Mystic Calling：Stone of Glory-Chapter 107: Man, that’s rough...

The reason Ethan was in such a rush to get back to Emerald Castle was obvious—he had his eyes set on the 13th-tier Legendary Units from Dragon Cliff: the Green Dragons! He wanted to recruit them as soon as possible.

It wasn’t that adding Green Dragons to their ranks would drastically change Emerald Castle’s overall strength.

After all, with Cicero and Seraphina—two absolute powerhouses—already on their side, having one more, or even a few more, 13th-tier Legendary Units wouldn’t make much of a difference. They were a nice bonus, but not a necessity.

But for Ethan, and for Emerald Castle, this was about symbolism.

It marked a turning point—a sign that Emerald Castle had officially stepped into a new era of power.

A new height.

Because once the first Legendary Unit appeared, the second, the third, and eventually many more would follow.

And once they had an army of Legendary Units...

And once their mid- and lower-tier forces caught up, strengthening their foundation...

At that point, Emerald Castle wouldn’t just be Emerald Castle anymore.

It would be the Green Dragon Kingdom.

Just the thought of it made Ethan even more impatient.

Without wasting a second, he rushed back to Emerald Castle at top speed and immediately sought out Elynn.

"Elynn, how much crystal do we have left?" Ethan asked the moment he saw her.

"Master, our current crystal reserves stand at 217 units," Elynn reported.

"Two hundred and seventeen?" Ethan glanced at the 300 crystals he had on hand—100 from completing the Infernal Outpost Battle mission and 200 from securing the Ancient War Tree recruitment site.

His eyes lit up.

"Perfect! That’s just enough... Elynn, I need 180 crystals!"

"Understood, Master!" Elynn immediately transferred 180 crystals to Ethan.

"Let’s go! To Dragon Cliff!" Ethan waved his hand excitedly and took off toward Dragon Cliff, the recruitment site for Emerald Castle’s 13th-tier Legendary Units—the Green Dragons!

[Dragon Cliff]

Allows you to contract and recruit 13th-tier units: Green Dragons.

Available recruits: 2/1 (First-time recruitment grants an extra slot)

Recruitment date: January 1st (natural calendar)

Recruitment cost: 15 million gold, 800 crystals

As soon as they arrived at Dragon Cliff, both Cicero and Seraphina felt an overwhelming sense of comfort and satisfaction.

A deep, instinctual pleasure.

They couldn’t help but let out low, rumbling growls of approval.

"Grrr... Rrhh..."

As Ethan stepped closer to Dragon Cliff, a familiar system prompt echoed in his ears.

"Would you like to recruit a 13th-tier Green Dragon?"

Ding! Player Valkarion’s recruitment discount detected. Adjusting recruitment cost...

Ding! Recruitment cost updated: 9 million gold, 480 crystals!

Did that even need a second thought?

"Recruit!" Ethan confirmed without hesitation.

BOOM!

The entire Dragon Cliff trembled violently, erupting in a dazzling explosion of light—blinding, radiant, overwhelming!

At the same time, in a distant Planar Realm within Glory Lords X, a group of twenty to thirty massive Green Dragons suddenly stirred. Their powerful auras flared as they snapped open their eyes, gazing in surprise at the glowing summoning portal that had appeared before them.

"Someone is calling for us?"

"Hah, now that’s rare. The last time we were summoned was... what, a few hundred years ago?"

"Anyone interested in going?"

"I can feel it... a familiar presence calling to me. Could it be... one of our own? A Green Dragon hero?"

"A Green Dragon hero? No way. You’ve been stuck here too long—you’re imagining things."

"No, I feel it too. There’s a strong, familiar force reaching out to us..."

The dragons murmured among themselves, but none of them stepped forward.

That was the privilege of Legendary Units—they could be recruited, but they could also refuse. And if they declined, the recruitment cost wouldn’t be refunded. Instead, the resources would simply vanish, absorbed back into the Creature Dwellings.

ROOOOAR!

Suddenly, a thunderous dragon roar shattered the air.

A colossal figure—far larger than any of the other Green Dragons—soared through the sky before landing with a resounding thud.

His piercing eyes gleamed with intelligence as he locked onto the shimmering summoning portal, his expression unreadable... but clearly tempted.

The gathered Green Dragons were stunned.

Some even found it unbelievable.

"No... no way. Orryn... what is he doing? He’s not actually thinking about accepting the summon, is he?"

"Impossible! Orryn has never shown the slightest interest in being recruited! What’s gotten into him today? Has he finally had enough of being stuck here?"

"Even if that were the case, with his strength, he wouldn’t just answer a random summon so easily!"

"Wait... look! Orryn is raising his head... he’s staring directly at the portal!"

Among their Green Dragon lineage, Orryn was the undisputed strongest.

A warrior capable of taking on two, even three opponents at once.

He hadn’t yet reached the level of a Unit Hero, but he was already walking firmly down that path—one step at a time, steadily advancing toward Crimson Ultimate status.

If he succeeded, their Green Dragon clan would gain a new legendary figure, a name that would shake the world of Ashan.

It would be an unparalleled honor.

And it was Orryn’s sole purpose.

He had forsaken everything in pursuit of power.

Nothing else mattered to him.

That was why, in the past, whenever a summoning portal appeared, Orryn wouldn’t even glance at it.

But today...

What the hell was going on?!

"ROAR!"

