Lord: Sequence Master

Inside the Time Tower, Rosen was carefully applying his depiction technique to create a painting of the nature fairy he had captured.

Initially, he intended to tame the nature fairy, but the stubborn creature refused to submit. With no choice but to adapt his plans, Rosen settled on an alternative.

He painted a portrait of the nature fairy, then imprisoned the real fairy within the painting's prison. The fairy in the portrait would wield the maximum amount of the original's power, maintaining the vital divine authority over nature needed to transform the transcendent plants in Rosen's Divine Domain.

At the outset, Rosen had established numerous potion fields, hoping to produce valuable transcendent plants. However, despite some of his catfolk transitioning into farmers, the potion fields' yields remained underwhelming. The low-grade transcendent plants grown there weren't particularly valuable, most being used to improve the daily meals of his subjects rather than for significant profit. More powerful transcendent plants required years or even decades to mature.

Thus far, these fields had been of little personal use to Rosen.

With the nature fairy now in his possession, however, things were about to change dramatically.

Although Rosen already had harvest divinity through his connection to the Feathered Serpent God, using it required him to transform into the god and keep the authority active in his domain for extended periods. It wasn't practical for frequent use.

After half a month of work, Rosen finally completed the nature fairy's painting. Meanwhile, the Storm Thunderbird egg stored in the Time Tower was approaching its hatching time. In the final days, Rosen had to slow down the time acceleration to carefully control the Thunderbird's development.

Once the nature fairy's painting was complete, and it began tending to the potion fields, Rosen eagerly turned his attention to the trembling egg, ready to hatch.

Activating his golden divinity, Rosen poured divine energy into the egg. It shook violently until a golden beak broke through the shell. A fledgling, covered in radiant golden feathers, slowly emerged. The bird chirped and fluttered its wings as it leapt into Rosen's arms, nuzzling him affectionately. Having absorbed the essence of the Golden Apple Tree and been nurtured by Rosen's golden divinity, the bird instinctively viewed Rosen as its closest kin.

Upon inspection, Rosen realized the fledgling was born as a Sequence 7 being. Moreover, the eggshell still contained pure golden divinity. Once the bird consumed the eggshell, it would likely evolve to Sequence 6. Its growth would slow after that, unless Rosen contracted it as a pet, which would significantly accelerate its development.

For now, he placed the Storm Thunderbird in his divine pet pen, letting it rest there while he attended to other matters.

With his domain's affairs settled, Rosen decided it was time to explore the spiritual realm of the Thunder Empire. The spiritual realm was perilous but promised rich rewards, such as an increased chance of finding soul gems.

Rosen, confident in his defenses, especially with the Golden Shield from his crest ring, which offered a minute of protection with a one-day cooldown, felt ready for the challenge. As long as he avoided anything as powerful as a Sequence 2 entity, he could retreat into the Mysterious Study Room if necessary.

He activated Slothful Steps, vanishing from the physical world and stepping into the spiritual realm.

In the real world, the Natural Rainforest was drenched in rain, but in the spiritual realm, it appeared as an endless desert of yellow sand. The rainforest had once been a desert, transformed 20,000 years ago by the Thunder Church, and the spiritual realm reflected this ancient landscape.

Rosen sent out his Hunter's God Eye, soaring into the air to scan the surroundings. Soon, he spotted an oasis, where kobolds were tending to fruit trees, hastening their ripening with magic before retreating to their tents. Rosen's Virtual Realm revealed a vast underground city beneath the oasis, home to tens of thousands of kobolds. The surface oasis was an artificial creation, its water source deep underground.

These weren't ordinary kobolds—they were dragon-descended kobolds, creatures with dragon blood coursing through their veins. Their intelligence was higher than that of typical spiritual realm beings, making this an unusual sight.

Normally, the surface of the spiritual realm housed low-intelligence beings, while more intelligent lifeforms thrived deeper below. However, these kobolds had likely been displaced from the Thunder God's shattered divine kingdom, evolving into a unique tribe over time.

Rosen summoned 50 Crypt Demons, all Sequence 7, including three mutants. This was the advantage of troop buildings: they could endlessly produce high-sequence soldiers. There were rumors that the World Government possessed a Sequence 1 troop building capable of producing a Sequence 1 transcendent every century, nearly matching the natural birth rate of human Sequence 1s. The potential of such high-level troop buildings was terrifying.

The Crypt Demons burrowed into the sand, infiltrating the kobold city undetected. The dragon-descended kobolds had likely never faced a serious threat, and as such, they had no alarms or defenses in place. Like ghosts, the Crypt Demons set up traps throughout the city, altering the terrain to prepare for Rosen's assault.

Once the traps were laid, Rosen sent in his 35 Ash Bees, who burrowed through the sand using Greymouse's tunneling ability. He activated Heavenly Descent and Bloodline Awakening, transforming the Ash Bees into Ash Queens capable of producing vast numbers of Ash Kings.

The Ash Kings unleashed volleys of stingers imbued with true damage, instantly killing any kobolds below Sequence 7 without a sound. In mere seconds, half of the kobold population on the city's outskirts had been wiped out.

