"Ribbit!"
The surrounding Bullywug warriors were utterly stunned by the sudden, lightning-fast turn of events.
They had witnessed the horrific sight of their chieftain being corroded by venom and the terrifying moment when the massive claw stomped him into the mire.
Fear instantly overwhelmed their false courage. However, a few of the most loyal warriors, after a brief moment of stunned silence, let out angry hisses. They raised their stone spears, attempting to charge at Xia'er, wanting to 'rescue' their already dead king.
"Hmph!"
Xia'er didn't even bother to look at them. Her thick, powerful dragon tail, like a siege battering ram brimming with force, swept horizontally with a sound that tore through the air!
"Thud! Thud! Thud! Smack…"
A series of dull impact sounds and the noise of flesh being sent flying rang out one after another.
Those few Bullywug warriors who tried to charge forward were sent flying back screaming, as if hit by a siege engine at full speed.
Some crashed against hard reefs, their bones broken and tendons snapped. Others fell directly into the cold seawater, splashing up waves, their fate unknown.
[Bullywug slain… Reward obtained: 'Storm Resistance' experience +1.]
[Slaughter Mission: 9/10.]
Easily killing several Bullywugs plunged the entire cove into a deathly silence.
Xia'er coldly swept her gaze over this group of Bullywugs, now as quiet as cicadas in winter. Her massive foot-claw pressed down slightly, completely crushing the Frog King beneath her foot!
"Now, tell me your decision."
Xia'er's voice was icy: "Submit, or die?"
"Gulp! Ribbit!"
A Bullywug Druid adorned with several strands of blackened fishbone necklaces swallowed hard. Its bulging yellow eyes were filled with utter terror. Upon seeing the mountain-like bulk of Xia'er on the beach, it plopped to its knees. Using all its strength, it emitted the most humble, loudest sound of submission:
"Gr… Great true dragon! Gulp! Supreme master! Ribbit! Mud… no no no! The humble Benedict! Is willing to represent the White Pearl Tribe, to offer you eternal loyalty! Gulp! Submit! Ribbit! Submit!"
The White Pearl Tribe was the name of this Bullywug tribe.
The tribe's population wasn't large. Adult Bullywugs with combat capability numbered just over sixty, while non-combatants were fewer than thirty. The Frog King was a level 5 warrior, already slain by Xia'er.
Another, a level 4 hunting captain, had also been turned into paste by Xia'er's sweeping dragon tail in the earlier fight to avenge the Frog King.
Within the entire tribe, only this one individual remained—Benedict, a level 3 Bullywug Druid—who could represent the Bullywug tribe in submitting to Xia'er.
Xia'er coldly glanced over the Bullywug Druid Benedict, prostrate on the ground, and the trembling Bullywug warriors behind him who dared not harbor any thought of resistance. She gave a slight nod.
"Very well, Benedict."
Xia'er's voice remained full of authority: "From this moment, your tribe is the first batch of servants of the 'Jade Wing'. Offer me loyalty, provide blood tribute, and you may eke out an existence on this island. If you dare to betray, I swear I will do everything in my power to exterminate every Bullywug tribe, to make every single Bullywug suffer the most agonizing death!"
"As you command, great Dragon Lord."
Benedict responded respectfully in somewhat clumsy Common Tongue. Though fear still lingered, at least the tribe's continuation was secured.
[Domination Mission: 86/1000.]
A semi-transparent progress bar abruptly appeared before Xia'er's eyes.
Seeing this, Xia'er understood in her heart.
So, does this count as vassals?
No special control abilities, just a simple verbal submission…
Xia'er had originally thought she would need to bestow dragon blood, to perform a dragonline conversion, for it to count as vassals for the domination mission.
The so-called dragonline conversion is when a dragon grants its own essence-blood to other magical creatures, transforming them into dragonline beings who are loyal from the heart.
Only under such conversion could they be considered truly loyal.
With mere verbal submission, it's entirely possible they might betray and rebel someday.
However, a true dragon doesn't care.
What harm could these weak Bullywugs possibly inflict upon a true dragon?
Xia'er stood proudly in place, looking toward Benedict who had submitted to her: "Tell me about this island and the surrounding area. What races live here, what potential enemies exist."
Benedict didn't dare show the slightest neglect. Hurriedly, in broken Common Tongue mixed with trembling 'ribbit' sounds, he described as clearly as possible: "Supreme master, this land beneath your feet, we call it 'White Pearl Island', ribbit! Named after the white pearls abundant in the cove! But now they are scarce…"
"Go east, deep into the ocean, swim for a while, there are dozens more islands! Big and small, scattered in the sea like stars, maybe forty or fifty? I haven't counted them all exactly…"
Benedict extended his webbed claw, trembling, pointing toward the grayish sea horizon to the east, then continued: "These islands, most are occupied by cunning fishmen! Their king, 'Deepsea Sharpfang' Karuluk, is very powerful! Rules the largest 'Sea Reef Plate Island', has fishman warriors as numerous as seaweed!"
Next, Benedict pointed south: "Go south… there are islands too, fewer in number, all other frogman tribes. Go north, more ice, islands are colder, those hateful lizardmen are on some islands to the north."
Mentioning lizardmen, a spark of instinctive hatred ignited in Benedict: "Lizardmen, are our mortal enemies! They are strong, use stone and bone weapons… tougher than us! The White Pearl Tribe was once powerful too! Held four or five good islands! Plenty of food! But the damned 'Black Scale Tribe' lizardmen, they allied with other tribes… defeated us… drove us out… could only flee to this island close to the mainland… ribbit! And… and that terrible great serpent…"
"To the south, occasionally 'big ships' come floating! Human ships!"
"They bring shiny things, strange cloth and weapons, to trade with fishmen, sometimes with us, with lizardmen too! Exchange for our pearls, coral, and… and strange things fished from the sea. They are very careful, only come in specific seasons…"
Finally, Benedict cautiously turned toward the inland direction, the direction of the Karugu Highlands coastline: "The mainland is dangerous! Sometimes huge shadows can be seen flying in the sky, like big lions with wings! And bigger, fiercer eagles, they snatch away younglings who aren't well hidden! I've seen from afar trolls as tall as small hills, covered in hair, walking past. They seem to live beyond the mountains, we only dare hide in the sea and caves…"
Benedict's Common Tongue was terrible.
The grammar was somewhat disappointing.
However, Xia'er didn't demand much.
Bullywugs are a race with inherently low intelligence. Encountering one who understands Common Tongue and can communicate is already a rare occurrence.
But based on Benedict's words, Xia'er…
also heard some information.
"So, the nearby area is actually an archipelago?"
Xia'er gave a slight nod, then her massive dragon pupils fixed on Benedict again: "Explain in detail the situation of the other Bullywug tribes."
"How strong are they, what are their numbers?"
If handled properly this time, the slaughter and domination missions could be completed simultaneously!