Ashen Dragon

Sak glanced around, a trace of viciousness flashing in his eyes: "Right, this matter must not be leaked. If anyone dares to betray us to Solo... I'll make sure they wish they were dead!"

"Clap, clap, clap!"

Suddenly, applause echoed above the clan leaders' heads, followed by a familiar voice: "You lot really managed to surprise me!"

The tone at first carried icy sarcasm, but then erupted uncontrollably into rage and venom: "Traitors of the Beastman Race!"

When they heard that voice, Sak's expression changed dramatically. His face turned pale, and he slowly lifted his head, lips trembling as he uttered the name: "So... Solo, how are you here?"

"What?"

"Damn it! When did he arrive?"

"You... you all look up, he's been here the whole time!" The voice of one clan leader cracked with sobs.

The Beastmen raised their heads in unison, seeing Solo standing atop the cliff, gazing down at them with a ferocious, vein-bulging countenance. His bloodshot eyes were filled with murderous intent. Towering over six meters in height, his muscular form seemed as imposing as a small mountain.

Beside him stood two massive green-skin Orcs, each nearly five meters tall, draped in patchwork heavy armor cobbled together from various parts, wearing sharp steel claws, and bearing twisted grins on their faces.

These towering Orcs loomed at the peak of the valley, casting enormous shadows that engulfed the gathered clan leaders below.

"So... Solo the Chieftain."

"You've misunderstood us!"

"Yeah, you must've heard wrong! How could we be traitors?"

The sound of weapons clattering to the ground echoed around as the clan leaders' weapons dropped from their hands. They exchanged glances, faces filled with shock and panic.

The moment Solo appeared, under the overwhelming pressure he exuded, the once outraged clan leaders seemed to crumble as though their spines had been shattered, leaving them incapable of standing straight.

Only Sak of the Frost Wolf Clan remained defiant.

Though his face had turned ghostly pale, almost bloodless, he still gripped his spear with trembling hands, barely supporting his weight as he stood and questioned, "So... Solo, what gives you the right to be the Great Chief?

You, you drained the entire Wuge Prairie to create millions of low-level Beastmen, only to be crushed by the Ashen Empire! You are utterly unworthy—"

"Swish—"

First came the burst of air tearing apart, then the sickening "squelch" of flesh and bone being pierced.

Sak's words had clearly touched upon Solo's sore spot. In a fit of rage, the Great Chief hurled his spear directly at Sak.

Blood sprayed wildly as the spear penetrated the Beastman's skull, its tip protruding from his pelvis and embedding deep into the rock behind him.

The Frost Wolf Clan's Chieftain, the renowned Beastman Warrior Sak, was pinned to the wall and killed by Solo with a single casual strike!

Sak died with his eyes wide open, head tilted upward, gazing at Solo with an expression of disbelief. Even in his final moments, he couldn't fathom that Solo would actually kill him.

For a moment, the valley fell silent as death. It was only after a long pause that voices broke out:

"Sak... is dead."

"He's dead."

"Pinned to the rock like that."

This was Sak—the leader of the Frost Wolf Clan! His forces included over a thousand Worgs Cavalry, and even Batu treated him with respect befitting an elder.

And now, Solo had killed him like he was nothing more than a chicken?

Suddenly, an immense wave of fear swept through the gathered clan leaders in the valley. The traditions passed down for thousands of years seemed fragile, on the verge of destruction...

"Great Chief, I'm innocent! They manipulated me!"

"I harbored no intent to rebel, it was—Sak! That dead fool proposed the idea! Please discern the truth, I've always risked my life for the Beastman Race!"

"Great Chief, spare me, our Cold Crow Clan is willing to pledge everything in loyalty to you!"

Cries of pleading and despair flooded the valley. Faced with Sak's bloody corpse, these once-proud clan leaders now cowered like a pack of tail-wagging mutts.

The leader of the Rock Lizard Clan buried his face into the ground, sobbing and kowtowing so hard that blood streamed from his forehead, yet he paid it no heed.

