The old lizardman spilled all the information he had obtained.
Xia'er, meanwhile, fell into silent contemplation.
According to the old lizardman, the situation on the icy plains was intricate and complex. Leaving aside minor factions, it could broadly be divided into three main powers: the Frost Giants, the White Dragons, and the human kingdom, the Innsuit Kingdom.
Furthermore, there were many magical creatures. In any case, to this day, the icy plains had not been unified; no single powerful force held absolute sway.
The White Dragon corpse that drifted down on the ice floe was large, about fifteen meters long. It was most likely a White Dragon in the young dragon stage.
Its body bore many wounds. If nothing unexpected had occurred, it had probably encountered some attack, fled severely injured, and ultimately succumbed to its wounds.
The corpse fell into the Sea of Frost and drifted south with the ocean currents, where the lizardmen found it, making a windfall.
As for the human merchant caravan involved in the trade, it was not the same one that had traded with Xia'er at the Bullywug clan earlier. Instead, it was a caravan that had come from the east over half a year ago.
These caravans all shared the same goal: to reach the Innsuit Kingdom on the icy plains and trade with the Innsuit people.
The Innsuit Kingdom was the only human kingdom on the glacier. Although its territory was not large, roughly the size of one or two duchies, no one would question the authority of the Innsuit King.
King Hegsesis of the Innsuit Kingdom, known as the 'King of Human Longevity,' was able to establish a nation on the glacier because he had slain a Legendary creature from the glacier—a White Dragon that had entered the Legendary realm. By completing this feat, the Legendary Proof, he became a true living legend among humans.
With such a human legend guarding the north and protecting the region, it naturally attracted merchant caravans from other human kingdoms to come and trade, exchanging common daily goods for the relatively scarce resources of the glacier.
And if taking the sea trade route, some caravans would pass through the Star Mist Archipelago.
The land-based tribes closest to the Star Mist Archipelago were some goblin tribes and subordinate races under the Frost Giants, such as ogres, trolls, and the like.
"The icy plains, or rather the glacier, is indeed vast."
Xia'er let out a long sigh. The icy plains were expansive and far beyond her current reach.
It was better to focus on what was right in front of her.
After her inquiries, Xia'er turned her gaze to the platform piled with spoils of war and the three dragons under her command.
"In this battle, the Cassius Flight has demonstrated its might." Xia'er's authoritative voice echoed, drowning out the roar of the waves. "The spoils shall be distributed according to merit."
"Red Dragon Tyrone."
Xia'er looked at the magma-like giant figure. "Your flames destroyed the enemy ships, first to break the enemy's spirit, your fighting spirit is commendable. You are granted half of all golden ornaments obtained in this battle, plus twenty gold coins."
Upon hearing this, an unmistakable glint of greed flashed in Tyrone's draconic eyes. He stepped forward, eagerly pawing at the golden vessels and shiny coins, then gathered them all in front of himself.
"Black Dragon Saga."
Xia'er then looked at the wounded Black Dragon. "Though you were wounded earlier, you fought valiantly in this battle as well, washing away your previous shame. Furthermore, you will command the Bullywugs and guard the seas. You are granted all copper coins obtained in this battle, plus one hundred silver coins and ten gold coins."
Saga lowered his head, glanced over the currency, and immediately replied respectfully, "As you command, Lady Xia'er."
"White Dragon Disos."
Xia'er's gaze fell upon the physically smallest White Dragon. "You have already been tasked with guarding the northern border and monitoring the icy plains. You are granted five gold coins and thirty silver coins to fortify your lair and demonstrate the Flight's grace and authority."
Disos instantly flapped his wings excitedly, letting out a short, joyful chirp. "Tha... thank you, Lady Xia'er! Disos will certainly live up to your trust!"
For him, this was an unprecedented fortune.
Red Dragons love gold, so Xia'er granted most of the gold to Tyrone.
Black Dragons love currency, so Xia'er granted the largest quantity of coins to Saga.
As for what White Dragons like...
What White Dragons like is unimportant. No one cares. A token gesture is enough.
As for all the remaining treasure.
Over five hundred silver coins and eighty gold coins.
They were all hers.
"The remaining amount shall go into my treasury, to be used to strengthen the lair of the 'Jade Wing' and uphold the glory of dragonkind."
After speaking, Xia'er paused briefly and also began calculating. "Valentina also deserves a share of respect. One-third of this shall be offered to her."
Valentina's strength needed to be acknowledged. As before, consider it money to maintain the relationship, having Valentina watch over them until they grew up.
