Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 317: Ghost of Black Swan Bay (2)

Dragon Raja 3

The pipe seemed like something an old man would use, but on a man as refined as him, it had an unexpected charm—languid yet seductive. The smoke spread around them like a white veil, enveloping them in a shroud.

“You must be curious about the ‘god’ sleeping within Takamagahara. There are, of course, no real gods in this world. What people call gods and demons are simply things beyond human understanding. Many things in the world are revered as gods, but the so-called ‘god’ in Takamagahara is merely a slumbering skeleton—the remains of the White Empress,” Ruri said softly.

“I doubt it’s just a simple skeleton,” Chu Zihang responded.

“Of course, it’s not that simple. Dragons are magnificent creatures, and the White Empress was one of the emperors among them. Even though she has been dead for over ten thousand years, traces of her bloodline and genes still remain within the bones. When the conditions are right, the bones can form a new embryo, and the White Empress will return to this world.”

Caesar drew in a sharp breath. “And you’re still keeping such a dangerous thing around? You should have destroyed it long ago—strapped it to a nuke or launched it into space with a rocket!”

“Indeed, it is an extremely dangerous thing—whether it’s the bone of a demon or a god depends on whether we see the Dragon Raja as gods or devils. The Yamata no Orochi clan has passed down a belief through the generations: when the White Empress resurrects, she will grant her blood to her descendants, helping us evolve into pure-blooded dragons. How wonderful it must be to become a dragon, to have an extended life, to be able to resurrect through cocooning even after death, to have powers beyond human capability, to be born a king, eternally indulging in both pleasure and battle without sorrow,” Ruri continued in a hushed voice.

“That is the last remnant of an ultimate creature in this world. Who could bear to destroy it? Fortunately, Izanagi didn’t think that way. He was the only human to have directly interacted with the White Empress, and he knew how terrifying an ultimate creature could be. He sealed the Holy Remains in a well, and from among his descendants, he chose three of the most exceptional children, granting them the roles of priests. That’s the origin of the three inner families. The Genji family corresponds to Amaterasu, the Tachibana family to Tsukuyomi, and the Uesugi family to Susanoo. The heirs of these three families are respectively titled Amaterasu-no-Mikoto, Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, and Susanoo-no-Mikoto, with ‘Mikoto’ being a title of respect for the priests. My brother is Amaterasu-no-Mikoto, a man who reigns over the world like the sun.”

“Where is that well located?” Caesar asked.

“It’s called the ‘Well of Bones,’ located somewhere outside Takamagahara, though no one knows the exact location. Do you know about Mongolian noble funerals? A son would take his father’s remains deep into the vast plains, secure the remains between two wooden planks bound with golden rings, and bury them vertically in the ground. Then, thousands of cavalrymen would ride over the plain, flattening the earth. The noble’s son would bring a female camel and its calf to the burial site. In front of the mother camel, he would slaughter the calf at the grave, ensuring that only the mother camel would remember the grave’s location. While the mother camel lived, future generations could follow her to the grassy burial ground to pay their respects. But once the mother camel died, no one would ever be able to find the burial site again. Izanagi used a similar method—he didn’t want his descendants to find that well,” Ruri paused, “but the Holy Remains still awakened.”

“Has the White Empress hatched?” Chu Zihang asked.

“No, the Holy Remains are just bones—they cannot hatch on their own. They must merge with living flesh. Izanagi sealed them in the deep well to prevent them from ever coming into contact with any Hybrid, for these are the bones of the White Empress, who was a master of controlling spiritual elements. Her very nature is to lure living beings to fuse with her remains. But Izanagi himself was like that mother camel—he knew where the deep well was. As long as he lived, the Holy Remains would still have a chance to awaken,” Ruri flicked the ash from his pipe. “He was the hero who sealed the Holy Remains, but even heroes grow old, their minds muddled. In the last years of his life, he shriveled up, barely human in appearance, sustained only by dragon blood. Every night, he dreamed of his beautiful wife, Izanami, a seed the Holy Remains had planted in his mind. That seed had been sown in his youth and only sprouted when his mind had withered with age.”

“So Izanagi dug up the Holy Remains again and fused with them, transforming into a monstrous dragon. In myth, this dragon is known as the Yamata no Orochi, the first generation of the eight-headed serpent. It was enormous, ferocious, and a devourer by nature. Fortunately, it hadn’t yet completed itself. In such a state, it was still possible to kill it. Susanoo-no-Mikoto retrieved the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi, forged by Izanagi, from a shrine and poured a massive amount of mercury into the river where the Yamata no Orochi drank. Mercury is lethal to dragons. The Orochi drank the mercury-laced water and, weakened by the poison, was killed by Susanoo.

“But even Susanoo’s life was near its end. In his most weakened state, the Holy Remains planted another seed in his mind. He became the second person to fuse with the Holy Remains. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi thought the Holy Remains had been destroyed along with the Orochi, so they buried Susanoo’s body as a hero in Takamagahara. But the Holy Remains awakened again, this time inside Susanoo, giving birth to the second generation of the Yamata no Orochi. Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi sacrificed themselves to seal the monster, using Takamagahara as its tomb. The ancient city, along with its foundations, sank into the sea. Over eight kilometers of seawater separated the Holy Remains from any Hybrid, cutting off its chances of reawakening, until the Lenin ship sank into Takamagahara. It was like a key unlocking the tomb of a god. The ancient dragon’s blood flowed into the lock, awakening that dreadful thing.

“Now, the Holy Remains have awakened and left Takamagahara. We don’t know what form they have taken or how far they have developed. It’s like a gigantic specter, wandering the land of Japan. Given enough time, the Yamata no Orochi will be reborn in this world. And if given even more time, it will evolve into the White Empress. That would be the White Demon King, and only the Black Emperor can subdue it. But Nidhogg, the Black Emperor, is already dead. If the White Empress is resurrected, she will be invincible,” Ruri concluded.

“According to your Japanese mythology, the Yamata no Orochi was a creature as large as mountains. Biologically, that’s impossible,” Caesar said. “If such a gigantic creature existed, its weight would crush its own bones.”

“It may not have been as large as mountains, but it was indeed an incredibly massive dragon. It was born incomplete—stagnant, savage, and colossal, a devourer by nature. In the murals, it wasn’t depicted as a majestic dragon soaring through the skies, but as a monstrous beast lying motionless on the ground, its own weight having crushed its bones, with its eight heads stretched out into eight rivers to drink,” Ruri said. “But that was not its final form. Eventually, it will break free from its cocoon and reign over the world as the White Empress.”

“If such a colossal dragon existed in history, where are its remains? Dragon bones are far more resistant to decay than human ones. If they still exist on land, such a massive object would be hard to miss,” Chu Zihang said.

“I don’t know, but if I ever get the chance to see it, I’ll make sure to take a picture with it as a memento,” Ruri chuckled.

“That joke isn’t funny at all,” Caesar said.

“Now, let me present you with another gift: a second story. But before we dive into the story, why don’t you take a look at this file,” Ruri said, handing Caesar a file he had prepared in advance.

It was a brown file, old and tattered, bearing the emblem of the KGB, with a sword and shield, a red five-pointed star, and a sickle and hammer. Though the KGB had long been dissolved, the name still commanded fear. Alongside MI6, the CIA, and Mossad, it was one of the world’s four major intelligence agencies, and at its peak, its authority surpassed that of all other Soviet institutions. The KGB’s remit spanned everything from intelligence gathering to political assassinations. There was a time when, within the Soviet Union, just mentioning the KGB made people speak in hushed tones.

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