Body Changes & Hunter's Tacit Understanding

These guys don't even rest at night; they work in shifts. One group mines during the day, and another mines at night... Then they use the vehicles they made with overtime to transport the rocks and ores back to their camp.

What's a bit funny is that the Hunters haven't domesticated the local Herbivore Species yet, so they're pulling the carts themselves—they're truly incredibly strong, needing only two individuals to pull the cart all the way back.

However, observing the Hunter ecosystem is no longer Xingyan's main focus. After hunting that Sleepy Floater Dragon a while ago, Xingyan quickly found another opportunity to hunt several more.

Without further ado, he just ate them.

After eating a full six Sleepy Floater Dragons and their air sacs, perhaps because he had ingested enough... well, evolutionary information?

Or perhaps it was because Xingyan's prayers while eating these things had taken effect, but in any case, by the time he ate the fourth Sleepy Floater Dragon, his body finally began to undergo some abnormal changes.

It wasn't like the Sleepy Floater Dragon or the Floating Dragon, where a forceful inhale could inflate them into a balloon. Fortunately, it wasn't this kind of change; otherwise, Xingyan didn't dare to imagine how a Dragon Slayer that had become a fat ball would be ridiculed.

Of course, he didn't develop any abilities to secrete hypnotic substances either; he didn't turn into a sleeping Dragon Slayer.

What changed was Xingyan's carapace. To be precise, another layer of carapace appeared on top of the original one.

Shell on shell.

At first glance, it was still a dark red color, but these carapaces that appeared on the original ones completely lacked the defensive power of the layer beneath them; instead, they were very light.

They were filled with compressed air, and Xingyan could even sense their presence, allowing him to consciously control these surface carapaces to inhale large amounts of air.

Could this be considered... an air sac?

His own air sac.

Not an internal organ, but an external... organ?

A large number of external organs, even if they haven't appeared on every piece of carapace yet, they are already quite numerous.

But could these little things truly achieve his goal, increase his buoyancy, and help him fly into the sky in the future?

Xingyan had indeed tried jumping to see if he felt any lighter when he took off, but perhaps because these shell-on-shell layers hadn't covered his entire body yet, he honestly felt no significant difference.

The bigger change was to his appearance—uh, he became uglier.

The mineral secretions that were already scattered on his carapace made him look like a spotted dragon, and now there was an extra thick layer of shell-on-shell, making Xingyan's surface look like a mountainous terrain with highs and lows, uneven.

Alright, to be honest, it looked like a giant cauliflower, or some kind of tumor.

No wonder those accompanying Scholars from the first expedition came up with such absurd theories; Xingyan's current appearance was indeed very sickly.

He was somewhat aware of his current appearance. After all, every time Xingyan went to the Flower Field Marshland Area to drink, he would admire his handsome dragon appearance in the water's surface, but unfortunately, he couldn't appreciate it as much lately.

But it didn't matter. He believed that as he hunted more Sleepy Floater Dragons and consumed more Life Energy, this uneven, minor flaw would eventually disappear.

Given a dragon's lifespan, he could wait.

Time flowed by unhurriedly. Hunting, eating, growing... Unknowingly, Xingyan had been in this world for over a year.

For a young Dragon Slayer, they are cared for by the adult female dragon for about a year after hatching. This period is enough for them to grow to a size capable of hunting independently and to forge their Sword Tail into a sharp greatsword.

After that, they have to live alone because they are no longer young Dragon Slayers. The adult female dragon loses all her previous patience and maternal instincts at this point and kicks the newly hatched Dragon Slayers out of her territory.

If these young Dragon Slayers wanted to stay, they wouldn't be met with their mother's care but with her greatsword.

It's safe to say there's a reason why the population of Dragon Slayers has never been high. Too many factors limit their numbers, preventing the ecosystem in their living areas from collapsing.

However, for Xingyan, an anomalous Dragon Slayer, he had long surpassed this stage, not just in terms of living alone but also because his size had approached that of an adult Dragon Slayer about two months ago.

Nothing else, just his incredible appetite.

Large amounts of food, abundant Life Energy. With Xingyan's special abilities, it would be strange if he didn't grow this large.

This speed was even slowed down by his evolutionary abilities. Most of the Life Energy Xingyan obtained from eating was used to cover his entire body with mineral secretions and those shell-on-shell layers.

Even so, these new changes hadn't covered his entire body; they only covered the bottom of his heat dissipation shells, his chest and abdomen, and small parts of his body.

This was because his body size was also growing rapidly during this period, creating a cat-and-mouse situation.

But it didn't matter. Xingyan believed that as his body size gradually approached the limitations of the Dragon Slayer species or his body's limits, this growth would slow down or even stop, and the evolutionary changes on his body would eventually catch up.

If the previous Xingyan looked like a cauliflower among dragons, appearing sick at first glance, then the current him was like a knight wearing full plate armor.

Ordinary Dragon Slayers could at least be described as slender, but the current Xingyan was a full circle thicker than an ordinary Dragon Slayer, very burly.

It was like how among the Ape Dragon Species, there are ordinary Ape Dragon Species and Gold Rathian subspecies.

But don't let Xingyan's current burly and imposing appearance, which makes him look incredibly heavy, fool you. When he actually moves, his actions are agile beyond an enemy's imagination.

This is because the layer that makes him look so robust is just an outer layer on top of his true carapace, a... Air Sac Carapace—it's detachable and can regenerate.

When these Air Sac Carapaces fall off, Xingyan doesn't even feel pain.