"Disos, take this old lizardman and one wooden ship to take over the eleven northern islands."
After distributing all the spoils, Xia'er looked at Disos and issued the order.
The main force of the lizardmen had been completely annihilated in the battle. What remained were the old, weak, sick, and disabled. Disos could go and accept their surrender without needing a major military operation.
"Yes."
Disos was still immersed in the joy of receiving gold coins. Upon hearing Xia'er's order, he immediately beat his wings, already eager to go take over the lizardmen's islands, serve Xia'er, and thereby earn more gold coins.
Only one of the lizardmen's 'warships' remained untouched. The twenty-odd lizardmen who had submitted to Xia'er, looking dejected, boarded the last 'warship' and sailed north.
As for the spoils on this island, they were far more than just these gold, copper, and silver coins.
These gold, silver, and copper coins were merely from chests that Saga had salvaged from the seabed.
However, precisely because of this, Xia'er was quite curious. "Saga, where did you salvage these chests from?"
"From a shipwreck. The Bullywugs had discovered the sunken ship long ago, but due to insufficient strength, they couldn't open the ship's door," Saga replied respectfully.
Hearing this, Xia'er nodded slightly.
It seemed it was just a windfall, not something to rely on long-term.
However, the other spoils from this battle were worth considering.
For example, the armor provided by the human merchant caravan.
A full one hundred sets.
Only, during Xia'er's battle, over thirty sets were damaged. Now, only about seventy sets were usable.
That was enough.
Bullywugs couldn't wear iron armor. For Bullywugs, their skin was their best strategic weapon. If they wore armor, they would be unable to swim underwater, losing their greatest advantage.
Therefore, the ones most suited to equip these seventy-plus sets of armor were the kobolds who had been guarding White Pearl Island.
"Boring."
After obtaining these golden vessels and coins, Tyrone grew restless. He was already finding it hard to stay on this barren island. He immediately bid farewell to Xia'er. "I'm returning to manage my new lair and prepare for my next dragon sleep. If there are any orders, send someone to find me."
With that, Tyrone spread his wings and flew towards the southwest.
Seeing this, Xia'er did not reprimand him excessively. Instead, she silently began planning her next steps.
The number of islands under her command had now reached nineteen.
The entire Star Mist Archipelago consisted of sixty-three islands.
The remaining forty-four islands all belonged to the Fishman Royal Court.
And the number of warriors in the Fishman Royal Court exceeded ten thousand!
If not for the fact that the Fishman Royal Court's primary focus was on the boundless ocean to the east, mainly entangled with races like the Merfolk, Locathah, and Naga living in the ocean east of the Star Mist Archipelago, and they didn't want to get too close to land.
Otherwise, they would have long ago conquered the lizardmen and Bullywug tribes.
And these fishmen of the Fishman Royal Court were the most notorious Sahuagin.
Sahuagin are also called sea devils. They are malicious ocean dwellers sharing many traits with sharks.
They slaughter and devour anything they catch, attacking coastal dwellers in the dead of night.
They are extremely evil fishmen.
The Merfolk, Locathah, and Naga are races with neutral or good alignments, and they don't get along well with the Sahuagin.
"For the next period, we should try to pass the time as peacefully as possible, until we safely pass through the young dragon stage."
Xia'er glanced around and said earnestly to Saga, "If nothing unexpected happens, I will also enter dragon sleep soon."
The time for her next dragon sleep was drawing near.
Dragons, being magically gifted creatures, grow during their sleep.
The younger the dragon, the more frequent their slumber.
During dragon sleep, a young dragon converts all accumulated nutrients into energy, greatly enhancing its physical functions and gaining some magical abilities.
The young dragon stage naturally involves more than one dragon sleep.
Furthermore, if a dragon is injured, it can also enter a healing sleep.
Saga was clearly somewhat surprised. "Approximately how long will your dragon sleep last?"
Although dragon sleep was normal for dragons, they were nearly the same age. For Xia'er to enter dragon sleep so soon seemed a bit early.
The Red Dragon Tyrone had also said something similar. Was the interval between their dragon sleep periods so short?
"Unclear. It could be a few months, or perhaps two or three years."
Xia'er said, "I will undergo dragon sleep under Valentina's protection. During this time, I entrust the islands to you, Saga. If any enemies appear, go seek aid from Valentina. If the human merchant caravan returns, trade the dragon scales I've collected with them, and ask for several more barrels of Black Oil!"