Realizing they were under attack, the dragon-descended warriors and shamans of the tribe scrambled to respond. However, the traps set by the Crypt Demons activated, turning sand into quicksand and stone, burying large sections of the city and trapping most Sequence 6 and weaker kobolds.

Only a hundred kobolds made it to the surface, including six Sequence 5 warriors, a dozen Sequence 6 fighters, and a few Sequence 7 shamans.

Rosen, mounted on his mechanical pet, immediately turned and fled, baiting them into a chase. Sitting backward on his mount, he aimed Dragon King's Wrath at the Sequence 7 shamans. With his future targeting system, the bullets appeared directly in front of the shamans as soon as they were fired. The devastating power of the Sequence 5 Dragon King's Wrath ensured no Sequence 7 kobold could survive even a single hit.

Seeing their comrades picked off, the remaining kobolds halted their pursuit and regrouped to protect their strongest members. Only four Sequence 5 warriors and two Sequence 5 shamans continued the chase.

Rosen used his superior mobility and ranged attacks to harass them, forcing them into defensive positions with each shot. Realizing they were only losing more soldiers by chasing him, the kobolds finally gave up and returned to their city.

The warriors shielded the shamans as they began preparing a large-scale ritual. Soon, a sandstorm whipped through the desert, blotting out the sky. The kobolds moved faster within the storm, while Rosen's mount slowed down.

Rosen activated Void Shadow Step, slipping into the storm's shadow to escape pursuit once again. Meanwhile, the shamans returned to their buried city, using earth element magic to excavate the survivors and gather the fallen kobolds' corpses. They then summoned Vengeful Souls from the bodies to aid them in continuing the hunt.

Sensing that he couldn't target the shamans directly, Rosen turned his focus to the warriors.

Summoning his self-portrait clone, Rosen created three water clones, armed with Dragonfang Daggers, to charge one warrior. At the same time, he released his Nightmare Slime to engage another warrior and deployed the Brilliant Lighthouse, now in its solar jellyfish form, to block a third.

Rosen himself wielded the Void Canvas, projecting a 100-meter-wide combat arena into reality. This high-sequence transcendent artifact, created through his depiction technique, could isolate an area for a few seconds, giving Rosen an advantage in the brief confrontation.

The warrior charged at Rosen, roaring and leaping forward, but Rosen, protected by his golden divinity, was unfazed. When the warrior followed up with a Ground Slam, invoking gravity to pin Rosen down, Rosen fired multiple future silenced bullets. These bullets drained the duration of the warrior's Dragon Blood Shield, leaving only the warrior's natural dragon scales for defense.

The warrior's sword struck Rosen's Holy Shield, which could withstand even a demigod's blow, leaving the warrior vulnerable. Rosen followed up with Thunder Breaker Rounds, specially crafted in the Thunder Empire, which pierced through the warrior's defenses, ending the fight decisively.

The dragon-descended warrior's body was riddled with holes, each one crackling with high-intensity lightning that further damaged his internal organs. The paralysis effect from the lightning left him temporarily incapacitated.

Seizing the opportunity, Rosen unleashed his Devourer Beast, which promptly swallowed the warrior whole.

With the first warrior dealt with, Rosen swiftly exited the void arena. By now, his self-portrait clone was struggling, and the remaining three warriors, seeing only Rosen emerge, immediately turned and fled in perfect synchronization.

Their reasoning was simple: with one warrior down, they now faced two-on-one or two-on-two scenarios, which would likely result in them being eliminated even faster if they stayed to fight.

Rosen allowed two of them to escape but focused his efforts on the last one.

The Nightmare Slime sprouted arms, each extending a life chain—an ability it had stolen from a transcendent beast in the rainforest. The life chains wrapped around the remaining warrior, binding him and reflecting any damage inflicted on the Nightmare Slime back to him.

Rosen shot the Nightmare Slime while his self-portrait clone plunged the Dragonfang Dagger into it, causing the slime to bleed profusely. The Brilliant Lighthouse, in its solar jellyfish form, wrapped its tendrils around the Nightmare Slime, triggering a massive explosion of solar energy that created a towering mushroom cloud.

The self-portrait clone narrowly escaped via teleportation, and the Nightmare Slime, left charred and near death, struggled to recover. The dragon-descended warrior, having been fatally injured through the life chains, also succumbed to his wounds and died.

The last two warriors, now terrified, fled even faster, moving at a speed Rosen couldn't hope to match.

Rosen summoned his Angel Beast to heal the Nightmare Slime while the battered creature devoured the fallen warrior's body, recovering its strength through its Devourer Stomach. Meanwhile, Rosen noticed a soul gem where the warrior had fallen—a Sequence 7 soul gem, valuable enough to upgrade a Sequence 8 territory building to Sequence 7.

Without hesitation, Rosen handed the gem to the Brilliant Lighthouse, allowing the solar jellyfish spirit to absorb and enhance itself. Although its skills and traits remained the same, it had now advanced to Sequence 7, making it strong enough to challenge Sequence 5 beings.