Correspondingly, these Air Sac Carapaces don't provide much defense. They are filled with compressed air, so they are not only not heavy but actually increase Xingyan's buoyancy, making him more agile when moving.

It's deceptive, allowing for tactical play, and also enables Xingyan to jump higher and run faster. However, there are pros and cons. Lacking the boost from his own weight, Xingyan cannot increase the power of a downward strike by using his body weight when jumping and slashing.

Overall, Xingyan was quite satisfied.

On the road to his dream of flying, he had taken the first step.

"Hurry, hurry! Put more effort into it!"

"Shh! Quiet! That guy is still inside!"

A creaking sound echoed from the road outside the den once more; it was the sound of Hunters pushing their carts, some urging each other on in hushed tones.

It was strange, but over the past half-year, Xingyan had gradually claimed this area centered around his den as his territory.

And at some point, perhaps the first time he'd ignored the Hunters pushing carts past him, he wasn't sure when...

Anyway, without realizing it, Hunters had gradually become accustomed to using this wide road in front of his den when transporting their prey or mined ore.

The first reason was convenience; this wide road, with only stones and weeds, allowed them to reach their base in the shortest distance.

The second was safety. This was Xingyan's territory, and as long as Xingyan didn't attack their carts, it meant that no reckless fools, like Great Jagras or other strange creatures, would suddenly leap out to attack their cargo.

After the first group of Hunters, sweating profusely, passed by Xingyan, who was staring at them, this situation inexplicably continued.

But honestly, Xingyan was starting to feel like moving lately.

On one hand, as his body continued to grow and was expected to keep growing, the cave that initially housed him and his Kulu-Ya-Ku brother had become exceptionally cramped.

Yet, he didn't want to destroy this place filled with memories, so he decided to move.

On the other hand, it was a bit too noisy with Hunters constantly passing by his doorstep... especially since these guys sometimes transported prey, and the smell of fresh blood always made Xingyan's appetite grow.

It was quite interesting, though, this peculiar tacit understanding. One day, when he woke up and went outside, Xingyan even found a dead Carapace Dragon right outside his den, still fresh.

Although he searched briefly and found no trace of any Hunters nearby, Xingyan had reason to believe the Carapace Dragon was left there by the Hunters, possibly Scholars hiding nearby, observing him.

Without a second thought, Xingyan kicked the Carapace Dragon away – he didn't want to eat anything the Hunters sent him in this manner.

Of course, he couldn't know what the Scholars were thinking, but as he kicked the Carapace Dragon away, Xingyan wickedly thought to himself if the Scholars would write in their investigation report about him: "Arrogant disposition, only eats food he hunts himself."

But thanks to this strange tacit understanding, Xingyan at least didn't have to worry about his Kulu-Ya-Ku brother being hunted by passing Hunters for materials.

As for the Hunters of the First Expeditionary Force, there were indeed a few skilled individuals among them, but honestly, most Hunters were rather mediocre, only capable of preying on small dragon species like Kulu-Ya-Ku.

And in the resource-scarce Great Sand Sea, these Hunters mostly used equipment made from these small dragon species.

To help the Hunters distinguish his Kulu-Ya-Ku brother from the other ordinary Kulu-Ya-Ku in the Great Sand Sea, Xingyan painstakingly made a mark for it.

Hmm, perhaps it could also be said that he put a set of armor on his Kulu-Ya-Ku brother?

Enduring the pain, he tore off three plates of shell from his side, still connected to each other. Xingyan carefully used his Sword Tail to drill a hole in the center of each of these three plates – this was truly meticulous work.

Given Xingyan's current size and the thickness of his Sword Tail, doing this was akin to pulling out a strand of noodle, but this noodle had to be thin enough to pass through the eye of a needle.

It could only be said that Xingyan was sweating profusely, his heart filled with the intensity of a tiger gently sniffing a rose.

But the result was good. After drilling a hole large enough to pass through the Kulu-Ya-Ku brother's head, Xingyan carefully placed the shell plate around its neck – the slender neck, eventually resting on its chest where it met its front claws, with the two front claws extending through the side holes.

Hmm... it looked a bit like an ancient prisoner wearing a cangue, about to be beheaded...

Cough, cough, cough! What was he thinking!

This wasn't a cangue, but something highly protective. The central plate with the hole ensured it stayed securely on the Kulu-Ya-Ku brother, while the two dangling plates on the sides protected its flanks, like wearing a small vest.

As for the appearance... who cared, as long as it was functional, and at least the objective was achieved.

Thanks to this obvious shell marking, Hunters could easily identify this Kulu-Ya-Ku as the companion of the strange Dragon Slayer that ignored their cargo carts, thus refraining from hunting it.

To be honest, the current Hunter base was filled with discussions about this bizarre-looking Dragon Slayer and its Kulu-Ya-Ku companion, even forming a strange trend.

Initially, there were voices within the base, out of safety concerns, about whether to gather a hunting party to take down the Dragon Slayer. Otherwise, given its aggressiveness, it would be troublesome if it discovered the base and attacked.

However, such voices were quickly suppressed by the few Scholars in the base. As Xingyan's physical changes became more apparent, with his shell and mineral secretions gradually increasing, they also dismissed their initial hypothesis that this Dragon Slayer was diseased.

They now believed they had discovered a subspecies of Dragon Slayer living in this new land – perhaps even a "two-name monster."

Therefore, it held immense research value, and might even be the only one of its kind, so they couldn't treat it crudely.

Moreover, even taking a step back, in the absence of the Leader and Commander, it was uncertain if the remaining Hunters even had the capability to hunt this Dragon Slayer.

They were here to investigate, not to die.