“Ah~~”
Cassius let out a contented sigh, spreading his wings and shaking his body, gazing down at the Dragon Crystal on his chest.
The surrounding flames constantly surged into it, making the crystal pulse with light.
Even the “ground” beneath his feet was composed of thick flames, ashes, and fragments.
For mortals, this was a frightful Purgatory.
But for Cassius, it could be considered a vacation paradise, with the surrounding fire elements resonating with him.
“What a wonderful place…”
The Red Dragon’s face wore a menacing grin, seemingly reveling in it all.
“Ouch!”
He loosened his right claw, letting the Fire Dwarf named Glen Cardoso fall to the ground, curling up into a ball.
After a long while, Glen looked himself over and found that his bronze-cast body was undamaged. He breathed a long sigh of relief.
“By Moradin…”
“Crossing into the Elemental Plane with flesh and blood, what a madness, what a terrible experience!”
But soon, Glen looked up at the Red Dragon with caution, “Your Majesty, Cassius, to enter the Fire Elemental Plane this way, your strength far exceeds my imagination.”
Returning to the Fire Elemental Plane, the Fire Dwarf’s hair and beard burned even more vigorously.
Cassius glanced at him and simply asked, “Where are we now?”
Glen looked around, pondering for a moment before answering, “This is the Burning Wildlands, Your Majesty Cassius, it’s the territory of the Fire Giants.”
Hearing the name of the Fire Giants, Cassius’ eyes flickered, but he quickly asked again.
“Where is the Empire’s stronghold?”
Glen answered in great detail, “In our Fire Dwarves’ Brass Fortress.”
“Your army has defended us against multiple invasions by the Fire Lizard plunderers, you are the benefactor of all Fire Dwarves.”
“Excellent, lead me there.”
“Wait, Your Majesty….”
Cassius gripped the Fire Dwarf again in his claw, flapping his wings to stir the heated gale and taking to the sky.
Birds with wings of flame scattered in fear, letting out terrified cries.
“Is it this direction?”
“Yes… Your Majesty, according to the common units of the Material Plane, it’s about thirteen hundred miles to our Fire Dwarves’ Brass Fortress.”
“Good.”
“About an hour’s flight.”
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Cassius flapped his wings again, his speed skyrocketing, piercing the sky with a deafening sonic boom.
This was merely Cassius’ cruising speed.
As the Red Dragon was surrounded by an energy shield and the Fire Dwarf was a bronze-cast elemental creature, Glen did not lose consciousness.
While flying, Cassius asked, “Why are the Fire Giants sending armies to invade you?”
In his past life memories, the Fire Dwarves and Fire Giants were arch-enemies, with many Fire Dwarves captured as slaves, forced to work endlessly.
The Fire Dwarves were a race particularly committed to fulfilling their duties—even as slaves.
Some Fire Dwarf slaves were even chosen to oversee their kin.
The devotion to order was deeply ingrained in this race; they would rather wait for the contract to end or for the master to die than to actively rebel.
And this was why Cassius found the Fire Dwarves particularly fascinating—they were born laborers!
This aligned perfectly with the Ashen Empire.
Upon hearing Cassius’ question, Glen gritted his teeth, speaking with hatred, “You may not know, long ago, the Fire Giants used to be our allies.”
“Together, we resisted the tyrannical rule of the Fire Elementals’ Master.”
“We even helped build the Fire Giants’ home—the City of Brass. It was our proudest masterpiece, an unparalleled marvel.”
“And the ‘Ironforge City’ that Lady Misha visited was built under my supervision.”
“But when we completed our work, those despicable Fire Giants betrayed us, even attempting to enslave us, fearing the city’s secrets would leak…”
Upon saying this, the Fire Dwarf’s tone grew increasingly angry, and the flames on his body flared more intensely.
Hearing this, the Red Dragon’s eyes suddenly lit up.
“Truly despicable.” He echoed.
But internally, Cassius felt excited, forming numerous alternative plans.
Easy to deceive.
Dutiful.
Extremely law-abiding, possessing a spirit of dedication, and skilled in labor.
Simply perfect.
Those Fire Giants were not despicable, rather sheerly wasteful! Trying to blatantly enslave, only to lose hearts and minds.
The Ashen Empire was different.
The Empire could pose as the most “loyal” ally to the Fire Dwarves, ensuring no nominal enslavement.
“The Empire lacks loyal allies like you…,”
Cassius sincerely remarked.
“Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty.”
Glen didn’t perceive the Red Dragon’s malicious intent, thinking he was praising the Fire Dwarves’ virtues, and bashfully scratched his head.
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