Rosen, no longer interested in taking prisoners, ordered his Devourer Stomach to produce highly concentrated stomach acid, which fully digested the remaining dragon-descended warriors still trapped inside. This time, there were no bodies left—only two glowing orbs dropped after their deaths.

One orb contained over a million spiritual crystals, while the other held a Ground Slam skill crystal, a common skill usable by those in the knight sequence. Though valuable, it paled in comparison to the Sequence 7 soul gem Rosen had just acquired.

Rosen, riding his mechanical mount, advanced toward the remaining dragon-descended kobolds. To his surprise, they had all retreated into a giant eggshell, seemingly intent on defending it to the death.

The space inside the eggshell seemed abnormal, and Rosen suspected it served as the kobolds' last stronghold.

Maintaining a safe distance, Rosen raised Dragon King's Wrath and fired a four-phase spatial element bullet at the eggshell. However, the bullet was blocked by a piece of shell that had been placed over a crack, held in place by someone inside.

After attempting various strategies—including sending in the Devourer Beast, which failed to swallow the eggshell—Rosen realized he had no choice but to approach it directly. He activated Heavenly Descent, summoning hundreds of Ash Kings, but even their powerful piercing abilities failed to breach the eggshell's defenses.

With no other options, Rosen crept closer to the eggshell and placed his hand on it. He opened the Mysterious Study Room and stepped inside, quickly finding a window that allowed him to observe the inside of the eggshell.

From the outside, the eggshell appeared to be only about nine meters in diameter. However, the interior was enormous, at least a kilometer wide, and covered in red sand. Growing from the sand were five stalks of corn-like transcendent plants.

One of the dragon-descended shamans was harvesting fruit from the stalks. After peeling back the husk, the fruit resembled corn, but the kernels were like droplets of water with red liquid flowing inside.

The shaman handed kernels to the dragon-descended kobolds, while the rest went to the two warriors. After consuming the droplet-like fruit, the kobolds began to drool, greedily eyeing the remaining fruit on the plants. Several Sequence 7 kobolds even rushed forward, their desire overwhelming them. The two shamans hastily erected a barrier around the plants, blocking the view and restoring order. Eventually, the kobolds calmed down and slowly fell asleep.

Rosen contemplated this scene for a moment before deciding to consult the Main God Network. His research quickly revealed the origins of the plants: they were indeed a type of corn, but specifically Dragon Source Corn—a treasure for all dragon-type creatures. However, it could only be cultivated inside the eggshell of an extinct species: the Fairy Dragon. Outside the eggshell, Dragon Source Corn would rapidly rot and dissolve.

Now certain that the eggshell belonged to a Fairy Dragon, Rosen realized the incredible value of what he had stumbled upon.

In ancient times, the Thunder God may have used Dragon Source Corn to tame bronze dragons, a powerful Sequence 1 dragon species. Encountering such miracles was rare enough, but actually having the means to claim them was another matter.

Without the Mysterious Study Room, Rosen might have discovered the eggshell and corn, but without the ability to breach the defenses, he would have had to leave empty-handed—or share the spoils with others. But now, he had an opportunity to take everything for himself.

Rosen left the Mysterious Study Room and approached the crack in the eggshell, pressing his hand against it once again. He opened the Study Room and re-entered, moving closer to the window.

From there, he summoned his Ash Bees, transforming them into Ash Queens and activating Bloodline Awakening, which caused Ash Hives to form on their bodies. From these hives, 315 Ash Kings were born and flew out of the window.

The Ash Kings could not travel farther than 350 meters from the hives, but that was more than enough to reach the nearby dragon-descended warriors. Each of the 315 stingers, imbued with the true damage and piercing capabilities of a Sequence 6 attack, critically wounded the warriors.

One of the dragon-descended shamans reacted quickly, casting chain lightning that struck all the Ash Kings, while the other shaman erected a barrier spell to protect the remaining kobolds.

Though the Ash Kings fought through the lightning, they were eventually overwhelmed by the shamans' combined spells. However, the damage had already been done—the Ash Kings, despite their Sequence 8 defenses, had dealt devastating damage with their Sequence 6 attacks, leaving many kobolds crippled.

The older shaman, realizing the danger, decided it was no longer safe within the eggshell. After conferring with the warriors, they divided up the remaining Dragon Source Corn and cautiously exited the eggshell.

The first thing they did was shrink the eggshell down to the size of a palm. The older shaman pocketed the eggshell, and the four remaining Sequence 5 kobolds scanned the area for any signs of Rosen. Finding none, they burrowed into the sand, retreating deeper into the desert, leaving traps and alarms behind to deter pursuit.

What they didn't know was that Rosen was safely concealed inside the Mysterious Study Room, which remained attached to the surface of the eggshell.

Rosen could have launched a sneak attack and killed the shaman carrying the eggshell, but he held back, curious to see where the kobolds might lead him. There was a chance they had more valuable secrets—or possibly more dangerous traps. Confident in the Study Room's protection, Rosen decided to follow the kobolds and see where this journey would take him.

(End of Chapter)