Just as the gathered dragons were struggling to believe what they had just witnessed, utterly dumbfounded—

The massive Green Dragon known as Orryn suddenly threw his head back and let out a thunderous roar. Then, with a powerful beat of his wings, he shot into the sky like a meteor, tearing through the air—

And hurled himself straight into the teleportation portal.

BZZT!

The spatial gateway flickered violently, emitting a deep, resonant hum before slowly collapsing in on itself and vanishing.

The remaining dragons stood frozen in place, utterly silent, as if their minds were still struggling to process what had just happened.

Meanwhile, in the main plane of Glory Lords X, inside Emerald Castle—

"...Uh."

Ethan stared blankly at the now-dim Dragon Cliff, his brain refusing to accept what had just happened. After a long pause, he hesitantly muttered,

"Don’t tell me... my first-ever attempt at recruiting a Legendary Unit just ended in complete failure?"

He knew that Legendary Units could refuse recruitment—Cicero had told him as much. Back then, he had laughed at the idea, thinking it was just an amusing quirk of the system.

Who would’ve thought he’d end up being the unlucky bastard it actually happened to?!

"Man, that’s rough..." Ethan let out a helpless chuckle, caught between frustration and disbelief.

But just as he was about to resign himself to his fate—

ROAR!

A deafening dragon’s cry erupted from the Dragon Cliff, shaking the very air.

Then, from within the fading glow of the cliff, a massive Green Dragon burst forth—majestic, imposing, radiating sheer dominance.

WHOOSH!

With a single powerful beat of his wings, he soared into the sky. His wingspan was so vast that it cast a shadow over the entire castle, blotting out the sun like a storm cloud.

His presence alone was overwhelming—like a mythical beast stepping straight out of legend.

Suspended in the air, the Green Dragon coiled his body, his piercing gaze locking onto Ethan below. His eyes were filled with disdain as he spoke in a cold, commanding voice.

"You—pathetic Half-Elf. Are you the one who dared summon the great Orryn?"

He could sense it—the unmistakable aura of a Summoner lingering on Ethan.

But the moment those words left his mouth—

Seraphina’s expression darkened instantly.

Her fury ignited in an instant.

"You miserable wretch—what did you just say?!"

BOOM!

A terrifying surge of energy exploded from Seraphina’s body.

RUMBLE!

At the same time, her humanoid form shifted—expanding rapidly as a blinding storm of light engulfed her. The sheer force of her transformation sent shockwaves rippling through the air.

Before the Green Dragon could even react—

A Crimson Ultimate-tier Green Dragon Hero, more than ten times his size, materialized in the sky above him.

And with a single devastating swipe of her claws—

She slammed him straight into the ground.

BOOOOM!

It was like the heavens and earth had been torn apart.

Outside Emerald Castle, the sheer force of the impact gouged out a massive crater, thousands of feet wide, right into the ground.

And that wasn’t all—

The shockwave that followed spread outward like a catastrophic earthquake, shaking the land violently, sending tremors rippling in every direction.

The earth shuddered.

And kept shuddering.

As if the entire world was on the verge of collapse.

It was a scene of pure devastation—one that didn’t settle until long after the dust had cleared.

At the bottom of the crater—

The once-mighty Green Dragon, who had arrived with such dominance and arrogance, now lay in a pool of his own blood, barely clinging to consciousness. His body was battered, his breathing ragged—he couldn’t even stand.

If Seraphina hadn’t held back, if she hadn’t been forbidden from outright killing him, Ethan had no doubt—

That single, rage-fueled strike could have ended him on the spot.

"..."

Ethan let out a speechless chuckle, but deep down, he was genuinely touched.

He knew exactly why Seraphina had reacted with such fury—

Because she believed the Green Dragon had insulted him.

And to Seraphina, that was unforgivable.

"Master, this worthless creature dared to insult you. Should I just kill it?"

Seraphina’s voice was still filled with anger as she glared at the broken dragon in the crater, her eyes burning with murderous intent.

She looked like she was one second away from tearing him apart.

To her, Ethan was the most important person in the world.

Anyone who dared to offend or disrespect him—

Deserved to die.

"Alright, alright, Seraphina. Calm down a little."

Ethan chuckled, gently soothing her rage before turning his gaze toward the Green Dragon in the crater.

His voice was calm, but carried an undeniable authority.

"Do you want me to come down there and drag you out? If you’re still alive, get up here. Now."

The Green Dragon shuddered.

Despite his injuries, he immediately forced himself up, dragging his battered body out of the crater.

The moment he landed before Ethan, he bowed deeply, his posture humble and submissive.

"Honorable Lord, please forgive my earlier offense... I did not mean to disrespect you. I sincerely apologize!"

His head remained lowered, but from the corner of his eye, he stole a glance at Seraphina—

And in that moment, his heart pounded with excitement.

"Crimson Ultimate! That power—there’s no mistake! She’s a Crimson Ultimate-tier Green Dragon Hero!"

"Incredible! My instincts were right! There’s actually a Crimson Ultimate Green Dragon Hero here!"

It was obvious now—

The reason he had suddenly accepted recruitment, despite his earlier arrogance—

Was because he had sensed the presence of a fellow Green Dragon Hero—one of Crimson Ultimate rank.

No—

To be more precise, he had felt the power of Cicero’s unique talent—Green Dragon Affinity.

And that power had compelled him to submit.

...