Capítulo 184: Dragon Trials and Tsundere Troubles
The faint cry echoed through the barren expanse like a ghost's whisper, pulling Raja's attention away from his own battle-weary thoughts. He sprinted to Tsundere's side, eyes wide as he took in her disheveled state. Her tattered robes told of a struggle beyond imagination, but it was her face that froze him mid-step. The veil, which had always hidden her identity, had drifted away, revealing features so exquisite they could rival the moonlit sky. But there was no time for poetic admiration—her pale complexion and shallow breaths screamed of her dire condition.
"By the heavens! You look like you've been through a hurricane!" Raja exclaimed, kneeling beside her. He gingerly touched her wrist, feeling the faintest pulse. "Tsundere, if you don't survive this, I'll—" He stopped short, realizing the absurdity of scolding someone on death's doorstep.
Despite her beauty, her condition was dire. Her profound energy was utterly depleted, leaving her fragile as a porcelain doll. Raja's determination solidified. She risked her life for me. This woman—beautiful, stubborn, and incredibly reckless—deserves more than just thanks. She deserves to be my wife.
As if on cue, a low growl rumbled from the dense forest behind them. Raja's acute senses flared. Profound beasts were approaching, drawn by the faint scent of blood. Wasting no time, he scooped Tsundere into his arms. "Hang on, princess. We're taking this disaster to a more scenic location."
Carrying her proved no small feat, not because of her weight—she was as light as a feather—but because of her unconscious tendency to slump in inconvenient ways. Her head flopped against his chest, her hand smacked his face, and he muttered, "If you're trying to slap me even in your sleep, you're a dedicated tsundere, I'll give you that."
Halfway to a dwarf mountain cave he'd spotted, Raja suddenly smirked, deciding to tease her. "You know," he began, glancing at her unconscious form, "if you keep acting aggressive when you wake up, I might just rip your clothes off. Fair warning."
Amazingly, even in her near-comatose state, her brow twitched as if protesting. Raja chuckled darkly. "Noted. Threats of indecency: effective motivator for tsunderes."
The cave offered a cold, silent sanctuary, its darkness stretching far enough to make it feel like the belly of some slumbering beast. Raja set Tsundere down gently, brushing stray strands of hair from her face. "You've done enough, warrior princess. Rest now. I'll handle the rest."
Her body temperature fluctuated wildly as he assessed her condition. He sat cross-legged beside her and activated the Great Way of the Buddha, sending healing energy coursing through her frail body. Golden light bathed the cave, a stark contrast to its eerie darkness. The cave's chill bit at his skin, so Raja summoned a Phoenix Flame, a blazing orb of heat that hovered between them.
The flames licked at the cold air, casting dancing shadows on the rocky walls. That was when it happened—a voice, ancient and resonant, filled the cavern.
"The Phoenix Flame," it intoned. "A rare gift, indeed."
Raja jumped to his feet, fist blazing with energy. "Who's there? Show yourself, or I swear I'll burn this cave down and find you in the rubble!"
The voice chuckled, deep and rumbling. "Relax, young one. I am but a residual soul of the Primordial Azure Dragon."
Raja froze. His mind raced. The Primordial Azure Dragon? He recalled Jasmine's awe when she mentioned it. Head of the Divine Beasts. Stronger than the Phoenix. His lips quirked into a grin. "Well, well. Looks like I've got a VIP haunting me. Should I feel honored or worried?"
The Azure Dragon ignored the sarcasm, instead explaining its purpose. "You stand within my trial grounds, young one. For millennia, I have sought a successor to inherit my legacy. Your courage in facing the Flood Dragons and your Phoenix bloodline have brought you here."
Raja's grin widened. "Legacy, you say? I like the sound of that. Tell me more."
The dragon outlined the trial's nature—dangerous, grueling, and impossible for anyone without extraordinary qualities. Over a hundred challengers before him had perished, their bones now a grim warning scattered across the trial grounds. Raja's grin didn't falter. If anything, it grew sharper. "Sounds like my kind of party. Sign me up."
"Are you certain?" the dragon asked, a note of caution in its tone. "The difficulty can be adjusted. But should you choose the extreme path, you risk death."
Raja cracked his knuckles. "Let's not kid ourselves. I'm here for the full legacy. Give me the extreme version. No pain, no gain, right?"
The dragon chuckled approvingly. "Very well. Prepare yourself."
Before entering the trial, Raja turned to Tsundere, who had regained partial consciousness. She weakly protested as he prepared to send her to his personal dimension for recovery. "I don't need your help," she muttered, her voice barely audible.
"Of course you don't," Raja replied, his tone dripping with mock sincerity. "But humor me, will you? I'd rather not fight dragons while worrying about you bleeding out on a rock."
With a flash of golden light, he used the Great Way of the Buddha to stabilize her condition, then sent her to his dimension. Alone in the cave, he took a deep breath, meditating briefly to center his mind. The teleportation formation activated, and the trial began.
The highlands Raja found himself in were both majestic and desolate, their isolation broken only by the sudden appearance of two towering Stone Dragon Warriors. They charged with stone spears raised high, their massive frames rumbling the ground with every step.
Raja cracked his neck. "Two? This is the extreme version? Don't insult me." With a single, haki-coated fist, he shattered them into rubble, their spears crumbling like stale biscuits.
But the waves kept coming—four warriors, then eight, then sixteen. Each time, Raja's strikes grew sharper, his movements more fluid. When Jasmine's voice chimed in, scolding him for choosing such a reckless trial, he laughed. "Oh, come on, Jasmine. If I didn't aim high, what kind of protagonist would I be?"
By the time thirty-two warriors surrounded him, Raja's breath came heavier, but his grin remained. He unleashed a barrage of Ryou Haki-infused punches, the sheer force of his strikes creating shockwaves that obliterated the warriors before they could close in. "This is better than a gym membership," he quipped, flexing his arms as rubble rained down.
The waves doubled each time. Sixty-four warriors emerged, their synchronized attacks forcing Raja to switch between combat styles. Sweat dripped from his brow, but his resolve never wavered. The seventh wave, with 128 warriors wielding an array of weapons, pushed him to his limits. A spear grazed his side, drawing blood, but he shrugged it off. "Is that all you've got? My grandmother hits harder!"
Finally, the eighth wave appeared—256 warriors, their meteor hammers glowing ominously. Raja clenched his fists, acknowledging the brutal difficulty. "Okay," he muttered, wiping sweat from his forehead. "Maybe I overdid it a bit. But hey, go big or go home, right?"
The warriors charged, and Raja met them head-on, his fists blazing with energy. Despite the overwhelming odds, he fought with a ferocity born of sheer determination. For every hammer that swung, he delivered a counter-strike that shattered stone and shook the highlands.
As the last warrior fell, Raja stood amidst the rubble, battered but unbroken. He grinned, wiping a mix of sweat and blood from his face. "Extreme difficulty, huh? That's just my warm-up."
From the shadows, Jasmine watched in stunned silence. For once, the ever-critical voice in his head had nothing to say.
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