Solo looked down at them, disgust piercing through his gaze.

The more these clan leaders begged, the more Solo despised them, the stronger his urge to annihilate them grew.

In an icy tone, he said: "Sak questioned my qualifications to be the Great Chief of the Red Blood Tribe. I suppose the answer is now very clear."

Solo flexed a fist larger than most people's heads, flashing an eerie grin: "This alone can kill all of you. Isn't that enough?"

"Enough, enough."

"More than enough."

The clan leaders in the valley hurriedly nodded in agreement, faces filled with humility and desperation, their only wish to preserve their lives.

After all, Sak's corpse was still warm, fresh blood trickling from it.

But Solo entirely ignored their reactions, continuing, "The great Father God Gush once said: If you want to die early, show weakness, because—weaklings are unworthy of living in this world."

"Boom!"

Solo leaped down from the cliff, the ground quaking on impact, dust flying everywhere, leaving the clan leaders paralyzed with fear, unable to move.

He gripped the spear lodged in Sak's skull and, with a small effort, yanked it free.

Immediately, warm blood and brain matter exploded like a fountain, splattering across Solo's face and body. He stood there unconcerned, indifferent, his focus solely on the clan leaders.

Solo surveyed the surroundings, the blood streaking his face forming an almost ritualistic icon, exuding a sinister, carnage-laced aura.

"You possess power yet dared to conspire against the Red Blood Tribe. When caught, you don't resist, instead choosing to grovel like worms. Do you think—that you deserve to live?"

"What?"

"Do you intend to kill us all?"

"Solo, you've gone too far! If you kill us, the Red Blood Tribe will fall apart!"

"Sak is already dead; we can still coexist! Don't push us to the brink!"

Suddenly, the Beastmen in the valley grew visibly distraught. Their faces involuntarily contorted with despair, terror, and fury.

Some even cursed outright: "Solo! If the clans unite against you, not even a true Divine Favored could escape death!"

But Solo strode out of the valley without a backward glance, his voice cold as he ordered: "Wipe out these traitors completely."

"Yes, Great Chief."

"This is my favorite type of work!"

Before the terrified gazes of the clan leaders, the two massive green-skin Orcs on the cliff burst into insane laughter and leaped down as well.

"You, what are you doing?"

"Bastards! Do you intend to defy your master? As a Pure-blood Orc, I command you to leave immediately!"

"Stay away from me!"

The clan leaders tried to muster their remaining authority, shouting angrily, as though their words alone could drive the attackers back.

But the two Orcs paid no heed, their grins growing darker as their steel claws swung. Brilliant flashes of light sliced the air, blood sprayed, and severed limbs scattered wildly.

In mere moments, the valley turned into a blood-soaked slaughterhouse. The rock walls dripped fresh blood, corpses of clan leaders littering the ground, while the two Orcs knelt before Solo, bathed in gore.

"Great Chief, we've killed all these old fools."

"What a thrill!"

These two Orcs were newly appointed leaders chosen by Solo; their names were Galron and Mond, both utter devotees of carnage.

Solo nodded casually, treating the massacre as nothing more than trivial: "Cut off their heads and hang them outside the tents. Let's see how the warriors of the clans react.

If any show signs of rebellion, kill them all—their kind are merely remnants of an outdated era."

Excited by the opportunity for more killing, the two Orc captains eagerly accepted the task.

Solo turned his gaze to the pile of corpses nearby, speaking indifferently: "Oh, throw their bodies into the Mother River.

Though weaklings and cowards, they are undeniably stronger than ordinary Beastmen. As fertilizer—they should help grow bigger, stronger Orcs."

"Yes, Great Chief."

The two Beastman leaders replied in unison and gleefully began gathering the remains, brimming with excitement for the next slaughterfest.

Solo, meanwhile, lifted his head and stared toward the South, hatred blazing in his eyes: "Just you wait, Ashen Empire, the day is near..."