Red Scale Road (IV)

Alger led the two to the entrance of the Giant's Maw Cave. Singo landed gracefully on his Wyvern, while Steamed Bun arrived rather late.

"This is it. I will take you to see the master."

As they entered the cave, they felt a wave of heat and the air was thick with the smell of sulfur and pumice, like a volcano about to erupt.

Steamed Bun was still shaken. "Could there be some other trials?"

Singo calmly replied, "No, I suspect this might be the dwelling place of our Faction Leader —the Red Dragon. Notice the strange smell and unusual temperature?"

"According to the intelligence I have received, dragons can even change their surrounding environment."

Steamed Bun clicked his tongue in admiration and said, "If this becomes a boss, it would be a world boss, and a bunch of people would die."

Steamed Bun had no idea that his guess was correct.

We walked along the narrow rock tunnel.

Soon, the view opened up before them, and the two saw the master of this place— the Red Dragon.

What came into view was a colossal body sixteen meters long, with thick, bulging muscles covering it and hard, deep red scales with metallic edges.

On its ferocious and enormous head, golden vertical pupils exuded power, shimmering with a molten lava-like light, while its two thick, bone-white horns swept back like a crown.

The Red Dragon lay prone in the center of the cave, its massive body, as large as a small mountain, rising and falling with its breath. White smoke occasionally rose from its body, and just by looking at it, one could feel the heat emanating from its body, making it seem like a volcano about to erupt.

This was the first time they had ever seen the Faction Chief in his true form.

Steamed Bun couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "Holy crap!"

After thinking for a long time, he couldn't come up with any description given his limited education, so he could only hastily add a sentence.

"It's fucking huge!"

The two half-grown Wyvern were so frightened by the powerful Bloodline Pressure that they lay down, their bodies pressed tightly against the warm ground, making gurgling sounds from deep in their throats, refusing to lift their heads no matter how much the steamed Steamed Bun patted them.

Upon seeing someone arrive, Keosius slowly rose, his golden vertical pupils looking down at them from seven or eight meters above the ground.

"We meet again, Starfallers."

"Are you—ready?"

Alger knelt on the ground, head bowed, and reported, "Master, they have completed the trial you set."

Keosius narrowed his eyes and lowered his head slightly. "Very good, this has exceeded my expectations."

As he spoke, the two could almost feel a blast of hot Sulfur Scent air hitting their faces; the sheer oppressive aura emanating from the enormous figure before them was enough to make them feel somewhat terrified.

The Red Dragon continued, "The Red Scale Conqueror will be my sharpest blades, and from now on, you will shed your weak and powerless human shells and become the most loyal minions of the Ember Nest."

Steamed Bun muttered to himself, "What a pity that my handsome face is going to be ruined like this."

Singo muttered to himself, "Do you want to lose favorability? If not, then shut up."

Keosius ignored them and simply said:

"Alger, let's get ready to begin."

The half- Dragon Knight stepped forward and recited the oath he had prepared. "Before the Ember Lord, the great Red Dragon Keosius, are you willing to swear allegiance, to serve the Ember Nest faithfully for the rest of your life, regardless of good or evil, right or wrong, and to use your flames to conquer all for your master?"

"Are you willing to become the Red Scale Conqueror?"

The task information on the panel has been refreshed.

[Do you accept the faction subclass "Red Scale Conqueror"? If so, please proceed with the ceremony.] [Note: After selecting a faction subclass, you will be locked into the faction and cannot switch at will.] A string of oaths appears at the bottom of the panel.

"I, Steamed Bun, swear allegiance to my lord Keosius Klauberwu, Norikesius, to be loyal, to be the vanguard of the king, to burn away the enemies, and to conquer all."

The two players knelt on one knee and said in unison.

"Very good, please come with me."

Alger blindfolded the two men with a crimson cloth and led them and the Wyvern deep into the cave, to the hidden grotto.

"The Bloodline Gift— "

"Half-dragon transformation".

As Keosius silently recited his will, several drops of scalding dragon blood floated in the air and then merged into the bodies of the two players.

When the dragon's blood came into contact with the fragile flesh, it immediately made a "sizzling" sound and even emitted white smoke.

"Ah!"

As the scalding blood entered his mouth, Steamed Bun couldn't help but scream and roll around on the ground in shock.

"Damn, I've already set my pain threshold to 5%, why does it still hurt so much?"

"I want to shut down my pain sensation!"

Singo couldn't help but breathe faster, his whole body turning red.

White steam billowed from his pores, spreading to the surroundings.

Beneath their skin, the joints of their elbows, knees, and backs bulge wildly, piercing through the skin and clothing, turning into sharp, barbed bone spurs.

Red scales grow at a visible rate, appearing all over the body, on the chest, arms, and even the face, tearing the skin apart.

The faces that the two originally had were created by scanning reality were also messed up by the dragon-like bones and scales, leaving only a trace of the original features. Now they looked more like the grotesque dragon heads.

Despite the pain system being shut down in time, Steamed Bun was still quite frightened, and his panel kept refreshing with new information.

[Data acquisition...][You have obtained a special race template [Half-Red Dragon]][Note: This race template is permanent and will be used upon resurrection.][Your attributes have been greatly improved, and you have gained Natural Armor, Flame Breath, and other Half-Red Dragon abilities...] Blindfolded and still undergoing Steamed Bun, Mantou watched the constantly refreshing information, feeling a sense of exhilaration. If he weren't currently unable to control his body to speak, he would have uttered a soft "Awesome!"

Meanwhile, the Wyvern "Noodles" beside him was also undergoing a transformation. It kept hissing and struggling, its red scales became harder, its slender body became stronger, and its body became larger.

Blood vessels begin to form in its Base Blood Vessels, and its blood radiates a scorching elemental power.

And there's an even more unknown change happening...

[Data processing in progress...][Data processing complete!][Verifying parameters...][Parameter detection complete!][The Wyvern [Noodles] has been detected as your special sub-class mount. It will be considered part of the player's class system. Therefore, when the mount dies, you can Lieutenant General it from the Ancient Magic Array, but you will need to consume items of corresponding value.] "Mounts can be revived?"

"Holy crap!"

"This profession is unbeatable!"

Steamed Bun browsed the information on the panel in the darkness and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.